Q&A – 3 June 2013
Child injured on jumping castle
I sent my child for a party and due to poor supervision he fell off a jumping castle and had to be airlifted for specialized treatment abroad. My son now has a permanent limp and requires another round of surgery as the injury was severe. I do realize that this was a party and fun filled, but surely there is some law that requires such organisers to take care of persons especially young children. Whom should I sue?
IO, Dar
Your lawyers can consider suing the party organizers as individuals, the company that organized the party, the security company responsible for security, the medical personal on duty (in case they did not manage this well), the person in charge of taking care of the jumping castle, the company that leased the jumping castle and any other person who directly or indirectly might have contributed to the injury suffered by your child. This could include any parent who was there at the time and might have taken the role of overseeing the jumping castle.
It is true that this was merely a party, but that does not exonerate the guilty parties from taking care of persons they invited. In fact, even if your child was not invited and showed up, the party organizers would still be responsible for taking care of him.
The inviting party had a duty of care, and from your question it is clear that they were in breach of this duty which resulted in the injury. With proper evidence in Court including an expert medical witness, you have a strong case, unless of course you have exaggerated something.
Bank not following instructions
I deal in mobile vouchers and deposit my funds with a large bank in Mtwara. Whenever I go to the bank, I depend on the teller to sort the notes of Tsh 500, 1000, 2000 and 5,000. Problem I am now facing is that the new manager has told me to do the sorting myself as it is wasting the teller’s time. I fail to understand why the bank is unwilling to do its job. Can I sue the bank?
IL, Dar
If you have entered into such a “sorting agreement” with your banker, then the bank is in breach of its obligations. However knowing the market practice in Tanzania, and elsewhere, we have not come across a bank that will accept money in a sack and start sorting it for you prior to depositing.
The normal client bank relationship is for the bank to safeguard your funds. You should consult your lawyers but it is quite unlikely that you can take the bank to task.
Hairdresser changes hair to red
I am getting married in two weeks and went to the saloon to get my hair done. I made it very clear to the hairdresser that I wanted light strips of “light red” colour. The hairdresser put so much dark red on my head that I look like a redhead. It has spoilt my mood and I am depressed. I look uglier than one can imagine. Can I take the hairdresser to task?
DP, Dar
Due to the number of questions pending, we might be answering this question after your wedding for which we apologies.
Coming to your question, we believe that if you were clear in what you wanted and the hairdresser understood your instructions, then you can sue under your oral contract with the hair dresser. The challenge will be on the evidence part as you will claim as per your question, and the hairdresser will likely say exactly the opposite.
You might want to try get witnesses who were in the saloon that day, in addition to investigate the hairdressers track record. For all you know he or she might have turned others into redheads as well. It is crucial that this evidence be gathered before the filing of the case. Your lawyers can guide you further.
Primary mining licence ownership
We are a foreign company that has entered into a 25% stake in a joint venture company (JV) whereby the other 75% is locally owned. Our JV has started to purchase primary mining licences (PML) so that we can mine in a large way. We will be employing thousands of people. Is it possible to convert a PML into a mining licence?
EY, Dar
The Mining Act unambiguously states that a primary mining licence for any minerals shall not be granted to an individual, partnership or body corporate unless- (a) in the case of an individual, the individual is a citizen of Tanzania; (b) in the case of a partnership, it is composed exclusively of citizens of Tanzania; (c) in the case of a body corporate, it is a company and- (i) its membership is composed exclusively of citizens of Tanzania; (ii) its directors are all citizens of Tanzania; (iii) control over the company, both direct and indirect, is exercised, from within Tanzania by persons all of whom are citizens of Tanzania.
From your description above, although you only have a 25% stake in the JV company, you must note that PMLs are exclusively for Tanzanian held companies or Tanzanian individuals and as such your JV’s acquisition of the PMLs contravenes the Mining Act, and your company may be fined and/or its directors/managers imprisoned for a period not exceeding twelve months.
Also note that if you start large scale mining with a PML ie without converting the PML to a ML, the Mining Act states that any minerals obtained in the course of unauthorized prospecting or mining operations including equipment involved in such operations shall be forfeited.