St. Kitts Sugar Association Ltd v The Attorney-General

• Jurisdiction: Saint Kitts and Nevis
• Court: High Court (Saint Kitts and Nevis)
• Judge: Glasgow J.
• Judgment Date: 30 August 1974
• Neutral Citation: KN 1974 HC 2
• Docket Number: 65 of 1973
• Date: 30 August 1974

High Court

Glasgow, J.

65 of 1973

St. Kitts Sugar Association Ltd.

and

The Attorney-General

Appearances:

F.E. Kelsick and C.L. Wilkin for plaintiff

Attorney General (L.L. Moore) for defendant

Contract - Terms — Agreement between Government and St. Kitts Sugar Assoc. Ltd. re use of sugar lands.

Glasgow J.

1 On the 19 ^th December, 1972 an Agreement (hereinafter referred to as the said Agreement) was made between the Government of St. Christopher, Nevis and Anguilla of the one part, and the St. Kitts Sugar Association, Limited, acting therein on behalf of its members who are the owners of the sugar estates in St. Kitts, listed in the Schedule to the said Agreement.

2 By originating summons dated the 19 ^th October, 1973 the Plaintiff claims against the Defendant –

• “(1) A declaration that on a true construction of the abovementioned agreement the Minister is not entitled by the said Agreement or at all to rent to a third party or grant exclusive possession to a third party of any portion of the lands subject to the agreement or in any other way to alienate any interest in the said lands to any third party.

• (2) A declaration that on a true construction of the above mentioned Agreement that the owners have not thereby divested themselves of the power to exercise rights of ownership in respect of the lands encompassed in the said Agreement.

• (3) A declaration that on a true construction of the said Agreement nothing therein deprives the owners of the lands covered by the said Agreement of all of the incidents of ownership of the said lands leaving the said owners with a bare title to the said lands and no more.”

3 The facts which gave rise to these proceedings are as follows: By letter dated the 25 ^th July, 1973 the Minister of Agriculture (Hon. E. St. John Payne) informed Mr. W. A. Kelsick, Joint Managing Director of S.L. Horsford & Co. Ltd., Basseterre, that the Sugar Industry Rescue Operation had permitted a Company by the name of Agricultural Products Ltd., to cultivate approximately five acres of land part of Ponds Estate, situated at Taylors Range on the main road to St. Peters. The Minister's said letter was brought to the attention of the Directors of the plaintiff Company, whose secretary Mr. Ralph S. Vanier, wrote the Minister requesting from him certain information. The required information was contained in a letter to Mr. Vanier dated 13 ^th August 1973. The letter was signed by the Accountant of S.I.R.O. It was stated in the letter of the 13 ^th August 1973, among other things, that the land is rented to Agricultural Products Ltd. for a period of three years effective from 1 ^st January 1973, and that the rental is $10.00 per annum. The Secretary of the Plaintiff Company, at paragraph 3 of a letter dated the 29 ^th August 1973 addressed to the Minister of Agriculture, stated:

“The Directors of my Association consider the action taken by SIRO to be a serious breach of the Agreement Made between the Government and the Association on 19 ^th December, 1972. SIRO has no authority to rent estate land to any would-be tenant. It is an unwarranted incursion into the proprietary interests of the Owners of the Estate to Grant permission to cultivate this land without their prior consent. We must therefore warn your Ministry not to proceed any further with the agreement as planned.”

4 The Minister of Agriculture replied to the Secretary of the Plaintiff Company's letter of 29 ^th August by letter dated the 31 ^st August 1973. The third paragraph of the Minister's said letter of 31 ^st August 1973 reads as follows: –

“The Agreement under reference authorises the Minister to cultivate crops other than sugar cane in particular “such vegetable crops as will satisfy the requirements of the Local Food Production Ordinance, 1966 …I am advised that there is nothing in the Agreement which obliges the Minister to act directly and that if in fulfilling his obligation under the paragraph of the Agreement last cited the Minister acts through organisations committed to the same ends...