Legal Articles and Guides
Journalist denies settling race defamation case
One of the former City Press journalists who brought a lawsuit against Media24 and its former editor Ferial Haffajee says he did not sign any settlement agreement regarding the court action. According to a report on the IoL site, the lawsuit was launched in in 2014 by Mawande Mvumvu, Khanyiso Tshwaku, Muntu Vilakazi and Denvor de Wee who accused Haffajee of defaming them by branding them as racists during a staff meeting in 2013.
Race slurs, disbarred lawyer raise heat in court
A judge hearing a billion-rand South Coast land claim cracked the whip yesterday, banning an aggressive troublemaker " a disbarred attorney " from her courtroom and ordering community representatives to publicly apologise to their lawyers for making "racial slurs" against them, says a report in The Mercury, And in an attempt to finalise the matter " which involves 1 800ha of land and has been dragging on for 16 years " Land Claims Judge Shenaaz Meer ordered both sides to meet next week and "be realistic" in their negotiations.
R1.3m damages claim for Facebook posts
The danger of defaming someone on Facebook was again highlighted in a damages claim instituted by Paul Hechter, whose name was "dragged in the mud" following a run-in with his neighbour, says a report in The Mercury. Hechter said in papers before the Gauteng High Court (Pretoria) that he was accused of being a Peeping Tom, a pervert and a paedophile.
Attorneys pushing bogus RAF claims
The financially strained Road Accident Fund (RAF) says it has identified bogus claims to the value of R126m made between April and June, notes a Business Day report. The fund said the claims were detected before they were paid out. Of the 108 bogus claims detected, 100 were claims represented by attorneys. The RAF has been beset by financial difficulty and has a provision of R145bn for claims it has yet to pay. It is seeking additional funding from the Treasury to help it meet its obligations.
Department forks out R23m medical negligence settlement
A last-minute scramble by the Eastern Cape Health Department to settle a medical negligence lawsuit worth R23m has saved 20 of their vehicles meant to be auctioned next week, says a Daily Dispatch report. A provincial health spokesperson confirmed they had last week paid R23m to Johannesburg-based lawyer Zuko Nonxuba after he successfully sued them for medical negligence.
Penny Sparrow matter postponed
Penny Sparrow made a brief appearance in the Umzinto Magistrate"s Court yesterday to face a charge of crimen injuria following her disparaging comments on Facebook about black beachgoers after a New Year"s Eve party. A News24 report says the matter was postponed to 12 September to allow her new attorney of record to consult with her, and to allow the state an opportunity to furnish the defence with the contents of the docket.
Rights of child again stressed in top court
The rights of a child not to be detained except as a measure of last resort have been confirmed by the Constitutional Court‚ which ruled yesterday (Thursday) that a teenager can go ahead with a claim for damages against the state, notes a BDlive report. Joyce Raduvha wants damages from the Minister of Safety and Security after she was arrested without a warrant. She was 15 at the time.
Black Sash tackles government on grant deductions
The government is facing a counter legal challenge in a dispute with Net 1 UEPS Technologies with a rights group demanding that it protect welfare recipients from companies that are allegedly selling the nation"s poorest people goods and services they don"t need and deducting payments from grants paid to them by the state, says a report on the Fin24 site.
SABC freelancer heads to SCA over ban
Senior political anchor at the SABC Vuyo Mvoko will be appealing to the SCA over the SABC"s decision not to put him on air, his lawyers said, according to a BDlive report. Mvoko was one of eight SABC journalists who lost their jobs for criticising the public broadcaster"s decision not to air footage of violent protests where public property was attacked.
Defamation action against editor next week
The long-delayed racism case brought by reporters against their then boss Ferial Haffajee is due in court next week. A report in The Star says the four former City Press reporters " Mawande Mvumvu, Khanyiso Tshwaku, Muntu Vilakazi and Denvor de Wee " brought the case against then editor Haffajee in January 2014, accusing her of defaming them by calling them racists.
Tax fraud security companies earn judge's wrath
Despite an extensive two-year tender process, three private security companies still managed to secure multimillion-rand City of Cape Town contracts on the basis of fraudulent Tax Clearance Certificates, the Western Cape High Court has found, according to a Weekend Argus report. So serious were the findings made against Okuli Security Services, Comwezi Security Services and Command Security Services SA, that Acting Judge Michael Donen saw fit to grant a punitive costs order against them.
Journalist was just doing his duty
Senior political anchor at the SABC Vuyo Mvoko should not be punished, even for a day, for doing his constitutional duty, the Gauteng High Court (Johannesburg) heard yesterday. Legalbrief notes the court is expected to rule today on whether he will be immediately reinstated or told to await the outcome of an SABC investigation of misconduct against him. A BDlive report points out Mvoko is the last of the eight journalists who lost their jobs at the public broadcaster for criticising it for its ban on the broadcast of footage of violent protests. The other seven, who were employees, were reinstated after court action.
No explosives found at homes of alleged 'terror twins'
No explosives were found at the homes of terrorism-accused twins Brandon-Lee and Tony-Lee Thulsie, the Johannesburg Magistrate"s Court heard yesterday. According to a News24 report, they were in court in a bid to have their arrests declared unlawful. During questioning by their lawyer Anneline van den Heever, investigating officer Wynand Olivier told the court that the bomb squad found no explosives at the two houses searched by the police. The bomb squad told him that explosives could be at another location, he told her.
Whistle-blower application not urgent - SAA
SAA acting CEO Musa Zwane yesterday defended the airline"s acting chief financial officer"s actions in response to whistle-blower Cynthia Stimpel"s warnings about a dodgy deal and dismissed the urgency of the suspended treasurer"s application to halt a disciplinary hearing against her. The Labour Court in Johannesburg was told Stimpel had breached SAA"s code and ethics after she leaked documents to the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) that it used to institute court action against the airline in a bid to halt the carrier"s suspect debt financing deal with BnP Capital.
Companies: How private are shareholders details?
All companies - big and small, public and private – must keep registers of their shareholders and directors. And, as the SCA (Supreme Court of Appeal) made clear recently, even “private” companies’ registers aren’t private at all. An investigative journalist digs for detail A financial journalist, investigating a controversial investment scheme, was tasked with investigating the shareholding structures of three companies. The companies refused him access to their securities registers and he approached the High Court for assistance.
