Wakilii

Midland Emporium Ltd v Sugar & Allied Industries Ltd (HCCS 734 of 2017)

High Court · [2018] UGCOMMC 10 · 2018 Interest Awarded at 10.5% AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Ruling on Defendant's application for leave to appear and defend following concession to principal claim with dispute on interest rate
Decision
Judgment entered for plaintiff for USD 109,430 with interest at 10.5% per annum from 30 July 2017 until payment in full plus costs

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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.

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 awarded interest at 10.5% per annum on a conceded debt of USD 109,430 from the date payment was promised. The rate reflected the plaintiff's borrowing cost and the defendant's beneficial use of the funds. Interest runs from 30 July 2017 until full payment.

Outcome

Judgment entered for plaintiff for USD 109,430 with interest at 10.5% per annum from 30 July 2017 until payment in full plus costs

Facts

The plaintiff sued to recover USD 109,430 plus interest from February 2014. The defendant filed an application for leave to appear and defend. At the hearing, the defendant conceded liability for the principal sum of USD 109,430 but objected to the interest rate claimed. The plaintiff sought 12% per annum interest, stating they had borrowed the dollars at 10.5% per annum. The defendant offered 5% per annum. After notice, the defendant had undertaken to refund the money by 30 July 2017 and to pay interest at a rate to be agreed. The parties failed to agree on the rate.

Issues

  1. What rate of interest should be awarded on the conceded debt of USD 109,430?

Orders

  • Interest awarded at 10.5% per annum on USD 109,430.
  • Interest to run from 30th July 2017 until payment in full.
  • Defendant to pay costs of the proceedings as taxed by the Taxing Officer.

Rules and key headnotes

Interest — Discretionary Award — Principles for Determining Rate
An award of interest is discretionary and the basis of such award is that the defendant has kept the plaintiff out of his money and the defendant has had use of it himself, so he ought to compensate the plaintiff accordingly.
Interest — Factors in Determining Rate — Nature of Business and Borrowing Costs
In awarding interest, consideration should be given to the type of business the plaintiff does, the length of period the plaintiff has been deprived of the use of the money, and the cost at which the plaintiff obtained the funds.
Interest — Starting Date — Defendant's Promise to Pay
Where a defendant undertakes to make payment by a specified date, interest on the debt may properly run from that promised payment date rather than from an earlier date.

Cases cited (1)

  • Harbutt's Plasticine Ltd v Wayne Tank & Pump Co Ltd [1970] QB 447

Full judgment

↓ Download PDF

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

Midland Emporium Ltd v Sugar & Allied Industries Ltd (HCCS 734 of 2017) [2018] UGCommC 10 (15 May 2018)
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.