Skyview Hotel (Chingola) Limited and Anor v Klapton Reinsurance Limited and 3 Ors (CAZ/08/450/2024) [2025] ZMCA 94 (23 July 2025)
The appellants were properly notified of the taxation proceedings but failed to object or appear. The court, guided by precedent and statutory rules, taxed the bill of costs on a standard basis, allowing only those costs deemed reasonably incurred.
Source-derived case information.
- Citation
- [2025] ZMCA 94
- Parties
- Appellant: Skyview Hotel (Chingola) Limited; Appellant: Saasa Shamambo; Respondent: Klapton Reinsurance Limited; Respondent: Klapton Business Park Development Limited; Respondent: Equitas Corporate Services Limited
- Court
- Court of Appeal of Zambia
- Jurisdiction
- Zambia
- Case Number
- CAZ/08/450/2024
- Procedural Posture
- Civil / Taxation of Costs
- Outcome
- bill of costs taxed and allowed as assessed
- Legal Topics
- Taxation of Costs, Costs in Arbitration, Party to Party Costs
- Source Language
- en
Source-derived case record
Summary, issues, holding and outcome
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Parties
Skyview Hotel (Chingola) Limited
Appellant
Saasa Shamambo
Appellant
Klapton Reinsurance Limited
Respondent
Klapton Business Park Development Limited
Respondent
Equitas Corporate Services Limited
Respondent
Procedural Posture
Civil / Taxation of Costs
Legal Issues
- 1 Whether the bill of costs submitted by the respondents should be taxed and allowed in full or in part
- 2 Whether the appellants were properly notified and given an opportunity to object to the bill of costs
Ratio Decidendi
The appellants were properly notified of the taxation proceedings but failed to object or appear. The court, guided by precedent and statutory rules, taxed the bill of costs on a standard basis, allowing only those costs deemed reasonably incurred.
Court Disposition
bill of costs taxed and allowed as assessed
Orders
- The respondents' bill of costs is taxed and allowed in the sum of ZMW 87,472.76 inclusive of profit costs, disbursements, taxing fee, and VAT.
Full Case Text
Judgment text and source record
1 paragraphs
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF ZAMBIA CAZ/08/450/2024 HOLDEN AT LUSAKA (Civil Jurisdiction) IN THE MATTER OF A SUBSCRIPTION AND SHAREHOLDERS AGREEMENT RELATING TO CHAZOWN A PROPERTY DEVELOPERS COMPANY NOW KNOWN AS KLAPTON BUSINESS PARK DEVELOPERS LIMITED LIMITED AND IN THE MATTER OF SKYVIEW HOTEL (CHI NGOLA) LIMITED AND MR. SAASA SHAMAMBO AND IN THE MATTER OF THE ARBITRATION ACT NO. 19 OF 2000 OF THE LAWS OF ZAMBIA AND IN THE MATTER OF PROCEEDINGS) ARBITRATION RULES, STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS NO. 75 OF 2001 OF THE LAWS OF ZAMBIA (COURT AND IN THE MATTER OF BETWEEN: INTERIM AN INTERIM ORDER INJUNCTI ON OR OTHER SKYVIEW HOTEL (CHINGOLA) LIMITEI? - SAASA SHAMAMBO AND 1 ST APPELLANT 2ND APPELLANT KLAPTON REINSURANCE LIMITED 1 ST RESPONDENT KLAPTON BUSINESS PARK DEVELOPMENT LIMITED 2 ND RESPONDENT EQUITAS CORPORA TE SERVICES LIMITED 3RD RESPONDENT HON. P. M. MASHEKE -REGISTRAR For the Appellant For the Respondent : NI A Ms. M. Musonda- Equitas Legal Practitioners RULING Cases referred to; 1. Dipak Kumar Desai and Yakub Patel v David Kangwa Nkonde SCZAppeal No. 125 of2010 Legislation referred to; 1. The Rules of the Supreme Court of England (White Book) 1999 Edition. 2. Legal Practitioners (Costs) Order Statutory Instrument No. 6 of The respondents filed the notice of taxation together with the bill of costs on a party-to-party basis, on 19th June, 2025 pursuant to order of court in a ruling dated 11 th April, 2025. The appellants did not file any objections. When the matter came up for hearing on 22nd July, 2025 , Ms. Musonda informed me that Counsel for the appellant had been served with the notice of taxation, the bill of costs for taxation and the bundle of documents. The notice was served on 3 rd July, 2025, returnable 15th July, 2025 , when the matter should have initially taken place. When the hearing was rescheduled to 22nd July, 2025, once again Counsel for the respondent served the notice of hearing on Counsel for the respondent. This was evidenced by two R2 affidavits of service filed into court on 11 th July, 2025 and 21 st July, 2025 , respectively. I decided to proceed with the taxation as I opined that the appellants had been given sufficient notification of the taxation proceedings. They had decid ed not to appear nor file any objections, if at all they were opposed to the respondent's bill of costs. This cou rt is guided that the only costs to be allowed are those reasonably incurred. This is in line with the decision of the Supreme Court in th e case of Dipak Kumar Desai & Another v David Kangwa Nkonde 1 where it was stated as follows: "A bill of costs by its very nature should reflect all reasonable costs incurred and no padding is allowed. It is incumbent upon taxing masters to appreciate the context w ithin w hich lit igation takes place giving rise to costs and scrut inize all bi lls of taxation with afine-tooth comb so that only reasonable costs are allowed. Not doing so, leads to unrealistic awards for costs being made and litigants will not get the j u stice they so deserve." I, therefore, proceeded to tax the bill of costs on a standard basis, item by item, in accordance with Order 62 Rule 4 of the Rules of R3 the Supreme Court of England (White Book) 1999 Edition 1 . I additionally used the prescribed scales provided by the Legal Practitioners' (Costs) Order of 20172 . My allocutor below only consists of costs that, in my view, were reasonably incurred. ALLOCATUR: PROFIT COST PAGE 1. 2 . 3. 4. 5. 6 . 7. 8. 9. DISBURSMENTS (ZMW) 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 200.00 200.00 200.00 1 579.20 7 401.10 8 095.80 2 796 .30 1 134.85 5 774 .75 3 207 .75 7 702 .00 23 636.45 TOTAL 61 328.20 1 000.00 Total Profit Cost: Add 15% General fees: Letters, petties and messengers Total Profit Costs: Add Disbursements: R4 61 328.20 9 199.23 70 527.43 1 000 .00 71 527.43 Add 10% taxing fee: Add 16% VAT Total 6 132.82 77 660.25 9 812.51 87 472.76 . .... , .-....,,,...-,__.. . • · 1 •• . L /. Ul3 . . _____ ,,.,.. .. -~ ~ 1 TRA . HON. P. M MA REGIST RS