Wakilii

Giza Systems (U) Ltd v Central Electricals International Ltd (Civil Suit 531 of 2024)

High Court · [2024] UGCOMMC 376 · 2024 Judgment for Plaintiff AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for recovery of unpaid price for goods supplied; judgment entered after defendant failed to file defence
Decision
Judgment entered for Plaintiff after interlocutory judgment; Defendant ordered to pay outstanding debt, general damages, interest and costs

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Where a defendant fails to pay for goods supplied under multiple purchase orders and does not file a defence, the plaintiff is entitled to recover the outstanding sum as a debt, general damages for economic loss and inconvenience caused by delayed payment, and interest at commercial rates. Legal fees incurred before filing suit are costs incidental to litigation under Civil Procedure Act s.27(1) and not special damages.

Outcome

Judgment entered for Plaintiff after interlocutory judgment; Defendant ordered to pay outstanding debt, general damages, interest and costs

Facts

Between August 2020 and May 2022, the Plaintiff supplied the Defendant with electronic security systems equipment for the Defendant's Carrefour Metroplex project under six separate purchase orders totalling UGX 709,540,026. The agreed payment terms were 20% on order, 70% upon delivery and 10% on completion and handover. The Defendant paid 90% of three orders placed on 25 August 2020 but made no payment for goods delivered in February 2021, May 2021 and 16 May 2022, leaving an outstanding balance of UGX 97,630,928. The Plaintiff instituted suit on 3 May 2024. Summons to file defence were served on 28 May 2024 but the Defendant filed no defence. Interlocutory judgment was entered on 27 June 2024 and the matter proceeded to formal proof.

Issues

  1. Whether the Plaintiff is entitled to general damages?
  2. Whether the Plaintiff is entitled to special damages?

Orders

  • The Defendant shall pay the Plaintiff a sum of UGX 97,630,928/= being the outstanding sum owed arising from the supply of electronic security systems equipment.
  • The Defendant shall pay the Plaintiff general damages amounting to UGX 15,000,000/=.
  • The Defendant shall pay interest at the rate of 20% per annum on the sum of UGX 97,630,928/= from the date of filing the suit until payment in full.
  • Interest is awarded on general damages at the rate of 6% per annum from the date of Judgment until payment in full.
  • The Defendant shall bear the costs of the suit.

Rules and key headnotes

Contract Law — Breach of Contract — Measure of Damages — General Damages for Non-Payment
Where a party breaches a contract by failing to pay for goods supplied, the injured party is entitled to general damages under Contracts Act s.60(1) calculated to restore them to the position they would have been in had the breach not occurred, including compensation for economic loss and inconvenience caused by prolonged deprivation of the money owed.
Damages & Quantum — Assessment of General Damages — Quantum Principles
In assessing the quantum of general damages for breach of contract, courts are guided by the value of the subject matter, the economic inconvenience that a party might have been put through, the nature and extent of the breach or injury suffered, and the period during which the injured party was deprived of the economic benefit.
Civil Procedure — Default Judgment — Formal Proof — Duty to Prove Averments
Where the 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, notwithstanding the defendant's failure to file a defence.
Damages & Quantum — Special Damages — Legal Fees Incurred Before Filing Suit
Legal fees incurred before filing suit but in reasonable attempts to find solutions to problems arising between parties in connection with contemplated litigation fall within the definition of costs of litigation under Civil Procedure Act s.27(1) and are recoverable as costs incidental to the suit, not as special damages.
Damages & Quantum — Interest — Just and Reasonable Rate
Under Civil Procedure Act s.26, courts award interest at a rate that is just and reasonable in the circumstances, taking into account the prevailing economic value of money, inflation, currency depreciation, and the need to insulate the plaintiff against economic vagaries where the money is not promptly paid.

Legislation cited (5)

Cases cited (13)

  • Kirungi and Another v Kabiya and Others [1987] KLR 347
  • Prof. Ephraim Rwabu Kamuntu v Attorney General (HCCS No. 38 of 2016)
  • Waiglobe (U) Limited v Sai Beverages Ltd (HCCS No. 16 of 2017)
  • 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
  • Besimira Moses v Attorney General (HCCS No. 143 of 2015)
  • Mugabi John v Attorney General (HCCS No. 133 of 2002)
  • W.M Kyambadde v Mpigi District Administration [1983] HCB 44
  • Abraham Yohannes v Absa Bank (HCCS No. 402 of 2022)
  • Milly Masembe v Sugar Corporation (U) Ltd and Another (SCCA No. 1 of 2000)
  • Mohanlal Kakubhai Radia v Warid Telecom Uganda Ltd (HCCS No. 224 of 2011)
  • Uganda Development Bank v Muganga Construction Co. Ltd [1981] HB 35

Full judgment

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

Giza Systems (U) Ltd v Central Electricals International Ltd (Civil Suit 531 of 2024) [2024] UGCommC 376 (20 November 2024)
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.