For about two weeks now, the media has been awash with the somewhat controversial transaction between Vantage and Patrick Bitature involving a colossal loan of USD 10 Million, which Bitature, under his Simba Group, allegedly took from the Vantage partnership.
In one of the rulings touching on the matter, the High Court of Uganda ruled that foreign partnerships must be registered in Uganda to be legally recognized and have the locus to sue or be sued.
This principle is based on the dictates of the partnership Act, 2010, which expressly states the circumstances under which a partnership must be registered.
The Honourable Justice further distinguished the legal capacity of a foreign company and a foreign partnership as follows.
Unlike a partnership, a foreign company can carry on business in Uganda without being further registered.
This distinction is derived from the legal meaning of the two terms, i.e., incorporation and registration. Whereas companies are incorporated, partnerships are registered.
This means that a company can only be incorporated once. It can transact in any foreign jurisdiction, unlike a partnership that has to be registered in every jurisdiction of operation, especially in the context of the Ugandan jurisdiction.
The author, Mr. Bright Nantumanya is a Lawyer at Tara Advocates, Passionate about commercial law, and a Writer at the Judicial Sound Exponent.
