With SA being closer to a radical overhaul of its eviction laws as the Department of Human Settlements officially gazettes the Illegal Eviction and Unlawful Occupation of Land (PIE) Amendment Bill, we are moving from a system of ‘eviction at all costs’ to one of ‘regulated resolution’.

A Cape Argus report notes that so says legal expert Ann-Suhet Marx, director and head of litigation at VDM Incorporated.

The proposed changes aim to strip away the legal loopholes used by bad-faith occupiers, while introducing harsh penalties for those who orchestrate land invasions, says Marx.

Calling the Bill a ‘seismic shift’ for property owners and municipalities currently buckled under the weight of expensive, years-long litigation, she hopes it will mark the end of an era of indefinite stays on private land.

‘For the first time, the law is specifically targeting syndicates behind these invasions, rather than just the desperate families caught in the middle,’ she said.

Marx said the courts have been a frontline for a constitutional tug-of-war for years.

‘The 2026 Bill is a direct response to years of judicial “gridlock”, where landowners and municipalities were left with orders they simply couldn’t enforce.’

Marx said that as things stand, landlords must fund litigation to join the municipality in a legal challenge. But the Amendment Bill proposes automatic joinder.

The State is involved from the start, at no extra cost to the landlord.

Marx believes that the 2026 PIE Amendment Bill will also offer considerable relief to small-scale property owners.

Marx says the new clauses are intended to fast-track cases where the property owner can prove undue financial hardship, which will prevent the landlord from falling into foreclosure while waiting for an eviction order.

The public has until mid-June to submit comments on the Bill.

Full Cape Argus report