Wakilii

Jainson Cables India Private Limited v Akvo International Limited (Civil Suit No. 1146 of 2024)

High Court · [2025] UGCOMMC 309 · 2025 Judgment for Plaintiff AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for recovery of contractual debt heard ex parte
Decision
Judgment entered for the Plaintiff with orders for payment of contractual 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 court held that the defendant breached its contract by failing to pay the balance of 70% of the purchase price for submersible cables supplied by the plaintiff. The plaintiff was entitled to recover USD 144,028 being the unpaid balance, general damages of UGX 50,000,000, interest at 10% per annum on the principal sum from the date of the bill of lading, and interest at 13% per annum on general damages from judgment.

Outcome

Judgment entered for the Plaintiff with orders for payment of contractual debt, general damages, interest, and costs

Facts

On 24 July 2023, the plaintiff and defendant entered into a contract for the supply of submersible cables worth USD 205,755. The payment terms required 30% advance payment and 70% balance within 90 days from the bill of lading date. The plaintiff delivered the cables in September 2023 as evidenced by the bill of lading dated 9 September 2023. The defendant paid the 30% advance but failed to pay the balance of USD 144,028. Despite email correspondence and a formal demand letter dated 13 September 2024, and despite the defendant's CEO committing to a 12-month installment plan starting 30 September 2024, the defendant failed to make any payments. The defendant did not appear at trial despite being served with the hearing notice.

Issues

  1. Whether the Defendant breached its contract with the Plaintiff.
  2. Whether the Plaintiff is entitled to the remedies sought.

Orders

  • The Defendant shall pay the sum of USD 144,028 being the balance of the purchase price agreed in the parties' contract to the Plaintiff.
  • The Defendant shall pay general damages of UGX 50,000,000 to the Plaintiff.
  • The Defendant shall pay interest on the sum of USD 144,028 at the rate of 10% p.a. from the date of the bill of lading until payment in full.
  • The Defendant shall pay interest on the sum of UGX 50,000,000 at the rate of 13% p.a. from the date of judgment until payment in full to the Plaintiff.
  • Costs of the suit are awarded to the Plaintiff.

Rules and key headnotes

Contract Law — Breach of Contract — Failure to Pay Purchase Price
Breach of contract occurs when a party fails, neglects or refuses to perform obligations under the contract without legal excuse, and where there is breach, the party who suffers the breach is entitled to receive compensation for any loss or damage caused.
Evidence — Burden of Proof — Civil Cases — Balance of Probabilities
In civil cases, the burden lies on the plaintiff to prove the existence of his or her rights and the liability of the defendant for breach thereof on a balance of probabilities. That standard is achieved if the court is convinced, on the basis of the evidence adduced, that it is more probable than not that the breaches occurred.
Damages & Quantum — General Damages — Assessment — Commercial Contracts
General damages are losses which flow naturally from a defendant's breach and are what the law presumes to be the direct, natural or probable result of the breach. Where a plaintiff's business capital is locked up due to non-payment under a commercial contract, the court may award general damages for financial loss and disruption of business plans and activities.
Damages & Quantum — Interest — Discretion of Court — Rate of Interest
The court has discretion under section 26(2) of the Civil Procedure Act to award interest on damages. A successful plaintiff is entitled to interest at a rate that would not neglect the prevailing economic value of money and which would insulate the plaintiff against economic vagaries like inflation and depreciation of currency in the event that money ordered to be recovered is not paid promptly.

Legislation cited (5)

Cases cited (5)

  • Miller v Minister of Pensions [1947] 2 All ER 372
  • William Kasozi v DFCU Bank Ltd (High Court Civil Suit No. 1326 of 2000)
  • Opia Moses v Chukia Lumago Roselyn & 5 Ors (High Court Civil Suit No. 0022 of 2013)
  • Mohanlal Kakubhai v Warid Telecom (U) Ltd (High Court Civil Suit No. 0224 of 2011)
  • Kwizera Eddie v Attorney General (Supreme Court Constitutional Appeal No. 01 of 2008)

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.

Jainson Cables India Private Limited v Akvo International Limited (Civil Suit No. 1146 of 2024) [2025] UGCommC 309 (29 August 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.