Eriya Mikka

Eriya is an Principal Associate with MMAKS Advocates Litigation Team. Eriya is actively involved in courtroom advocacy and handles a wide range of matters for various clients, particularly focusing on debt recovery, employment law and commercial litigation. Eriya also provides dispute resolution advice for the firm’s corporate clients. He holds an LL.B (Hons.) degree from Makerere University and a Post Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Centre.

Eriya has interest in dispute resolution, technology and innovation in law and has extensively participated in legal innovation programmes for the firm. He completed the Webber Wentzel Litigation Associate Foundation Programme in Johannesburg and has featured in the prestigious Chambers and Partners Litigation Guide 2019 as a co-author of the Law and Practice in Uganda.

• Advocate, High Court of Uganda
• Member, Uganda Law Society
• Member, East Africa Law Society

2017:  Advocate of the High Court

2015:  Post Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice, Law Development Centre

2014:  LL.B (Hons.) Makerere University

2023 – Date: Principal Associate, MMAKS Advocates

2015 – 2023: Associate, MMAKS Advocates

• Acting for an international development bank in connection with recovery of approx. USD 118 million against a defaulting Hotel Group in Uganda, including defending the bank against a suit by the borrower claiming that the bank breached its financing obligations to the borrower and seeking special damages of approx. USD 200 million and an application for arbitration referral to South Africa and a contentious hybrid dispute resolution clause.
• Acting for a leading manufacturer of consumer goods in the East African region in connection with a suit by a former distributor of its products in Uganda where the distributor seeks special damages of approx. USD 18 million for alleged unlawful termination of the distribution agreement, breach of confidentiality and infringement of trade secrets.
• Acting for Symbion Uganda in connection with a suit against a milk processing and retail multi-national company in relation to an action for recovery of sums in the region of USD 193 thousand for unpaid architectural design fees.
• Acting for a leading Ugandan Pathologist in connection with a medical negligence suit involving DNA mismatch, a cancer misdiagnosis and surgery in a specialist South African hospital.
• Acting for the Central Bank of Uganda in the Constitutional Court in connection with defence of a petition by one of the defunct commercial banks in Uganda seeking to set aside the liquidation process of the commercial bank and declare various provisions of the Financial Institutions Act 2004 unconstitutional.
• Acting for the Central Bank in connection with a judicial review application in which the claimant sought to quash a decision declaring him not to be ‘fit and proper’ to hold a managerial position in a financial institution, thereby leading to termination of his employment. The Claimant sought damages more than UGX 1.2 billion.
• Acting for a commercial bank in connection with the recovery of a debt of USD 5.5 million from a conglomerate, including preparing a debt purchase agreement for a third party, mortgage assignment deeds, an agreement for interest capping and realisation of various securities.
• Acting for Exim Bank Uganda to recover USD 700 thousand in connection with a matter involving realisation of commercial property and currently acting to defend the Bank in a Suit initiated by the borrower to set aside the sale of the property and payment of damages in the sum of USD 4.3 million.
• Advising a construction joint-venture entity in connection with a contractual dispute as well as the viability and validity of an insurance claim under the contract for construction of the first cable stayed bridge in Uganda across the River Nile valued in the region of USD 100 million.
• Acting for Imperial Group of Hotels which includes Grand Imperial Hotel, Imperial Botanical Resort Hotel and Imperial Royale Hotel in connection with a defence, negotiation and resolution of a range of class actions and labour disputes by former employees and payment of terminal benefits that include severance pay, gratuity, labour union entitlements in excess of UGX 100 million.