Wakilii

Katabazi and Others v Secretary General of East African Community and Another (Taxation Reference No.5 of 2008)

East African Court of Justice · [2008] EACJ 4 Application Partly Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Taxation of costs following Reference No. 1 of 2007
Decision
Bill of Costs taxed and reduced from the claimed amount of USD176,000 to USD70,185

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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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 Taxing Officer reduced the claimed instruction fee from USD140,000 to USD50,000 after both parties agreed to settle the matter amicably. The total costs awarded were USD59,411 plus 18% VAT of USD10,694, resulting in a final taxation of USD70,185. The court applied principles of reasonableness and proportionality in awarding costs.

Outcome

Bill of Costs taxed and reduced from the claimed amount of USD176,000 to USD70,185

Facts

The Applicants filed a Bill of Costs claiming USD176,000 as costs incurred in conducting Reference No. 1 of 2007. The claim included USD140,000 as instruction fees, USD547 in professional charges, and USD8,864 in disbursements. The Respondents opposed the instruction fee of USD140,000 as arbitrary and requested a reasonable amount. Counsel for the Respondents proposed USD50,000 as instruction fee plus USD9,411 for other costs, totaling USD59,411. Counsel for the Applicants accepted this proposal in the spirit of amicable resolution.

Issues

  1. Whether the instruction fee of USD140,000 claimed in the Bill of Costs was reasonable and should be allowed.
  2. What is the appropriate total amount to be awarded as costs to the Applicants.

Orders

  • Instruction fee reduced from USD140,000 to USD50,000.
  • Professional charges, disbursements and miscellaneous costs of USD9,411 allowed.
  • Total costs before VAT taxed at USD59,411.
  • VAT at 18% amounting to USD10,694 added.
  • Bill of Costs taxed at USD70,185 only.

Rules and key headnotes

Taxation of Costs — Principles of Reasonableness and Proportionality
In taxing costs, the court must ensure that the amount awarded is reasonable, affordable, does not deter litigants from seeking justice, and is proportionate for purposes of remunerating advocates.
Taxation of Costs — VAT on Costs Awarded
Costs awarded to a successful party are ordinarily considered a source of income and therefore subject to Value Added Tax at the applicable rate.

Cases cited (2)

  • Premchand Raichand Ltd and Another v Quarry Services of East Africa Ltd and Others [1972] EA 162
  • Civil Application No.23 of 1999

Full judgment

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

Katabazi and Others v Secretary General of East African Community and Another (Taxation Reference No.5 of 2008) [2008] EACJ 4 (6 May 2008) (Taxation Rulings)
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.