Wakilii

Resort 29 Degrees Limited and 2 Others v Entusi Resort and Retreat Centre Limited (Miscellaneous Application No. 009 of 2023)

High Court · [2025] UGHC 1417 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to stay proceedings and refer dispute to arbitration arising from Civil Suit No. 0005 of 2023
Decision
Main suit struck out and dispute referred to arbitration

Observed later treatment

Cited — treatment unverified cited in 3 (treatment unverified) Sequitur — Uganda’s citator · Derived from citing cases in the Wakilii corpus — not an assertion that this case is good law.

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.

No adverse treatment recorded Cited 3 times with no adverse treatment recorded; not yet tested on the merits. Citations steady — 4 citing cases on record, 4 in the most recent three data years. Derived from citing cases in the Wakilii corpus — a deterministic signal, not legal advice.

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 High Court held that where a valid arbitration agreement exists, the court is mandatorily required under section 5 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act to refer the dispute to arbitration unless the agreement is null, void, or inoperative. Non-signatory parties who claim through or under a party to the arbitration agreement are bound by the arbitration clause. The court struck out the suit and referred the entire dispute to arbitration.

Outcome

Main suit struck out and dispute referred to arbitration

Facts

The Respondent filed Civil Suit No. 0005 of 2023 against the Applicants arising from an alleged lease assignment deed dated 15 December 2015. The deed was between the Respondent and the 2nd Applicant (Global Livingstone Institute) and concerned land on the shores of Lake Bunyonyi. Clause 6 of the deed provided for arbitration of disputes. The 1st Applicant (Resort 29 Degrees Limited) is a subsidiary of the 2nd Applicant, and the 3rd Applicant (Agnes Igoye) is an officer of the 2nd Applicant. The Applicants sought to stay the suit and refer the dispute to arbitration. The Respondent opposed, arguing that the 1st and 3rd Applicants were strangers to the arbitration agreement and not bound by it.

Issues

  1. Whether the main suit should be dismissed and the matters raised therein referred to arbitration in accordance with clause 6 of the alleged lease assignment deed.

Orders

  • H.C.C.S No. 0005 of 2023 is hereby struck out for being incompetent.
  • The dispute between the Applicants and the Respondent is referred for arbitration in accordance with Clause 6 of the Lease Assignment Deed dated 15/12/2015.
  • The costs of this application and the suit are awarded to the Applicants.

Rules and key headnotes

Arbitration — Mandatory Referral to Arbitration — Court's Duty under Section 5
Under section 5(1) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act Cap 4, a court has a mandatory duty to refer a matter to arbitration where a valid arbitration agreement exists, unless the agreement is null and void, inoperative, or incapable of being performed, or unless there is no dispute between the parties.
Arbitration — Separability Principle — Independence of Arbitration Clause
An arbitration clause is separate and independent of the main contract. The validity of the main contract is itself a matter for the arbitral tribunal to investigate and the existence of a dispute over contract validity does not prevent referral to arbitration.
Arbitration — Binding Effect on Non-Signatories — Party Claiming Through or Under
Under section 2(1) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, a party to an arbitration agreement includes a person claiming through or under a party. Non-signatories who are sufficiently connected to a signatory party, such as subsidiary companies or officers claiming through the parent company, are bound by the arbitration clause.
Arbitration — Ouster of Court Jurisdiction — Section 9 Prohibition
Section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act prohibits court intervention in matters governed by the Act. Once a valid and operative arbitration agreement exists, the general jurisdiction of the High Court is ousted and the court cannot intervene except as provided in the Act.
Arbitration — Powers of Arbitral Tribunal — Jurisdiction over All Questions
Section 16 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act confers wide jurisdiction on an arbitral tribunal to determine all questions of law and fact, including questions of its own jurisdiction, the validity of the transactional document, and the interests and rights of all parties to the dispute.

Legislation cited (5)

Cases cited (7)

  • British American Tobacco Stores v Lira Tobacco Stores (HCMA No. 0924 of 2013)
  • Rwenzori Hydro (Pvt) Limited and Others v Hydro Uganda Limited and Others (Miscellaneous Application No. 0212 of 2022)
  • Babcon Uganda Ltd v Mbale Resort Hotel Ltd (Court of Appeal Civil Appeal No. 0087 of 2011)
  • Babcon Uganda Ltd v Mbale Resort Hotel Ltd (Court of Appeal Civil Appeal No. 0006 of 2016)
  • Sanchetti v The Mayor and Commonality and Citizens of the City of London [2008] ALL ER (D)204
  • Yanfeng Construction Company Limited v The Living World Assembly Ltd and Others (Civil Suit No. 0739 of 2021)
  • Vantage Mezzanine Fund II Partnership v Simba Properties Limited (Miscellaneous Application No. 201 of 2020)

Cases citing this judgment (3)

How later Ugandan judgments in the Wakilii corpus have cited this case. Treatment labels come from Sequitur — Uganda’s citator — each backed by a verbatim span from the citing judgment, and are not an assertion that this case is, or is not, good law.

Full judgment

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

Resort 29 Degrees Limited and 2 Others v Entusi Resort and Retreat Centre Limited (Miscellaneous Application No. 009 of 2023) [2025] UGHC 1417 (13 Nov
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.