adminFidelis Munyoro : Lifestyle Reporter
Lunch time at Paula’s Place along Samora Machel is all about friends, colleagues and the Portuguese faire. Most people into fine dining acknowledge that the Portuguese certainly know how to turn a humble spud and chicken into a feast fit for gods. Paula’s Place holds its own among the many popular restaurants in Harare. Little did most diners realise that the change in location and name from Cascais along Samora Machel (now The Volt) to its present location was not about the heat of nearby competition in the form of Coimbra or tenancy issues or any other such matters.
It was the break down of a mother and daughter partnership which has finally been laid to rest after four years of legal strife.
Daughter Paula Conceicao who is the proprietor of Paula’s Place was relieved after the court awarded her $6 000 costs of suit after her mother Mrs Maria Madalena Baptista decided to drop a more than $238 000 suit against her in the High Court during profit sharing dispute.
Justice Esther Muremba who presided over the dispute ordered Mrs Baptista to pay the costs of suit.
The dispute between Conceicao and her mother spilled into the courts four years ago. Baptista had filed the lawsuit claiming that her daughter had been short changing her from the period of 2009 to 2011, while the two co-owned Cascais Restaurant.
The claim was brought about when Conceicao back in 2011 was granted a peace order by the Harare magistrate court against her mother’s boyfriend Mr Joao Parracho for interfering in the restaurant and abusive behaviour towards her.
Baptista, who was bitter about her daughter’s action, then filed a High Court application and sought government departments like, the Registrar of Companies, Zimbabwe Revenue Authority, National Social Security Association, Zimbabwe Manpower Development Fund and Standards Association of Zimbabwe to have her own company and her daughter investigated, but the application failed.
Conceicao later decided to part ways with her mother and in May 2011 she ceased operating Cascais Restaurant. She moved all its assets into storage and handed the rented property back to the landlady.
She opened her own place at another location. Not satisfied with the outcome Baptista issued summons in the High Court alleging her daughter had been short changing her since 2009 until close of business in 2011 to the tune of $238 582,50.
During the lengthy trial that started two months ago, Baptista’s lawyers announced that she wanted to drop the claim and let each party pay their own costs.
However, Conceicao refused to let her mother off the hook and claimed $6000 towards her legal costs.
Throughout the civil trial it was always Conceicao’s position that the legal action by her mother was maliciously motivated by her mother’s husband who was back then her boyfriend.
The two had a fall out after Conceicao obtained a peace order against him.
It became apparent during cross examination of Baptista that she was not aware of what was going on with the facts of the claim and that someone else was the driving force behind the malicious attack on her daughter.
Commenting on the withdrawal of the civil suit at the eleventh hour, Mr Oliver Mushuma of Mushuma Law Chambers, Conceicao’s attorneys, expressed the view that the withdrawal was inevitable as Baptista’s case was ill-conceived, badly pleaded and the evidence pathetic.
“The reasons given by the plaintiff at this very late stage, that is, financial and health issues were not bon fide reasons at all,” said Mr Mushuma. The matter was set to be finalised inside a week and considering the fact that it had been pending for four years, the withdrawal is not justifiable on any grounds other than the plaintiff and her attorneys conceded defeat.“If they were certain of winning the case, then the plaintiff could always pay her lawyers from the $238 582.50 that she was claiming.”
Mr Mushuma, however, indicated that his client was satisfied with the outcome of the case as the withdrawal of the matter and payment of wasted costs in the sum of $6000 by the plaintiff vindicated his client.
Advocate Firoz Girach instructed by Chihambakwe, Mutizwa and Partners acted for Baptista in the civil trial.
Online Reporter