Wakilii

Pica Printery and Stationery Ltd v Pallisa District Local Government - (HCT-00-CC-CS 456 of 2005)

High Court · [2006] UGCOMMC 19 · 2006 Judgment for Plaintiff AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Ex parte suit for recovery of debt following defendant's failure to file defence and entry of interlocutory judgment
Decision
Judgment entered for plaintiff against defendant with damages and interest

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 special damages for the unpaid balance on supplied goods where the defendant failed to defend the claim. General damages of Shs.2,000,000 were awarded for breach of contract, being reasonable compensation for loss caused by delayed payment. Interest at 20% per annum was ordered from the date of filing suit on special damages and from judgment on general damages until full payment.

Outcome

Judgment entered for plaintiff against defendant with damages and interest

Facts

The plaintiff, a printing business, supplied graduated tax tickets worth Shs.33,388,875 to the defendant local government in financial year 2001/2002 pursuant to a tender award and local purchase orders. The goods were delivered as evidenced by delivery notes. The defendant made a partial payment of Shs.20,000,000, leaving a balance of Shs.13,388,875 unpaid. Summons to file defence were served on the defendant's Chief Administrative Officer on 22/6/2005, but the defendant failed to file a defence. An interlocutory judgment was entered in favour of the plaintiff on 22/8/2005. The matter proceeded to formal proof for assessment of damages.

Issues

  1. Whether the plaintiff is entitled to recovery of the outstanding balance of Shs.13,388,875 for graduated tax tickets supplied to the defendant.
  2. What quantum of general damages should be awarded for breach of contract.
  3. Whether interest should be awarded and from what date it should run.

Orders

  • Special damages of Shs.13,388,875 awarded.
  • General damages of Shs.2,000,000 awarded.
  • Interest on special damages at 20% per annum from date of filing suit (11/6/2005) until payment in full.
  • Interest on general damages at 20% per annum from date of judgment until payment in full.
  • Costs of the suit awarded to the plaintiff.

Rules and key headnotes

Civil Procedure — Interlocutory Judgment — Effect on Liability
Where an interlocutory judgment has been entered in favour of a plaintiff following the defendant's failure to file a defence, the question of the defendant's liability is no longer in issue and is determined by the interlocutory judgment itself, leaving only the quantum of damages to be assessed.
Contract Law — Remedies — Recovery of Purchase Price
An unpaid seller is entitled to recover the full price of goods supplied where delivery has been completed and accepted, and the claim is supported by documentary evidence including purchase orders and delivery notes.
Damages & Quantum — General Damages — Breach of Contract — Assessment
General damages for breach of contract should fairly and reasonably compensate the aggrieved party for loss arising naturally from the breach or such loss as may reasonably have been in the contemplation of the parties at the time of contracting as the probable result of breach. Damages are compensatory, not punitive.
Damages & Quantum — Interest — Discretionary Award
In the absence of contractual agreement on interest, the award of interest is discretionary and is based on the principle that the defendant has kept the plaintiff out of money and ought to compensate accordingly. Interest on special damages runs from the date of filing suit rather than the alleged date of default where the reason for delay in filing is unexplained.

Full judgment

↓ Download PDF

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

Pica Printery and Stationery Ltd v Pallisa District Local Government - (HCT-00-CC-CS 456 of 2005) [2006] UGCommC 19 (14 May 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.