Legal Articles and Guides

Jacob Zuma’s lawyer Michael Hulley has confirmed he has written to NPA head Shaun Abrahams to ask that the former President’s corruption prosecution – due to resume on 8 June in the KZN High Court (Durban) – be halted pending the outcome of the pending court battles with the DA and EFF over his legal fees, notes a TimesLIVE report.

Court documents have revealed how a top SABC executive allegedly deceived the company’s financial head into bankrolling her family and friends’ travelling and accommodation expenses. Suspended SABC sport group executive Sully Motsweni’s alleged three-year spending spree began in April 2014 and ended in April 2017.

We live in stressful times, and as our roads become busier and the pressures of modern life mount, expect more and more road rage incidents. YouTube clips of drivers brawling, beside themselves with fury, vehicles forced off the road or tail-ended by apoplectic motorists, shouting, swearing, punch-throwing, windscreen smashing, racial insults – they all make for good viewing stats but what if you are one of the unfortunate victims?

An investigation by the Hawks, the SA Reserve Bank, the NPA and a private investigation firm has uncovered a ponzi scheme that has apparently robbed more than 800 people of R380m.

A Germiston magistrate has come under fire for finding that calling a white man the K-word is even more degrading than using it to describe a black man, says a Sunday Times report.

A wide-reaching ban of the old apartheid flag would be an unconstitutional infringement on the right to freedom of expression, lobby group AfriForum says in court papers. The civil society group is opposing an application by the Nelson Mandela Foundation, which is seeking a declaratory order that any ‘gratuitous display’ of the old flag constitutes hate speech and harassment.

Henri van Breda has been found guilty of the murder of his father, brother and mother and the attempted murder of his sister. A TimesLIVE report notes that he was also found guilty of defeating the ends of justice.

The Constitutional Court has ruled that a white man who called a colleague a ‘swart man’ was justifiably dismissed, primarily because he lied about saying those words and then showed no remorse for his conduct. ‘This ruling is likely to be used as a basis for alarmist arguments that political correctness has gone too far.

In what is regarded as a ground-breaking judgment for the rights of prisoners who are studying while in jail, a judge ordered that the Correctional Service’s policy that they may not use their personal laptops – minus a modem – in their cells, constituted unfair discrimination, notes a Pretoria News report.

The trial of an alleged kingpin of a syndicate that pocketed millions through rhino poaching, is to go ahead this week after 20 adjournments, notes a Sunday Tribune report. Details of how police, prosecutors and magistrates allegedly benefited from protecting alleged syndicate head Dumisani Gwala (56) could emerge.

Fraud accused legal commentator Brenda Wardle (58) made a brief appearance in court yesterday where she demanded her laptop be plugged in inside the holding cells to allow her to prepare her own defence. The Herald reports this is not the first time Wardle has made odd requests in the Port Elizabeth Commercial Crimes Court.

In a landmark case, a businessman has been convicted of failing to pay more than R1m in spousal and child maintenance from August 2012 – when the couple divorced – to May 2016 when his ex-wife laid charges against him, notes a Sunday Times report.

Xolani Shabalala, who spent three-and-a-half-years in jail before being acquitted of rape, is claiming R5.5m from the state, alleging that his detention and prosecution were malicious.

The black-on-black K-word case playing out in the Randburg Magistrate's Court heard yesterday that one of Investec chair Fani Titi's employees was reduced to tears by politically-connected businessman Peter-Paul Ngwenya's ‘bad’ treatment when he stormed their offices demanding money‚ notes Daily News.

A herd of cattle costing R1.5m and meant for emerging farmers was instead delivered to Nkandla – as a gift to Jacob Zuma from his political ally, North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo, says a Sunday Times report. The gift, paid for with public funds, is now under investigation by the Hawks and could lead to charges of fraud and corruption against Mahumapelo and the former President, who is already facing 16 charges, including fraud, racketeering and money laundering, stemming from the multibillion-rand arms deal.