Statement of claim: Guidelines & Tips

(NB. These must be read together with the precedent provided on Pg. 4)

The top right corner:

HP – Principal Registry (Lusaka)

HK – Kitwe
HL – Livingstone
HN – Ndola
HB – Kabwe

(Its all dependent on the facts provided).

The top left corner:

IN THE HIGH COURT OF ZAMBIA

AT THE PRINCIPAL REGISTRY (it could be Ndola Registry or Livingstone Registry)
AT LUSAKA (it could be AT NDOLA or LIVINGSTONE depending on the facts).
(Civil Jurisdiction)

Who are the parties?

Plaintiff (Names come first on the left, then ‘PLAINTIFF’ on the far right).
And
Defendant. (Names come first on the left, then ‘DEFENDANT’ on the far right).

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Heading?
STATEMENT OF CLAIM
(Must be written in Caps as shown on the precedent)
1. You’ll be given a set of facts, in form of a narration of events, and from those facts,
it’ll be up to the student to separate the material facts from the immaterial.
2. Material facts means all those facts upon which the plaintiffs case or the
defendants defense depends. ‘Material’ means necessary for the purpose of
formulating a compete cause of action.1
3. An example of a material fact from the attached precedent, is the number plate of
the damaged vehicle which speaks to its identification. Note that the amount of fuel
or the size of the tyres have not been mentioned. This is because they are not
material facts, they add no value to the cause of action.
4. The student will have to ascertain from the set of facts provided whether, they
contain a cause of action.
5. A cause of action is a factual situation, the existence of which entitles one person
to obtain from the court a remedy against another person.2
6. As can be seen from the Precedent attached, under ‘Particulars of Negligence',
the facts present a cause of action via tort. There was a duty of care, breach of
that duty and damage. All three elements are present, and form a basis on which
the court can now grant a remedy.
7. The facts provided could present a cause of action in tort, contract, employment
law, Land law or company law. It could be anything. It is therefore advisable for
students to have an open mind and refresh their minds regarding legal principles
learnt throughout law school.
8. The brief facts of the statement of claim which you’ll be required to draft must
always start as presented on the attached precedent. E.g ‘The Plaintiff is and
was at all material times…' ‘The Defendant is and was at all material times…'
9. The particulars of damages or special damages must always be quantified,
depending on the facts provided.

1 Bruce v. Odhams Press Limited [1936] ALL ER 287.

2 Letang v. Cooper [1965] 1 QB 232.

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 10. Point number 6 on the precedent attached shows a list of reliefs sought, this
should be tailor made to the facts provided and reliefs pleaded throughout the
statement of claim.
11. The Date and Address of the parties must be placed as shown on the attached
precedent.
12. Lastly, it is important that the student takes some time to practice a sample
question in preparation for the exam. It is important to gain some skill in separating
material facts from immaterial facts, this is where a lot of time is taken up and
before you know it, you’re still on question 1 after 2 hours of writing. You are
intelligent, yes, but please practice.

In closing, the words of Lord Atkin (who has since gone to be with the Lord) are still true
up to today, when he said:

‘…But the root principle of our procedure still remains: that parties before they come to
court must state in writing the grounds of their claim and the facts upon which they rely,
and similarly must state in writing what part of the claim they do not admit, any special
defenses upon which they rely. And they are still liable to be defeated altogether if some
grounds of claim or defense have not been stated, e.g. Fraud; and in any event in the
case of an insufficient pleading may be put to delay, and should in every case be put to
the expense of submitting a corrected pleading.’

31st January, 1937.

All the best!

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF ZAMBIA 2007/HP/0978
AT THE PRINCIPAL REGISTRY
AT LUSAKA
(Civil jurisdiction)

BETWEEN:

SONQISO ZULU PLAINTIFF

AND
PATELINA PATEL KAMUZU FIRST DEFENDANT

BUSH BLAIR LTD. SECOND DEFENDANT

STATEMENT OF CLAIM

1. The Plaintiff is and was at all material times the owner of a Toyota Prado, registration number
AJA 1234.
2. The First Defendant is and was at all material times the tenant and occupant of Flat No. 44
Chadiza Court, Northmead, Lusaka.

3. The Second Defendant is and was at all material times a company, incorporated under the
Companies Act with its registered office in Lusaka, and was the owner of Flat No. 44 Chadiza
Court, Northmead, Lusaka.

4. On or about the 1st of February 2007, due to the negligence of either or both of the defendants,
as the plaintiff will plead the maxim res ipsa loquitur, a large flowerpot fell from the seventh
floor balcony of Flat No. 44, Chadiza Court landing on the Plaintiff’s Toyota Prado that was
parked below with the plaintiff seated inside.
Particulars of Negligence
(a) Failure to perform a duty of care to passers-by in respect of activities in the flat
(b) Failure to take all reasonable steps to secure the flowerpot on the flat’s balcony
(c) Failure to give any warning to passers-by in respect of the potential hazard of falling objects

5. By reason of the aforesaid falling flower pot caused by the negligence of the defendants, the
plaintiff suffered personal injury, consequential loss and expense:

Particulars of Injuries
(a) Fractured left leg below the knee requiring hospitalization for 21 days
(b) Suffered shock

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 Particulars of Damages

1. Crushed Hardtop roof and shattered windscreen of Toyota Prado, registration number
AJA 1234, with estimated repair cost of K 33,000

Particulars of Special Damages

1. Loss of one laptop K 14,500.50
2. Medical Bills K 50,420.90

6. AND the Plaintiff claims:

(i) Damages
(ii) Any other relief the Court may deem fit
(iii) Special damages as pleaded
(iv) Interest
(v) Costs of and incidental to the proceedings

Dated the…………day of……………………………………..2021

Per …………………………………..
Lex Chambers
4th Floor, Premium House
Independence Avenue
LUSAKA
Advocates for the Plaintiff
TO: The Defendants and their Advocates,
RBM Chambers
Chester House
Cairo Road
LUSAKA

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF ZAMBIA 2007/HP/0978
AT THE PRINCIPAL REGISTRY
AT LUSAKA
(Civil jurisdiction)

BETWEEN:

PATELINA PATEL KAMUZU 1ST DEFENDANT

BUSH BLAIR LTD. 2ND DEFENDANT
AND
SONQISO ZULU PLAINTIFF

DEFENSE

Take note, that the parties have changed position.

1. Remember you start the defense, just like the statement of claim, e.g ‘The 1st Defendant
is and was at all material times…’ (Resident at ABCD - depending on the facts).
2. The 2nd Defendant is and was at all material times (A registered company, with its
place of business at ABCD – depending on the facts).
3. The Plaintiff ‘is and was at all material times’ resident at (ABCD flat etc).
4. Since it’s a tort matter via Negligence. All the student has to do is rebut all three
elements of negligence. (N.B If one element of negligence is missing, then the whole
cause of action falls off as well, however, it is advisable to deal with all three elements).
5. For example, in the scenario above, the flower pot fell from the top floor of the flat,
However, what if the plaintiff parked his car in the wrong parking slot, further what
if there was a sign written ‘Do not park here’ in RED, and the plaintiff did not see it
or chose to ignore it?

We then see that the defendant had executed his ‘duty of care.’ By ensuring that he
had placed a notice for drivers not to park in the slot.

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 The student must argue in that manner.
So, the ‘defense’ of the defendant is similar in structure to the statement of claim.
6. Always remember that if it’s a statement of claim via contract, the defense must focus
on showing or exposing that the elements of the contract were not met eg. Illegality,
no consideration, no intention to create legal relations. The student must pay attention
to the facts and pick out what would be the relevant defense.
7. Another point to note, is it could either be a ‘DEFENSE’ or ‘DEFENSE AND
COUNTER CLAIM’. Here, it means the defendant also wants the plaintiff to pay for
some damage or loss incurred. The student will also have to show a ‘cause of action’
as well. Always work with the facts, and have an open mind.