The latest decision from the Supreme Court Zambia is a clear indication that all is not lost for the legal and judiciary system of Zambia. Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani is a noted businessman and philanthropist in Zambia who has been fighting for the legal takeover of Portland Cement factory for more than a decade. This fight took an unprecedented halt when the judge at the Lusaka High Court gave a controversial decision in which the Ventriglias were announced as only shareholders of the Portland Cement Zambia.
Dr. Rajan Mahtani did not lose hope and once again, started his fight by reappealing to the higher Court of Appeal. The claim was accepted and after around nine months of case proceedings, judge Mwinde reversed the decision from the Lusaka High Court by announcing it as unethical. Finsbury Investments was announced as majority shareholder and legal owner of the factory and the amount payable against majority shares was confirmed to be K580,000 as opposed to K580 million claimed by the Ventriglias.
The Ventriglia family, unperturbed by the definite final decision from the higher Court of Appeal, once again challenged the decision at the Supreme Court Zambia. This challenge was evaluated by a bench of three judges. Upon evaluation, it was found that law requires claims against previous court judgements to be established within 14 days of the court decision itself. However, the Ventriglia family failed to comply with the regulation and registered the case more than 15 months later. Furthermore, the judges also confirmed that the evidences provided by the Ventriglia family was not enough and as such, the claim by the Ventriglias was rejected by Supreme Court.