Graham Mappa v PNG Electricity Commission ELCOM

• Jurisdiction: Papua New Guinea
• Judge: Woods J
• Judgment Date: 04 October 1995
• Citation: [1995] PNGLR 170
• Court: National Court
• Year: 1995
• Judgement Number: N1366

National Court: Woods J

Judgment Delivered: 4 October 1995

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

[NATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE]

GRAHAM MAPPA

V

PNG ELECTRICITY COMMISSION

Mount Hagen

Woods J

8 August 1995

4 October 1995

DAMAGES — Assessment of damages — Loss of income — Need for appropriate business records.

Facts

The plaintiff's 25 seater passenger bus was involved in collision with a vehicle owned by the defendant. At the trial, damages was awarded to plainitff where from the defendant appealed to the Supreme Court against the assessment of damages. The appeal was allowed and the matter remitted to the court for the assessment.

Counsel

P Dowa, for the plaintiff.

D L O'Connor, for the defendant.

29 September 1995

WOODS J: This is a claim for damages for loss of income following damage caused to the plaintiff's Isuzu 25 seater passenger bus on 19 August 1989 when it was involved in a collision with a vehicle owned by the defendant. A trial was heard on this claim in July 1992 and an award of damages was made. However there was an appeal to the Supreme Court against the assessment of the damages and the Supreme Court heard the appeal in June 1993 and allowed the appeal against damages and ordered that the matter be remitted for further assessment before the trial judge based upon matters raised in their ruling. This is now the rehearing.

In their ruling the Supreme Court found that the appellant did not establish his damages by the calling of sufficient evidence. The only evidence led was a statement by the plaintiff that his business earned K1,200 per week and this evidence was not accepted. There was no documentary or other kind of evidence to establish that fact apart from some comparison with another similar business run by someone else. There were no bank records, tax returns or balance sheets or other kind of evidence and in their...