Wakilii

Ekwire v The Managing Director Century Bottling Co. Ltd (HCT-04-CV-CA 29 of 2003)

High Court · [2004] UGCOMMC 44 · 2004 Plaint Struck Out AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for damages arising from alleged breach of contract; defendant raised preliminary objection on point of law
Decision
Suit dismissed; plaint struck out

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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AI-generated summary. This summary was generated by AI from the full text of the judgment. It may contain errors or omissions—always read the source judgment before relying on it.

Holding

The High Court struck out the plaint for failing to disclose a cause of action. The plaintiff sued the Managing Director of Century Bottling Co. Ltd personally, but the end user agreement annexed to the plaint showed the contract was between the plaintiff and Century Bottling Co. Ltd as a body corporate. A company registered under the Companies Act can only sue and be sued in its corporate name. The Managing Director was not a party to the contract and was wrongly sued.

Outcome

Suit dismissed; plaint struck out

Facts

The plaintiff sued for special and general damages arising from injuries and loss sustained when a cooler supplied by Century Bottling Company Limited under an end user agreement exploded, causing a fire in his shop. The fire caused extensive physical and material injuries to himself and his wife. The plaintiff annexed a copy of the end user agreement between himself and Century Bottling Co. Ltd to the plaint. The agreement was signed by the plaintiff and one Okiror Lawrence signing 'For Century Co. Ltd'. The plaintiff sued 'The Managing Director Century Bottling Co. Ltd', described in the plaint as a male adult of sound mind who was the Managing Director of Century Bottling Co. Ltd. The defendant raised a preliminary objection that the plaint disclosed no cause of action because the contract was with the company, not the Managing Director personally.

Issues

  1. Whether the plaint disclosed a cause of action against the defendant who was sued as 'The Managing Director Century Bottling Co. Ltd' when the contract was between the plaintiff and Century Bottling Co. Ltd as a body corporate.

Orders

  • Plaint struck out for not disclosing a cause of action against the defendant.
  • Suit dismissed with costs to the defendant.

Rules and key headnotes

Corporate Personality — Capacity to Sue and Be Sued — Distinction Between Company and Officers
A company registered under the Companies Act is a body corporate separate and distinct from its individual members and can only sue and be sued in its corporate name, not through its officers or directors personally.
Pleadings — Striking Out Plaint — Cause of Action — Wrong Party Sued
Where a plaint is based on a contract with a corporate body but names an officer of that body as defendant rather than the company itself, the plaint discloses no cause of action against the named defendant and must be struck out under Order 7 rule 11(a) of the Civil Procedure Rules.
Amendment of Pleadings — Failure to Apply for Amendment
Where a defect in pleadings is pointed out in the defence and the plaintiff fails to seek amendment either by motion before trial or in a summary manner at trial under Order 11 rule 13 of the Civil Procedure Rules, the court has no option but to rule on the pleadings as filed.

Legislation cited (4)

Cases cited (1)

  • Salomon v A Salomon & Co Ltd [1897] AC 22

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Ekwire v The Managing Director Century Bottling Co. Ltd (HCT-04-CV-CA 29 of 2003) [2004] UGCommC 44 (23 August 2004)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.