On 28 September 2011, the applicant (Transcom Sharaf Mozambique Limitada) and respondent (Manyame Milling Company) entered into a Cargo Services Agreement whereby the applicant would provide road cargo haulage services in Mozambique and Zimbabwe. The respondent was obliged to make minimum monthly payments of US$90,000. The agreement contained an arbitration clause requiring disputes to be settled by arbitration in accordance with Mozambique Arbitration Law 11.99. A dispute arose and was referred to arbitration in Mozambique. On 11 July 2017, the arbitrator Fernanda Lopes rendered an award in favor of the applicant for US$748,011.50. The respondent appealed, but the arbitrator rejected the appeal and declared the award final on 13 August 2017. The respondent then purportedly launched a further appeal against the rejection of its first appeal. The applicant applied to the High Court of Zimbabwe to register the arbitral award in terms of Article 35 of the Arbitration Act [Chapter 7:15].
1. The arbitral award by arbitrator Fernanda Lopes dated 11 July 2017 is registered as an order of the court. 2. The respondent shall pay the applicant's costs.
The binding legal principles established are: (1) For purposes of Article 35(2) of the Arbitration Act, where a party against whom an award is made admits the genuineness and authenticity of the arbitration agreement and award, strict compliance with certification requirements may not be fatal if the legislative intent (preventing fraud and ensuring authenticity) is otherwise satisfied. (2) Under Article 36(1)(a)(v), the party opposing registration of an arbitral award bears the onus of proving that the award is not yet binding or has been suspended. (3) Under section 25 of the Civil Evidence Act, foreign law must be proved through expert evidence, authoritative citable court decisions, written law of that country, or Zimbabwean superior court precedents on that foreign law - courts cannot take judicial notice of foreign law or presume it is the same as Zimbabwean law. (4) He who alleges must prove - a party alleging that a foreign appeal process suspends finality of an award must prove the foreign law establishing this. (5) Registration of arbitral awards is an administrative process and courts do not assume an appellate or review role but only determine whether the award is registrable and does not contravene the law.
The court made several important non-binding observations: (1) The objective behind arbitration is to expedite dispute resolution and arrive at final and binding awards, and parties should not seek to circumvent unfavorable outcomes through procedural tactics. (2) There is more honor in adhering to arbitral awards than seeking to avert unfavorable outcomes at any cost. (3) Once parties agree to submit to arbitration with final and binding decisions, they should respect the results and not attempt to re-argue the merits simply because the outcome is unfavorable. (4) The court expressed concern that the respondent's opposition appeared to be an attempt to re-argue issues already determined by the arbitrator rather than establish proper grounds for refusing registration. (5) Article 35(2) has international flavor as it derives from the UNCITRAL Model Law and should be interpreted consistently with international arbitration principles. (6) The provision should not be abused by litigants bent on frustrating the objectives of arbitration.
This case is significant in South African and Zimbabwean arbitration jurisprudence for several reasons: (1) It clarifies the application of Article 35 of the Arbitration Act (based on the UNCITRAL Model Law) regarding registration of foreign arbitral awards, emphasizing substance over form where authenticity is admitted. (2) It establishes that the legislative intent behind authentication requirements is to prevent fraud and ensure genuineness, not to create technical obstacles. (3) It reinforces the principle that parties opposing registration bear the onus of proving grounds for refusal under Article 36. (4) It provides important guidance on proving foreign law under section 25 of the Civil Evidence Act, requiring expert evidence or authoritative sources rather than mere assertions. (5) It emphasizes the finality of arbitral awards and that courts should not allow parties to frustrate arbitration outcomes through procedural maneuvers. (6) It confirms that registration applications are administrative in nature, not appellate or review proceedings, and courts should not re-examine the merits of arbitral decisions.