Toddy Civil Engineering Limited v Adkins Equipment Supplies Limited
The bottom line
#The Court of Appeal dismissed Toddy Civil Engineering's appeal, confirming that simply denying a debt without proof of payment is not a defence in Kenya.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#Key legal issues
#Sufficiency of a defence consisting of a bare denial of indebtedness
The appellant's defence that it had paid for all sand delivered was evasive and insufficient because it was unsupported by any witness statement or documentary proof of payment
The appellant admitted the contract and deliveries of sand but pleaded payment without tendering any evidence of it. The respondent's claim was supported by witness statements, delivery notes, invoices and a bank statement, unchallenged since no witnesses were called under the parties' consent. Relying on Ragbit Singh Chatte, the Court held a mere denial without reasons is not a sufficient defence and a party alleging payment must prove it.
Whether the respondent's documentary case stood uncontroverted on the agreed documents-only mode of trial
Because the parties agreed to decide the dispute on filed documents without calling witnesses, and only the respondent filed documents evidencing delivery and outstanding payment, the respondent's case was uncontroverted and proved
The consent regime meant no cross-examination would test the documents. The respondent filed delivery notes showing 114 unpaid lorry loads at Kshs.25,000 each, totalling Kshs.2,850,000, plus a bank statement of payments. The appellant filed no documents at all. The High Court was therefore right to allow the claim, and the Court of Appeal found no error in that conclusion.
Legal principles established
#- A second appellate court confines itself to matters of law unless the courts below considered matters they should not have, failed to consider matters they should have, or the decision is perverse
- A mere denial of liability without reasons is not a sufficient defence; a defendant must answer the point of substance and, where payment is alleged, must prove it
- Where a party denies an allegation in a pleading, the denial must not be evasive but must answer the point of substance
Court orders
#- 1.Appeal dismissed
- 2.Costs of the appeal awarded to the respondent
- On appeal from
- High Court of Kenya at Milimani, Nairobi
- Not stated in the judgment
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Second appeal to the Court of Appeal under the applicable appellate framework; the judgment identifies the matter simply as 'a second appeal' without citing the specific provision
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Toddy Civil Engineering Limited v Adkins Equipment Supplies Limited", Case Analysis (2025). Not stated in the judgment (second appeal from Nairobi, Commercial and Tax Division). Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keca/2025/988/eng@2025-05-30
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.