Komboro George v MVIT

• Jurisdiction: Papua New Guinea
• Citation: [1993] PNGLR 477
• Date: 16 November 1993
• Court: National Court
• Year: 1993

National Court: Woods J

Judgment Delivered: 16 November 1993

1 Practice and procedure—amendment of pleadings—amendment of statement of claim after close of evidence—whether prejudice to defendant—amendment allowed

___________________________

Woods J: At the end of the trial on a claim for damages for injuries received in a motor vehicle accident the Plaintiff sought to amend the Statement of Claim to support the real basis of the claim following the disclosure of certain facts during the trial and to bring the pleadings into line with the Act under which the claim is made.

The claim by the Plaintiff is brought under the Motor Vehicles (Third Party Insurance) Act (Ch295) s54 which states:

(1) Subject to subsection (2) any claim for damages in respect of the death or bodily injury to any person caused by, or arising out of the use of—

(a) a motor vehicle insured under this Act, or

(b) an uninsured motor vehicle in a public street; or of the motor vehicle cannot after due inquiry and search be established,

(c) a motor vehicle on a public street where the identity of the motor vehicle cannot after due enquiry and search be established.

Shall be made against the Trust and not against the owner or driver of the motor vehicle.....

It is necessary to bring your claim within one of the above three categories with appropriate evidence. However in this case in the Statement of Claim the Plaintiff has said:

(3) At all relevant times the...