|
|
|
| May 2025 |
|
|
Delictual foreign‑currency claims are not converted by the Finance Act until quantified; defendant liable for proved misappropriations, including offshore loss payable in USD.
Delictual claims—foreign currency—Finance (No.2) Act 2019—delicts not converted to RTGS until liability quantified; offshore misappropriation creates foreign obligation; proof requirements for misappropriation, tax and fuel claims
|
30 May 2025 |
|
Insufficient evidence that the accused caused death; fatal head injuries were self-inflicted during psychiatric relapse.
Criminal law — Murder — Causation — Psychiatric relapse and self-inflicted head trauma — Insufficient evidence of use of plank or slasher — Acquittal
|
30 May 2025 |
|
A trustee's unconditional undertakings created personal liability, allowing recovery of stolen trust funds by the co-trustee.
Trust law – trustee liability for employee fraud – undertakings as personal assumption of liability – trustee's standing to sue co-trustee (derivative-type action) – default judgment not absolving co-trustee
|
30 May 2025 |
|
Municipal land occupied without statutory allocation is unlawfully held; verbal or fraudulent permissions do not confer rights, warranting eviction and punitive costs.
Property law – Rei vindicatio – Ownership and possession established; onus on possessor to prove lawful right of retention – Municipal land disposal – mandatory compliance with s 152(2) Urban Councils Act – verbal allocations/permissions invalid – estoppel/quasi-mutual assent cannot validate statutory non‑compliance – fraudulent documents and mala fides justifying punitive costs
|
29 May 2025 |
|
Court granted suspended civil imprisonment under Rule 73 after finding the debtor had means (an aircraft interest) and was not candid about finances.
Civil imprisonment – High Court Rules r 73 – subject to s 49(2) Constitution – burden on judgment debtor to prove inability to pay – factors to consider: income, assets, necessary expenses, employment status – joint-owned asset treated as available for execution – suspended committal on payment schedule and sheriff-supervised sale of asset
|
29 May 2025 |
|
Applicant failed to obtain an interim interdict over alleged mining encroachment; alternative remedy under s354 was available.
Interim interdict — requirements (prima facie right, irreparable harm, balance of convenience, no alternative remedy); Mines and Minerals Act s354 — injunctions and jurisdiction of Provincial Mining Director; mining claim encroachment disputes; lis pendens; deponent authority
|
29 May 2025 |
|
|
29 May 2025 |
|
High Court cannot overturn a President’s appointment of a chief on the merits; only procedural illegality permits judicial review.
Chieftainship disputes – Constitution s.283 and Traditional Leaders Act – High Court retains review jurisdiction over procedural legality but cannot overturn President’s substantive appointment – exhaustion of domestic traditional remedies – separation of powers
|
28 May 2025 |
|
Declaratur and acquisitive prescription granted where sale agreement proven and 30+ years’ uninterrupted possession established.
Property law – Declaratory relief to determine ownership – Validity of sale agreement and proof of payments – Acquisitive prescription (30 years’ open and uninterrupted possession) – Prescription defence not particularised or proved – Credibility of witnesses
|
28 May 2025 |
|
Applicant granted access to Anton Piller‑seized evidence after respondents failed to show cause.
Anton Piller order – search and seizure – confirmation on return day – passing off – exclusive distributorship – interference with contractual rights – prima facie case – failure to show cause
|
28 May 2025 |
|
|
27 May 2025 |
|
High Court may register employment-related arbitral awards for enforcement; public policy cannot prevent registration.
Arbitration — Registration of arbitral awards — Article 35 Arbitration Act; Labour Act s98(14)–(15) — High Court jurisdiction to register employment-related awards for enforcement — public policy is a ground to set aside, not to block registration — stay pending appeal moot where appeal dismissed
|
27 May 2025 |
|
Urgent spoliation application dismissed for lack of urgency, material non-disclosure, lis pendens, defective relief and non-joinder.
Civil procedure – urgent chamber application – urgency test and certificate of urgency; uberrima fides and material non-disclosure; lis alibi pendens (pending proceedings); spoliation (mandament van spolie) — nature and limits; competence of relief sought — spoliation vs declaratory relief; non-joinder of necessary party; locus standi
|
27 May 2025 |
|
Challenge to Global Compensation Deed dismissed for mixed/defective standing and because compensation for improvements is constitutionally/statutorily permissible.
Constitutional law — Compensation for compulsory acquisition — ss 72 & 295; Requirement that compensation be assessed/paid in terms of an Act (s295(4)); Privity of contract and locus standi; Public interest litigation — s85 capacity requirements; Land Acquisition Act as implementation mechanism; Ultra vires challenge to ministerial agreement
|
27 May 2025 |
|
Plaintiff awarded holding-over damages; prior proceedings and capital gains tax objections did not defeat the claim.
Property law – unlawful/holding-over occupation – entitlement to damages; Effect of prior and parallel proceedings on damages claim; Validity of title despite capital gains tax currency assessment; Admissibility and sufficiency of valuation evidence; Foreign-currency judgments and payment in local currency at prevailing interbank rate
|
21 May 2025 |
|
Cancellation under PPDPA s42(1)(b) invalid post-award; no specific performance or damages due to plaintiff's failure to perform and prove loss.
Procurement law — PPDPA s42(1)(b) — applies to pre-award procurement proceedings only; post-award cancellation under that section is void
Contract law — specific performance — claimant must have performed or be ready, willing and able; material non-performance defeats the remedy; court discretion to refuse where enforcement impractical
Damages — claimant must prove quantum with available documentary evidence; courts will not award speculative or ‘thumb-suck’ sums
|
21 May 2025 |
|
Court upholds s22A(2) but strikes down s22A(3) for vagueness and unconstitutional penalties limiting association and expression.
Constitutional law – criminal offences for participation in meetings with foreign governments – principle of legality and vagueness – interpretation in statutory context – distinction between 'actively partake' and undefined 'intentionally partake' – freedom of assembly and expression – revocation of citizenship, disenfranchisement and prohibition from public office as criminal penalties – presumption of constitutionality and limitation analysis under s86
|
21 May 2025 |
|
|
21 May 2025 |
|
Conviction confirmed; prohibition must generally cover all vehicle classes unless a justified, reasoned exception is recorded; matter remitted for correction.
Road Traffic Act — s 53(4) read with Part IX (s 65) — scope of driving prohibitions — discretion to exclude vehicle classes — requirement to give reasons — correction under s 65(6)
|
20 May 2025 |
|
|
19 May 2025 |
|
Spoliation claim dismissed due to material non-disclosure, disputed possession and public-interest balance favoring respondents.
Property law – mandament van spolie – possession and forcible deprivation – material non-disclosure in founding affidavit fatal to urgent relief – inconsistent sale documents (555 m² v. 2 150 m²) – balance of convenience and public interest in infrastructure projects
|
19 May 2025 |
|
|
19 May 2025 |
|
The plaintiff failed to prove the will was forged; credible witnesses and documentary evidence upheld the will.
Wills – Alleged forgery of signature – Weight of handwriting expert evidence based on photocopies and single aged sample – Credibility and evidential value of contemporaneous witnesses who drafted and witnessed the will – Testator’s testamentary freedom under Wills Act
|
19 May 2025 |
|
Eviction relief via provisional urgent chamber application was incompetent; opposing affidavit struck out for computer-generated date.
Procedure — Eviction — Urgent chamber/provisional orders inappropriate for eviction relief; eviction requires ordinary application/action or interdict pending determination; affidavit commissioning — computer-generated date invalid; in loco inspection and specific identification of occupiers required for eviction orders
|
19 May 2025 |
|
Appellants granted bail after court found magistrate relied on unauthenticated online videos and failed to individualise evidence.
Bail — burden on State to oppose bail — distinction between public safety (s117(2)(a)(i)) and public order (s117(2)(b)) — judicial notice — inadmissibility of unauthenticated internet videos — requirement to individualise allegations — fresh evidence on appeal
|
14 May 2025 |
|
Rescission application struck off for being filed out of time without condonation; attorney‑client punitive costs awarded.
Civil procedure – Rescission of default judgment – Rule 27(1) High Court Rules 2021 – knowledge of judgment and one‑month time limit – failure to seek condonation – application fatally defective – striking off the roll – costs on legal practitioner and client scale; legal practitioner deposing to affidavit and acting as counsel
|
14 May 2025 |
|
Application to cancel a registered deed stayed under lis pendens pending resolution of related proceedings.
Civil procedure – lis pendens – stay of proceedings where pending action involves same subject matter and issues; deed cancellation – fraud allegations and prescription deferred to pending proceedings
|
13 May 2025 |
|
Applicants failed to prove stand allocation; declarator and interdict dismissed for relying on disputed, allegedly fraudulent documents.
Urban Councils Act — Town Clerk’s authority to depose; locus standi of pay-scheme members; declaratur and interdict requirements; Plascon rule in motion proceedings; disputed/fraudulent documents; aggravated costs
|
13 May 2025 |
|
Challenge to a later will on forgery and undue influence fails; court upholds will and dismisses the applicants’ claim.
Succession law – validity of wills – alleged forgery and signature discrepancies – handwriting expert inconclusive – undue influence and incest allegations unproven – testamentary capacity and independent lodgement with Master – claim dismissed
|
12 May 2025 |
|
Challenge to criminal prohibition on facilitating unconstitutional removal of government dismissed as not unconstitutionally vague.
Constitutional law — Statutory construction — Vagueness challenge to criminal provision — Interpretation in context and presumption of constitutionality — Freedom of expression and political rights — Distinguishing protected political activity from conduct aimed at unconstitutional removal of government
|
9 May 2025 |
|
Plaintiff failed to prove duress or full payment; claims dismissed and costs awarded on attorney-and-client scale.
Contract – Duress and fraud – Requirement of reasonable fear and proof – Agency and authority of agent – Payment by bank transfer and effectiveness upon sellers' access – Evidential credibility and probative value of 'certificate of full payment' – Costs on attorney-and-client scale
|
9 May 2025 |
|
Defendant failed to prove the plaintiff removed US$4,000; divorce granted, custody and maintenance ordered.
Family law – Divorce – Allegation of removal of matrimonial funds – Proof on balance of probabilities – Burden on party alleging misappropriation; Family law – Custody, access and maintenance – existing maintenance order continued; Evidentiary weight of uncorroborated claims and community/administrative referrals (chief’s court, Ministry of Women’s Affairs)
|
9 May 2025 |
|
Issue estoppel and stare decisis bar re‑litigation of validated tax assessments; application dismissed with costs.
Civil procedure — Issue estoppel — Res judicata: prior HC and Supreme Court decisions validating tax assessments bar re‑litigation; Stare decisis — inferior courts bound by Supreme Court; Tax law — validity of assessments and penalties payable in foreign currency; Interdict — interim relief refused as an abuse of process
|
7 May 2025 |
|
Applicants (syndicate proprietors) entitled to declarator and final interdict; respondents' continued mining declared unlawful and they must vacate.
Declaratory relief (s14
High Court Act) – locus standi of syndicate proprietors – High Court Rules r11 permitting associations to sue – distinction between provisional/interim and final orders – requirements for final interdict (clear right, irreparable harm, no alternative remedy) – mining rights and cancellation/suspension of registration
|
7 May 2025 |
|
Applicant lacked standing and factual foundation to compel the central bank to expand public access to foreign currency.
Administrative law – declaratory relief (s 14 High Court Act) – requirement of direct and substantial interest and live dispute; Mandamus – Setlogelo requirements (clear right, injury, absence of ordinary remedy); Justiciability – courts decline abstract or hypothetical challenges; Separation of powers – courts cannot order executive to change monetary policy absent challenge to legality of policy instruments
|
7 May 2025 |
|
Conviction quashed where s70(3) required Prosecutor‑General’s written authorization (after probation report) for a ≤3‑year age gap but none was shown.
Criminal law – s70 (post-2024 amendment) – protection of children under 18 – s70(3) requires Prosecutor‑General’s authorization after probation officer’s report where age-gap ≤ three years – prosecutor’s presence not proof of authorization – magistrate’s duty to ensure peremptory requirements – conviction nullity – substantial miscarriage of justice
|
7 May 2025 |
|
The court declared s121(8)'s restriction on Supreme Court bail appeals unconstitutional for violating access to courts and equality.
Constitutional law — right to bail (s 50(1)(d)) — access to courts (s 69(3)) — public‑interest locus standi (s 85(1)(d)) — Supreme Court jurisdiction over bail appeals — invalidity of s 121(8) Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act — equality/discrimination
|
6 May 2025 |
|
Declaratory relief on currency conversion of a performance bond was premature and stayed pending the Supreme Court appeal.
Declaratur – Declaratory relief under s14 High Court Act – Prematurity and academic questions – Currency conversion by Statutory Instruments 33/2019 and 60/2024 – Effect on performance bond – Stay pending Supreme Court appeal
|
6 May 2025 |
|
|
5 May 2025 |
|
Review granted: Master failed to follow statutory removal procedure; additional letters of administration cancelled and proper process ordered.
Administration of Estates Act — s116 supervisory powers of the Master — s117 removal of executor requires judge’s order — s29 appointment and revocation of letters of administration — procedural fairness and right to be heard — issuance and cancellation of additional letters of administration
|
5 May 2025 |
|
Following abolition of the death penalty, court imposed life imprisonment for a premeditated, brutally violent murder in aggravating circumstances.
Criminal law — Murder with actual intent — Premeditation and repeated gratuitous violence — Aggravating circumstances — Sentencing after abolition of death penalty — Presumptive 20-year guideline overridden; life imprisonment appropriate
|
5 May 2025 |
|
Second applicant lacked locus standi; first applicant’s r29/joinder application struck off for failure to particularise.
Civil procedure — Rescission of default judgment — Rule 29(1) and Rule 27 — requirement to specify applicable limb of r29(1) — locus standi to seek rescission — joinder under r32 — pleadings must particularise legal basis
|
2 May 2025 |
|
Court set aside council decision that rewarded unlawful occupiers and ordered allocation to cooperative members forthwith.
Administrative law — judicial review — irrationality (Wednesbury unreasonableness) and procedural unfairness under the Administrative Justice Act; illegal occupation — one cannot benefit from one’s wrong; s 155 Urban Councils Act — regularisation not applicable; exceptional circumstances to substitute/remedy administrative action
|
2 May 2025 |
|
Application deemed abandoned for failure to file proof of service within five days; struck off roll with no costs.
Constitutional application — High Court Rules r107 and r58(14)–(15) — proof of service requirement — failure to file within five days — application deemed abandoned by operation of law — Registrar’s notification not constitutive — reinstatement/condonation available (Practice Direction No.1 of 2025) — access to courts argument rejected
|
2 May 2025 |
|
|
2 May 2025 |
|
Default judgment rescinded and bar removed where substantive disputes and filed heads warranted adjudication on the merits.
Civil procedure — Rescission of default judgment — r 27(1), r 39(5)(b) — Removal of bar for late filing of heads of argument — Prospects of success — Joinder, locus standi, prescription, and conflict of interest require merits hearing
|
2 May 2025 |