Wakilii

Fresh Cuts Uganda Limited v TotalEnergies Marketing Uganda Limited (Miscellaneous Application No. 1017 of 2024)

High Court · [2026] UGCOMMC 23 · 2026 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to set aside default judgment and decree entered in summary suit, and to reinstate application for leave to defend
Decision
Application to set aside default judgment dismissed; default judgment and decree remain in force

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The court dismissed the application to set aside a default judgment and decree entered in a summary suit. The court held that service of summons was effective when left at the applicant's registered office with a security guard after the process server was denied entry, in accordance with Order 29 Rule 2(b) of the Civil Procedure Rules. Time for filing an application for leave to defend began running from the date summons were left at the registered office, not from when the managing director discovered them. The applicant's subsequent application filed outside the prescribed ten-day period was time-barred and incompetent, and the default judgment was therefore properly entered.

Outcome

Application to set aside default judgment dismissed; default judgment and decree remain in force

Facts

The respondent filed a summary suit against the applicant on 4 May 2023. Summons were issued on 26 July 2023. On 3 August 2023, the process server was denied entry to the applicant's premises and left the summons and plaint with a security guard. The applicant's managing director contends he only discovered the documents at the company gate on 21 August 2023. The applicant filed an application for leave to defend on 28 August 2023 via the ECCMIS system. On 22 September 2023, the Registrar entered a default judgment, followed by a decree on 31 January 2024. The applicant's earlier application for leave to defend was dismissed as having been overtaken by events. The applicant then brought this application to set aside the default judgment and decree, arguing that service was ineffective and that the default judgment was entered in error because their application for leave to defend was already on the court record.

Issues

  1. Whether the Applicant has sufficient grounds for setting aside the Default Judgment and Decree in Civil Suit No. 0608 of 2023.
  2. Whether Miscellaneous Application No. 2023 of 2023 arising out of Civil Suit No. 0608 of 2023 should be reinstated and fixed for hearing interparty.

Orders

  • Application dismissed.
  • Costs awarded to the respondent.

Rules and key headnotes

Service of Process — Service on Corporations — Leaving Documents at Registered Office
Under Order 29 Rule 2(b) of the Civil Procedure Rules, service of summons on a corporation may be effected by leaving the documents at the registered office or the place where the corporation carries on business, even if left with a security guard, where the process server has been denied entry after using due and reasonable diligence.
Service of Process — Effective Service — When Time Begins to Run
Service is effective for the purpose of computing time limits when documents are left at the defendant's registered office in accordance with the Civil Procedure Rules, regardless of when a director or principal officer of the corporation actually discovers or reads the documents.
Summary Suits — Application for Leave to Defend — Time Limits
An application for leave to defend filed outside the prescribed ten-day period under Order 36 of the Civil Procedure Rules is time-barred and incompetent, and a default judgment entered in the absence of a competent application is not issued in error.
Setting Aside Default Judgment — Good Cause — Time-Barred Applications
Where an application for leave to defend was filed outside the prescribed time limit and was therefore incompetent, the court cannot find good cause to set aside a default judgment on the ground that the application was on the court record, as the court had no use for an incompetent application.

Legislation cited (9)

Cases cited (9)

  • Rosette Kizito v Administrator General (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 9 of 1986)
  • Geoffrey Gatete and Angella Maria Nakigonya v William Kyobe (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 7 of 2005)
  • Banco Arabe Espanol v Bank of Uganda (1999)
  • NEC v Mukisa Foods (Court of Appeal Civil Appeal No. 42 of 1997)
  • Mugo & others Vs Wanjiru & anor EA 481 at page 483
  • Kayonza Growers Tea Factory Limited v Uni Movers & Logistics Limited (High Court Miscellaneous Application No. 2404 of 2024)
  • Post Bank (U) Ltd v Abdu Ssozi (Civil Appeal No. 8 of 2015)
  • Twiga Chemical v Bamusedde [2005] 2 EA 325
  • Shah v Mbogo [1967] EA 116

Full judgment

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

Fresh Cuts Uganda Limited v TotalEnergies Marketing Uganda Limited (Miscellaneous Application No. 1017 of 2024) [2026] UGCommC 23 (25 January 2026)
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.