Contractor's case rejected after 10 years litigation

Contractor’s case rejected after 10 years litigation

Copy of ruling not provided to prevent appeal, says contractor.

July 25, 2010 5:21 by Samuel Potter

A Saudi contractor intends to complain to the minister of justice and the president of the Court of Appeals after the court’s bench responsible for resolving trade disputes decided not to continue considering his case against a contracting company after 10 years of litigation.

The contractor filed the lawsuit accusing the contracting company of refusing to pay him SR2 million for a project he had carried out on its behalf. The court told the plaintiff that the case has been rejected after considering it for more than 10 years.

The court began its proceedings by sending the case to a chartered accountant seeking his opinion on some accounting issues. The legal representative of the contracting company objected to the court appointing an accountant. Then another accountant was hired at the personal expense of the complainant.

The accountant demanded a fee of SR80,000 which he readily paid in the hope of getting his SR2 million quickly, said the contractor. The accountant submitted his report, which contained evidence proving the rights of the contractor but again the company’s legal representative pointed out some minor loopholes in the report. The court continued looking at the case.

After 10 years, the contractor was told that the court would not accept his case because some of the documents were signed by employees who were not authorized to sign. The contractor asks why the legal representative of the company did not notice that some of the documents were signed by unauthorized personnel all these years.

The contractor said more than four months have passed since the court has rejected his case but it did not give him a copy of the ruling so that he could appeal to a higher court.

- Arab News