Wakilii

Network Civil Engineering Contractors Ltd and Paul Mwirumubi v Francis Mujjuni (Miscellaneous Application No. 3093 of 2023)

High Court · [2024] UGCOMMC 411 · 2024 Application Partly Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to refer dispute to arbitration arising from civil suit for breach of contract
Decision
Claims under the Nyabuhuka-Mujunji contract referred to arbitration; claims under the Lower Nsongya project retained by the court for adjudication

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that where parties have agreed to an arbitration clause in their contract, the court must refer disputes arising from that contract to arbitration unless the arbitration agreement is null and void, inoperative or incapable of being performed. Claims arising under the Nyabuhuka-Mujunji Mini Hydro Power Point contract, including additional assignments executed as extensions of that contract, were referred to arbitration. Claims relating to the Lower Nsongya Mini Hydro Plant, which was not covered by the arbitration agreement, were retained by the court for adjudication.

Outcome

Claims under the Nyabuhuka-Mujunji contract referred to arbitration; claims under the Lower Nsongya project retained by the court for adjudication

Facts

The respondent sued the applicants in Civil Suit No. 0953 of 2022 for USD 22,500 as outstanding contractual sums arising from three transactions: consultancy services for the Nyabuhuka-Mujunji Mini Hydro Power Plant under a written contract dated 15 December 2014, additional work done after that contract on the same project, and consultancy services for the Lower Nsongya Mini Hydro Plant. The applicants sought to have the dispute referred to arbitration, relying on clause 9 of the Nyabuhuka-Mujunji contract which provided that any dispute arising from that contract which could not be amicably settled should be referred to arbitration. The respondent contended that only the Nyabuhuka-Mujunji contract contained an arbitration clause, while the other two claims arose from separate transactions with no signed agreements containing arbitration clauses.

Issues

  1. Whether the dispute arising from Civil Suit No. 0953 of 2022 should be referred to arbitration in accordance with the arbitration clause between the parties.

Orders

  • Application partially allowed.
  • All the respondent's claims under the Nyabuhuka-Mujunji Mini Hydro Power Point contract plus any further assignments thereunder are referred to arbitration.
  • The court will adjudicate the claims in relation to the Lower Nsongya Mini Hydro Plant.
  • Costs shall abide the main cause.

Rules and key headnotes

Arbitration & ADR — Referral to Arbitration — Scope of Arbitration Clause
Where parties have agreed to an arbitration clause in their contract, the court must refer disputes arising from that contract to arbitration unless the arbitration agreement is null and void, inoperative or incapable of being performed, in accordance with Section 5 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act.
Arbitration & ADR — Scope of Arbitration Clause — Extension to Related Assignments
Additional assignments executed as an extension of a main contract containing an arbitration clause are subject to arbitration, even where no separate written agreement was executed for the additional work.
Arbitration & ADR — Partial Referral — Severable Claims
Where a plaintiff brings multiple claims arising from separate transactions, the court may refer to arbitration those claims arising from contracts containing arbitration clauses while retaining jurisdiction over claims arising from transactions not governed by an arbitration agreement.
Arbitration & ADR — Enduring Effect of Arbitration Clause
An arbitral clause in a contract has an enduring and special effect; even if parties decide to adopt a different dispute resolution mechanism for a particular dispute arising under a contract, the arbitration clause continues in force and is not thereby totally repudiated unless there is a solid reason for doing so.

Legislation cited (4)

Cases cited (3)

  • Orange Uganda Limited v Hits Telecom (U) Limited (Miscellaneous Application No. 0310 of 2013)
  • Maisha Medical Supplies Ltd v Anhui Tiankang Medical Technology (Miscellaneous Application No. 657 of 2021)
  • National Social Security Fund and Another v Alcon International Ltd (Civil Appeal No. 02 of 2008)

Full judgment

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

Network Civil Engineering Contractors Ltd and Paul Mwirumubi v Francis Mujjuni (Miscellaneous Application No. 3093 of 2023) [2024] UGCommC 411 (29 April 2024)
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.