The Court of Appeal of Trinidad & Tobago hands down judgment in Namalco v. Estate Management and Business Development Company Ltd (EMBD) (Consolidated Appeals Nos. P129 of 2022 and P130 of 2022).

The Court of Appeal of Trinidad & Tobago handed down judgment on 7 October 2025 in the long running case of Namalco v. Estate Management and Business Development Company Ltd (EMBD) (Consolidated Appeals Nos. P129 of 2022 and P130 of 2022).

In a major decision concerning the recovery of sums paid in restitution of unjust enrichment following the invalidity of the instrument under which money was paid, EMBD was successful before the Court of Appeal in arguing that it followed from the finding that ‘Supplementary Agreements’ – which had been entered into further to an unlawful means conspiracy between mega-contractor Namalco and the ex-Chief Executive of the state-owned entity EMBD and which had the effect of significantly inflating prices under the underlying infrastructure contracts for works for the benefit of displaced Caroni sugar plantation workers in Trinidad – were to be set aside, that EMBD was entitled to recover the substantial overpayments which had been made once the works were revalued at the original contract rates. The Court of Appeal overturned the Trial Judge on this issue.

Jonathan Acton Davis KC and Christopher Reid (together with George Hayman KC of Maitland Chambers and Colin Kangaloo SC) acted successfully for EMBD in these consolidated appeals, in what has been the longest running and highest value commercial dispute in the Trinidad & Tobago Courts. They were instructed by Danielle Inglefield of Fitzwilliam Stone.