Wakilii

Nagita & 2 Ors v Bukenya & 2 Ors (Civil Suit No. 389 of 2010)

High Court · [2012] UGCOMMC 145 · 2012 Judgment for Plaintiffs AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for release of goods and damages arising from breach of bailment and carriage contract
Decision
First and second plaintiffs entitled to release of goods upon first defendant's payment of freight charges to second defendant. First defendant liable for general damages to first and second plaintiffs. Third plaintiff's suit dismissed.

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that the plaintiffs as bailors are entitled to claim their goods from the sub-bailee (second defendant) subject to payment of freight charges. The court found that BN Cargo Services, acting as the plaintiffs' agent, had implied authority to sub-bail the goods to the second defendant for carriage to Kampala. The second defendant's common law lien for unpaid freight was upheld. The first defendant, as consignee and agent of BN Cargo Services in Uganda, was ordered to pay the freight charges to the second defendant and clear the goods.

Outcome

First and second plaintiffs entitled to release of goods upon first defendant's payment of freight charges to second defendant. First defendant liable for general damages to first and second plaintiffs. Third plaintiff's suit dismissed.

Facts

The first and second plaintiffs contracted BN Cargo Services in the UK to ship a BMW motor vehicle and assorted household goods to Kampala, paying the required shipping fees. BN Cargo Services subcontracted W.E.C Lines (second defendant) to ship the container, naming Richard Bukenya (first defendant) as consignee in Kampala. The freight charges were to be paid on delivery in Kampala. The goods arrived in August 2010 but were not released. BN Cargo Services failed to pay freight charges of USD 8,544.30 to the second defendant, who exercised a lien over the goods. The first defendant, acting as agent of BN Cargo Services, was to receive and distribute goods to various owners but failed to clear the container. The plaintiffs withdrew their suit against BN Cargo Services during proceedings. The plaintiffs proved ownership of the goods and payment to BN Cargo Services, but the second defendant refused release without payment of freight charges.

Issues

  1. Whether the plaintiffs can legally claim the shipped goods from the second defendant.
  2. Whether the second defendant is entitled to hold onto the shipped container until the freight is fully paid by the shipper or the consignee.

Orders

  • The first defendant to pay freight charges of USD 8,544 to the second defendant and clear the plaintiffs' goods in his capacity as agent of BN Cargo Services and trustee consignee.
  • The first defendant to pay general damages of UGX 30,000,000 to the first and second plaintiffs for failure to clear the goods.
  • The second defendant to release the goods to the plaintiffs after payment of freight charges through execution against the first defendant.
  • Claim for special damages against all defendants dismissed.
  • Claim for damages against the second defendant dismissed with costs.
  • Plaintiffs and second defendant awarded costs against the first defendant.
  • The third plaintiff's suit dismissed for want of prosecution with no order as to costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Bailment — Sub-bailment — Implied authority — Liability of owner for sub-bailee's charges
Where a bailor engages a forwarding agent who necessarily must subcontract carriage to a carrier, the bailor impliedly authorises the agent to sub-bail the goods to that carrier, and the bailor is bound by the terms of the sub-bailment including the carrier's right to freight charges.
Carriage of goods — Carrier's lien — Right to detain goods for unpaid freight
A carrier who has conveyed goods pursuant to a contract of bailment has a common law lien over the goods for unpaid freight charges and may refuse to deliver them until the charges are paid, even where the owner of the goods paid a forwarding agent who failed to remit payment to the carrier.
Agency — Consignee — Liability of agent for contractual obligations
A consignee named in a bill of lading who holds himself out as agent of a cargo services firm and who has repeatedly acted in that capacity is liable to pay freight charges to the carrier where freight is payable at the port of destination, notwithstanding that the consignee did not personally contract with the carrier.
Bailment — Sub-bailment — Rights of owner against sub-bailee
The relationship between the owner of goods and a sub-bailee who received the goods from the owner's bailee is that of bailor and sub-bailee, and the owner is entitled to claim the goods from the sub-bailee subject to the terms of the sub-bailment.
Privity of contract — Third party rights — Bailor's remedies against sub-bailee
An owner of goods who has not contracted directly with a carrier but whose agent subcontracted that carrier cannot claim delivery free of the carrier's lien by arguing lack of privity where the owner seeks to take the benefit of the carriage contract by claiming the goods from the carrier.

Legislation cited (1)

Cases cited (8)

  • Tumwesigyire v Trans Sahara General Trading LLC (High Court Civil Suit No. 95 of 2005)
  • The Ardennes (Cargo Owners) v The Ardennes (Owners) [1950] 2 All ER 517
  • KH Enterprise (Cargo Owners) v Pioneer Container (Owners) [1994] 2 All ER 256
  • Gilchrist Watt & Sanderson Pty Ltd v York Products Pty Ltd [1970] 3 All ER 825
  • Morris v CW Martin & Sons [1965] 2 All ER 725
  • Robbialac Paints (U) Ltd v VKB Construction Ltd [1976] HCB 45
  • Scruttons Ltd v Midland Silicones Ltd [1962] AC 446
  • Tappenden v Artus [1963] 3 All ER 213

Full judgment

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

Nagita & 2 Ors v Bukenya & 2 Ors (Civil Suit No. 389 of 2010) [2012] UGCommC 145 (16 November 2012)
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.