What to do when your Neighbour Builds right up to your Property

Introduction This articles explains your rights as a property owner when a neighbour violates a building line or encroaches on your land.   Determining Building Lines Every property has several imaginary lines that run along the inside of the property parallel to the borders, a few meters away from the actual borders.  These are known
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BUILDING PLANS AND VOETSTOOTS

Introduction If you have bought a property only to realize 6 months down the line that it does not have approved building plans, this constitutes a latent defect, and you may be able to claim damages as a result. Rights related to latent defects Where a latent defect is discovered after ownership has passed to
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Is there a duty on conveyancers to tell purchasers about seller’s historical debt?

Background Several municipalities (Tshwane, Ethekwini and Ekurhuleni) argued in the Constitutional Court in the “New Ventures”[1] matter that it is lawfully permissible for a municipality to attach and sell a purchaser’s property in order to satisfy debt owed to the municipality by prior owners of that property. The municipalities argued that this right was given
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Unitrans Supply Chain Solutions (Pty) Ltd v National Bargaining Council for the Road Freight and Logistics Industry (NBCRFLI) and Others

SUMMARY – Background to Review This is an opposed review application of an award in which the arbitrator found that the third respondent, Mr I Juries (‘Juries’), was dismissed by the applicant (‘Unitrans’) unfairly because he did not deliberately falsify payroll information which caused a shop steward, Mr G Coetzee (‘Coetzee’), to receive additional remuneration
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Municipal terminations of supply – is a court order necessary?

Introduction This article considers the legal question of whether it is necessary for a municipality to obtain a court order before terminating the supply of electricity and/or water to a consumer’s property for non-payment of municipal charges. Principles of spoliation It is trite (accepted) law that if any person or entity (including a state entity
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JOUBERT V S (642/2016) [2017] ZASCA 3; 2017 (1) SACR 497 (SCA) (3 MARCH 2017))

BACKGROUND The Appellant, an accountant by profession, was convicted in the Nelspruit Regional Court on 20 counts of fraud relating to false VAT claims made to the South African Revenue Service and was subsequently sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment, wholly suspended on certain conditions for a period of five years. The Appellant petitioned the Gauteng
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PepsiCo v Atlantic Industries (983/16) [2017] ZASCA 109 (15 September 2017)

SUMMARY The appellant is PepsiCo Inc (Pepsi), the registered proprietor of trademark PEPSI. The respondent is Atlantic Industries (Atlantic), a subsidiary of The Coca-Cola Company and the registered proprietor of trademarks TWIST, LEMON TWIST and DIET TWIST.  Both parties’ trademarks are registered in class 32 which includes ‘mineral and aerated waters and other non-alcoholic drinks’.
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Pro Tempo v Van der Merwe (20853/2014) [2016] ZASCA 39; 2018 (1) SA 181 (SCA) (24 March 2016)

SUMMARY This case is an appeal from a judgment handed down by the Gauteng Division of the High Court, Pretoria. The question in this appeal is whether the Appellant, Pro Tempo Akademie CC (a close corporation which owns and operates a school for children with learning disabilities) was correctly held liable for damages sustained by
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Van Vuuren v Ethekwini Municipality 2018 (1) SA 189 (SCA)

SUMMARY High Court: Facts: John, an 8-year-old boy, had been playing on a waterslide owned by the Ethekwini Municipality (the “Respondent”). While John was sliding down the slide he was pushed by a child behind him, causing him to lose his balance which resulting in him suffering various injuries. No municipal official was controlling access
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Ikea Trading und Design AG v BOE Bank Ltd (77/2003) [2004] ZASCA 27 (1 April 2004)

SUMMARY The First Respondent, BOE Bank, was the holder of a general notarial bond over Woodlam Industries CC (“Woodlam”) which was placed into final liquidation in October 1999 and as a result, BOE Bank applied to the Eastern Cape High Court for an order that the liquidation and distribution account be amended to include the
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