Wakilii

Uganda Revenue Authority V Ren Publishers Limited & 2 Others (MISC. APPLICATION NO. 510 OF 2019)

High Court · [2019] UGHCCD 145 · 2019 Application Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to add a party to Miscellaneous Cause No. 171 of 2019 seeking interim protection pending arbitration
Decision
Application to add party dismissed with costs

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that a court cannot add a party to proceedings for interim protection under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act where the applicant seeking to be added is not a party to the underlying arbitration agreement. Section 9 limits court intervention in arbitration matters. To grant interim measures both parties must be parties to the arbitration agreement; mere commercial connection is insufficient.

Outcome

Application to add party dismissed with costs

Facts

The 1st and 2nd respondents had entered into a Memorandum of Understanding and subcontract with the 3rd respondent in 2014 and 2016 for provision of electronic verification services (UNBS E-tags). A dispute arose and was referred to arbitration in February 2018. In April 2019, the 3rd respondent signed a separate contract with Uganda Revenue Authority and SICPA SA for similar digital tax stamp and conformity services. The 1st and 2nd respondents filed Miscellaneous Cause 171 of 2019 seeking interim orders to restrain the 3rd respondent from implementing the new contract with URA and SICPA pending arbitration. URA then applied to be added as a party, arguing the orders sought would affect its contractual interests under the Framework Contract with SICPA and the 3rd respondent.

Issues

  1. Whether Uganda Revenue Authority can be added as a party to Miscellaneous Cause No. 171 of 2019 brought under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act.
  2. Whether the court has jurisdiction to add a non-party to an arbitration agreement to proceedings seeking interim protection under section 6 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act.

Orders

  • Application dismissed.
  • Costs awarded to the 1st and 2nd respondents.

Rules and key headnotes

Arbitration & ADR — Court Intervention — Scope under Arbitration and Conciliation Act s.9
Under section 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, except as provided in the Act, no court shall intervene in matters governed by the Act. The principle of non-intervention supports the parties' decision to refer disputes to arbitration rather than litigation.
Arbitration & ADR — Interim Protection — Prerequisites for Grant
A court cannot grant an interim measure of protection or injunction within the meaning of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act if the parties to the court proceedings are not parties, or persons claiming through or under a party, to the arbitration agreement. For interim protection to be granted, both parties in litigation must be parties to the arbitration agreement; mere commercial connection with a party to the arbitration agreement is insufficient.
Civil Procedure — Joinder of Parties — Arbitration Proceedings
The court cannot use its powers under Order 1 rule 10(2) of the Civil Procedure Rules to add a party to proceedings for interim protection under section 6 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act where the applicant is not a party to the underlying arbitration agreement. To do so would amount to inviting a non-party to participate in arbitral proceedings and would impermissibly alter the nature of the arbitration.
Arbitration & ADR — Arbitration Agreement — Privity Requirement
Arbitration proceedings are a creature of contract. Any attempt to add a party to proceedings arising from an arbitration agreement would amount to amending the underlying contract, which the court has no power to do where the applicant seeking joinder is not a party to that contract.

Legislation cited (7)

Cases cited (2)

  • Usafi Market Vendors Association v Kampala Capital City Authority (Misc. Application No. 647 of 2018)
  • City of London v Sancheti [2009] Bus. L.R. 996

Full judgment

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

Uganda Revenue Authority V Ren Publishers Limited & 2 Others (MISC. APPLICATION NO. 510 OF 2019) [2019] UGHCCD 145 (5 August 2019)
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.