By Georgina Maka’a
The High Court recently ordered the Solomon Islands Seventh-day Adventist Church to pay more than $831,000 to Xiao’s Hardware Company Limited.
The money is compensation for business losses claimed by the Chinese-owned business, which operates a number of hardware shops in Honiara.
Justice Augustine Aulanga made the order after the Church and its lawyer, Nelson Laurere, failed to meet a court deadline.
The case concerns a land dispute between Xiao’s Hardware and the Solomon Islands Seventh-day Adventist Church.
The Attorney General is also named as a defendant in the case.
On 31 March 2026, the parties agreed to a set of orders to help move the case forward.
The orders required the Church to respond to Xiao’s claim for $831,277.60 in business losses.
The response had to be filed by close of business on 14 April 2026.
The court warned that failure to meet the deadline would mean the Church had admitted the amount claimed.
However, the Church and its lawyer filed their response two days late on April 16. Furthermore, lawyer Laurere did not ask the court for permission to file the response late.
Laurere also failed to apply for an extension of the deadline.
Justice Aulanga said court orders are binding and are not merely suggestions.
He said parties must follow court deadlines unless the court changes or cancels an order.
The judge also referred to an earlier Court of Appeal decision involving failure to meet a court deadline.
That decision said a party seeking more time must formally apply to the court and explain the delay.
Justice Aulanga said there was no such application in this case.
He therefore enforced the earlier order and entered judgment for Xiao’s Hardware.
The Church must also pay the legal costs of the proceedings.
However, the court has not yet decided compensation over a separate right-of-way dispute.
That issue will be determined by the Commissioner of Lands under the Land and Titles Act.
