Wakilii

General International Technical Co. (L.L.C) v Aya Investment (U) Ltd (Civil Suit No. 873 of 2023)

High Court · [2025] UGCOMMC 426 · 2025 Judgment for Plaintiff AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for breach of contract and recovery of debt, proceeding to formal proof after defendant's defence struck off
Decision
Judgment entered for the plaintiff with declaration of breach, order for payment of outstanding debt, general damages, interest and costs

Observed later treatment

Cited — treatment unverified cited in 1 (treatment unverified) Sequitur — Uganda’s citator · Derived from citing cases in the Wakilii corpus — not an assertion that this case is good law.

Citator coverage is limited to judgments in the Wakilii corpus and source-matched treatment records. Absence of a signal is not an assertion that the case remains good law.

No adverse treatment recorded Cited 1 time with no adverse treatment recorded; not yet tested on the merits. Derived from citing cases in the Wakilii corpus — a deterministic signal, not legal advice.

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 Commercial Division held that where a defendant's defence is struck off for being filed out of time without leave, and the plaintiff proceeds to formal proof, the plaintiff must adduce evidence to sustain the plaint. The court found that the defendant breached a contract for supply of technical services by failing to pay USD 145,250 despite the plaintiff's full performance. The court awarded general damages of UGX 65,000,000 for financial constraints, distress and frustration caused by the prolonged non-payment, interest at 24% per annum on the debt from the date it fell due, and costs.

Outcome

Judgment entered for the plaintiff with declaration of breach, order for payment of outstanding debt, general damages, interest and costs

Facts

The plaintiff contracted with the defendant to supply, test and commission various technical systems (ACS, CCTV, BMS, fire alarm, intrusion systems, network infrastructure, etc.) for the defendant's Pearl of Africa Hotel construction project. The total contract value was USD 1,348,819.65. The plaintiff fulfilled its obligations and handed over the site within the agreed timeframe. The defendant paid USD 1,203,568.43 but failed to pay the outstanding balance of USD 145,250 despite several reminders. The plaintiff instituted suit on 9 August 2023. The defendant filed a defence out of time without leave of court. On 12 May 2025, the court struck off the defence via Miscellaneous Application No. 2546 of 2023, leaving the suit undefended. Interlocutory judgment was entered under Order 9 rule 8 CPR and the matter proceeded to formal proof.

Issues

  1. Whether the Plaintiff is entitled to general damages?
  2. Whether the Plaintiff is entitled to interest and costs of the suit?

Orders

  • It is hereby declared that the Defendant's non-payment of the outstanding balance of USD 145,250 amounts to breach of contract and therefore, the Defendant is indebted to the Plaintiff.
  • The Defendant is ordered to pay the Plaintiff the outstanding balance of USD 145,250.
  • The Defendant shall pay to the Plaintiff general damages amounting to UGX 65,000,000.
  • Interest at the rate of 24% per annum is awarded on the sum of USD 145,250 from 12th April, 2018 until payment in full.
  • Interest at the rate of 6% per annum is awarded on the general damages of UGX 65,000,000 from the date of Judgment until payment in full.
  • Costs of the suit are awarded to the Plaintiff.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Default Judgment — Formal Proof — Duty of Plaintiff to Adduce Evidence
Where a court sets down a suit for formal proof after a default order has been made, the plaintiff is under a duty to place before the court evidence to sustain the averments in the plaint.
Contract Law — Breach of Contract — Compensation — Section 60 Contracts Act
Section 60(1) of the Contracts Act empowers the court to award compensation for any loss or damage caused to one party due to another's breach of contract. In estimating the loss under section 60(4), the court must consider the means of remedying the inconvenience caused by the non-performance of the contract that existed at the time.
Damages & Quantum — General Damages — Measure of Award — Compensatory Principle
The general rule regarding the measure of general damages is that the award is such a sum of money that will put the party who has been injured in the same position as he or she would have been had he or she not sustained the wrong for which compensation is awarded. General damages should be compensatory in nature and restore some satisfaction, as far as money can do, to the injured plaintiff.
Damages & Quantum — Assessment of Quantum — Factors to Consider
In assessing the quantum of damages, courts are mainly guided by the value of the subject matter, the economic inconvenience that a party might have been put through, and the nature and extent of the breach or injury suffered.
Damages & Quantum — Interest — Discretion of Court — Guiding Principles
Interest is awarded at the discretion of the court under section 26(2) of the Civil Procedure Act, but the court should exercise the discretion judiciously, taking into account all the circumstances of the case. In determining a just and reasonable rate, courts take into account the ever-rising inflation and drastic depreciation of the currency, and should award such a rate as would not neglect the prevailing economic value of money while insulating the plaintiff against economic vagaries.
Damages & Quantum — Interest — Commercial Transactions — Deprivation of Use of Money
In equity, interest is awarded whenever a wrongdoer deprives a company of money which it needs in its business. Mere replacement of the money years later is by no means adequate compensation. It should be presumed that the company would have made the most beneficial use of the money in its trading operations, and the money should be replaced at interest with yearly rest to give adequate compensation.
Civil Procedure — Costs — Costs Follow the Event
Under section 27(2) of the Civil Procedure Act, costs of any cause shall follow the event unless otherwise ordered by the court. A successful party can only be denied costs if it is proved that but for his or her conduct, the action would not have been brought. Costs will follow the event where the party succeeds in the main purpose of the suit.

Legislation cited (6)

Cases cited (12)

  • Oriental Insurance Brokers Limited v Transocean (U) Limited (SCCA No. 55 of 1995)
  • Robinson v Harman [1848] 1 Exch. 850
  • Storms v Hutchinson [1905] AC 515
  • Waiglobe (U) Limited v Sai Beverages Limited (Civil Suit No. 16 of 2017)
  • Kirungi and Another v Kabiya and Others [1987] KLR 347
  • Kabandize John Baptist and 21 Others v Kampala Capital City Authority (CACA No. 36 of 2016)
  • Takiya Kashwahiri and Another v Kajungu Denis (CACA No. 85 of 2011)
  • Uganda Commercial Bank v Deo Kigozi [2002] 1 EA 305
  • Milly Masembe v Sugar Corporation (U) Ltd and Another (SCCA No. 1 of 2000)
  • Wallersteiner v Moir [1975] 1 All ER 849
  • Mohanlal Kakubhai Radia v Warid Telecom Uganda Ltd (HCCS No. 224 of 2011)
  • Uganda Development Bank v Muganga Construction Co. Ltd [1981] HCB 35

Cases citing this judgment (1)

How later Ugandan judgments in the Wakilii corpus have cited this case. Treatment labels come from Sequitur — Uganda’s citator — each backed by a verbatim span from the citing judgment, and are not an assertion that this case is, or is not, good law.

Full judgment

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

General International Technical Co. (L.L.C) v Aya Investment (U) Ltd (Civil Suit No. 873 of 2023) [2025] UGCommC 426 (20 November 2025)
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.