Wakilii

Intex Construction Ltd v Attorney General & Anor (Miscellaneous Application No. 737 of 2013)

High Court · [2015] UGCOMMC 197 · 2015 Application Granted — Mandamus Issued AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for judicial review seeking an order of mandamus to enforce payment of an arbitral award filed in the High Court
Decision
Order of mandamus issued compelling payment of the arbitral award to the applicant

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court granted an order of mandamus compelling the Treasury Officer of Accounts / Secretary to the Treasury to pay the applicant the full amount awarded in an arbitral award that had been filed in court. The court found that the applicant satisfied all four conditions precedent for the issuance of mandamus: existence of a right, specification of that right by a court decree, extraction and service of a certificate of order against government, and refusal by the respondents to honor the certificate. The respondents' arguments regarding pending appeals and lack of demand were rejected as the applicant had served an amended certificate and demand letter in February 2015.

Outcome

Order of mandamus issued compelling payment of the arbitral award to the applicant

Facts

The applicant, Intex Construction Limited, obtained an arbitral award against the Government of Uganda arising from a breach of a construction contract. The award was delivered on 30 August 2010 by retired Justice A.N. Karokora and filed in the High Court Commercial Division on 24 June 2011 under Reference No. AB/06/2011. The award included special damages, interest, general damages and costs. Following taxation of costs, the applicant obtained a certificate of order against government on 17 September 2012. The applicant made several demands for payment which were ignored by the respondents. The respondents argued that no proper demand had been served, that an appeal was pending, and that payment was subject to budgetary allocation and parliamentary appropriation. The applicant served an amended certificate of order and a letter of demand in February 2015.

Issues

  1. Whether an order of mandamus should issue to compel the respondents to pay the applicant the amounts due under the arbitral award.
  2. Whether the respondents are liable to pay the costs of the application.

Orders

  • Application succeeds.
  • Order of mandamus issued requiring the Treasury Officer of Accounts / Secretary to the Treasury to pay the applicant / decree holder through its lawyers in full satisfaction of the award in CAD/ARB. No. 14 of 2008 and M.A. No. 632 of 2010.
  • Applicant awarded the costs of the application.

Rules and key headnotes

Judicial Review — Mandamus — Conditions Precedent for Issuance
For an order of mandamus to issue compelling government to pay a court award, the applicant must satisfy four conditions: (i) the applicant enjoys a right; (ii) the right is specified by a decree of court; (iii) a certificate of order against government has been extracted and duly served on the respondents; and (iv) the respondents refused to honor the certificate of order by refusing to pay the amount decreed.
Enforcement of Arbitral Awards — Government as Party — Mandamus as Remedy
Where an arbitral award against government has been filed in court and a certificate of order against government has been extracted and served, mandamus is an appropriate remedy to compel the Treasury Officer of Accounts / Secretary to the Treasury to effect payment, notwithstanding arguments regarding budgetary allocation or parliamentary appropriation.
Enforcement of Decrees — Certificate of Order Against Government — Service and Demand
Where a party seeking mandamus to enforce a decree against government has served both an amended certificate of order against government and a letter of demand, and the respondent has failed to file an affidavit in reply or appear in court to challenge the application, the court may infer that the respondent does not oppose the grant of the order.

Legislation cited (8)

Cases cited (2)

  • Goodman Agencies Ltd and 3 Others v Attorney General and Treasury Officer of Account (Miscellaneous Application No. 126 of 2008)
  • Patrick Kasumba v Attorney General and Treasury Officer of Accounts (Miscellaneous Application No. 121 of 2010)

Full judgment

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

Intex Construction Ltd v Attorney General & Anor (Miscellaneous Application No. 737 of 2013) [2015] UGCommC 197 (8 April 2015)
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.