Wakilii

Michael Nyangan v Colonel Samuel Wasswa and Anor - (HCT-00-CC-CS 10 of 2005)

High Court · [2006] UGCOMMC 4 · 2006 Judgment for Plaintiff (Partial Success) AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for recovery of debt
Decision
Plaintiff recovered UGX 10,000,000 plus interest and half costs from 1st Defendant; claims against other defendants dismissed.

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that the plaintiff proved entitlement to a balance of UGX 7,500,000 on a loan of UGX 19,200,000 advanced to the first defendant, after accounting for partial payments totalling UGX 16,500,000. The court rejected the claim for a second alleged loan of UGX 36,000,000 for lack of written evidence and inconsistencies in the plaintiff's testimony. Interest was awarded from the date of filing suit at the commercial rate, as a discretionary remedy for breach of contract. General damages of UGX 2,500,000 were awarded for breach of the repayment term.

Outcome

Plaintiff recovered UGX 10,000,000 plus interest and half costs from 1st Defendant; claims against other defendants dismissed.

Facts

On 5 September 2000, the plaintiff lent UGX 19,200,000 to the first defendant under a written agreement requiring repayment within five weeks. The first defendant failed to repay by the agreed date of 31 October 2000. The plaintiff claimed the first defendant subsequently borrowed a further UGX 36,000,000 in May 2001, for which a post-dated cheque was issued but dishonoured. The first defendant admitted borrowing UGX 12,000,000 and executing an agreement for UGX 19,200,000 including interest, but denied receiving the second loan. The plaintiff initially sued for UGX 55,200,000, then admitted at trial that partial payments totalling UGX 16,500,000 had been received (including cash of UGX 8,500,000 and a vehicle valued at UGX 8,000,000), reducing the actual balance to UGX 38,700,000. Documentary evidence from February 2003 showed the parties had agreed a balance of UGX 7,500,000. The first defendant did not appear at trial.

Issues

  1. Whether the 1st Defendant is indebted to the Plaintiff in the amount claimed in the plaint.
  2. Whether the Plaintiff is entitled to the reliefs sought.

Orders

  • Judgment entered for the Plaintiff against the 1st Defendant.
  • Special damages of UGX 7,500,000 awarded to the Plaintiff.
  • General damages of UGX 2,500,000 awarded to the Plaintiff.
  • Interest on special damages at 23% per annum from 7 January 2005 until payment in full.
  • Plaintiff awarded half the taxed costs of the suit against the 1st Defendant.
  • Case against the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Defendants dismissed.
  • 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Defendants to meet their own costs, if any.

Rules and key headnotes

Contract Law — Burden of Proof — Balance of Probabilities
The burden of proof in a civil claim for debt rests on the plaintiff to prove on a balance of probabilities that the defendants owe the sum claimed.
Evidence — Credibility of Witnesses — Effect of Contradictory Testimony
A witness who confesses to having falsified his claim to inflate the amount sued for undermines his credibility both as a claimant and as a witness, applying the principle that a person who swears contrary to what he stated on a previous occasion is not worthy of belief.
Contract Law — Loan Agreements — Requirement for Written Evidence of Subsequent Advances
Where a borrower has defaulted on an initial written loan agreement, it is improbable that a lender would advance a substantially larger unsecured sum without reducing it to writing, especially where the first loan had been formally documented and witnessed.
Contract Law — Interest on Debt — Entitlement Based on Agreement or Statute
Interest can only be claimed as of right if the claim is based on an agreement for it in the document sued on or by statute. Where a loan agreement makes no provision for payment of interest on the principal sum, none is payable as of right.
Damages & Quantum — Interest as Discretionary Remedy — Principles of Award
Interest may be awarded as a discretionary remedy on the basis that the defendant has kept the plaintiff out of his money and has had the use of it himself, and ought therefore to compensate the plaintiff accordingly. Where a person is entitled to a liquidated amount and has been deprived of it through the wrongful act of another, interest should be awarded from the date of filing the suit.
Damages & Quantum — General Damages for Breach of Contract — Assessment Principles
General damages for breach of contract should be such as may fairly and reasonably be considered as arising naturally from the breach itself or such as may reasonably be supposed to have been in contemplation of the parties at the time they made the contract as a probable result of its breach. Damages are intended as compensation for the plaintiff's loss, not as punishment to the defendant.
Civil Procedure — Costs — Discretion to Award Reduced Costs in Cases of Partial Success
Where a plaintiff achieves only partial success and has attempted to inflate his claim dishonestly, the court may in its discretion decline to award full costs of litigation and instead award a fraction of taxed costs.

Cases cited (3)

  • M. Kabenge v James K. Mpalanyi (Civil Appeal No. B 56 of 1962)
  • Harbutts Plasticide Ltd v Wyne Tank & Pump Co. Ltd [1970] 1 QB 447
  • Sietco v Noble Builders (U) Ltd (SCCA No. 31 of 1995)

Full judgment

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

Michael Nyangan v Colonel Samuel Wasswa and Anor - (HCT-00-CC-CS 10 of 2005) [2006] UGCommC 4 (31 January 2006)
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.