Supreme Court asked to amend fraud case against Basajjabalaba

By | July 6, 2024

Hassan Basajjabalaba

The  Supreme Court is set to rule on an application by Legal Brains Trust, a non-profit organization seeking to amend its lawsuit against businessman Hassan Basajjabalaba and his companies.

The case alleges fraudulent compensation of shs 142 billion (US$38 million) awarded to Basajjabalaba for managing city markets.

In 2012, Legal Brains Trust sued Basajjabalaba, accusing him of using government officials, banks, and the Central Bank to steal shs142 billion from public funds.

The money was supposedly compensation for lost contracts to manage Kampala markets.

Legal Brains Trust argued the compensation process was fraudulent and demanded a refund from Basajjabalaba and 19 other respondents.

In 2020, the Constitutional Court partly ruled in favor of Legal Brains Trust, declaring the contracts illegal and ordering Basajjabalaba to repay the money.

The court also fined four commercial banks involved in the transaction for failing to prevent the illegal transfer of funds.

Both Basajjabalaba and Legal Brains Trust appealed the decision to the Supreme Court.

Legal Brains Trust is now seeking to amend its appeal to substitute the deceased former Governor of Bank of Uganda with the administrators of his estate but to also reflect name changes of some respondent banks.

Legal Brains Trust also seeks to introduce new arguments regarding the liability of each respondent and the legality of certain transactions.

Opposing parties argue the amendments are unnecessary or prejudicial and should be dismissed.

The Supreme Court will decide on Legal Brains Trust's application before proceeding with the main appeal

Related Topics

Related Stories

Latest Stories