Legal Articles and Guides
Judge strikes ‘scandalous’ rule 43 bid from roll
KZN High Court (Durban) Judge Robin Mossop has rebuked the lawyers of a divorcing woman who launched an application for interim maintenance and attached dozens of pictures to the application which included a picture of the husband’s lipstick- and semen-stained T-shirt.
Judge orders estate from violent marriage to be shared
A Thembisa woman who admitted to burning all of her husband’s clothes and partly torching his car will receive half of his government pension fund and a share of their house in the divorce settlement, according to a Cape Argus report.
Two-thirds of deceased estates go unreported
A recent study has shown that two out of every three deceased estates in SA are never reported, says a Mail & Guardian report.
Judge grants teen permission to travel
A widow had to turn to the Limpopo High Court (Polokwane) to obtain permission for her daughter (16) to travel abroad to represent her school, after the child’s father died in April in Brazil and was unable to give his go-ahead.
Mother fails in bid to control child’s treatment
The Gauteng High Court (Pretoria) has ordered that a boy (4) may receive medical treatment from specialists because the child is suffering from various ailments, apparently as a result of in Utero drug exposure.
Polyamorous woman fights to join lovers in UK
An SA woman is fighting for her right to join her two lovers who are currently in the UK.
Judge orders inquiry into estranged wife’s eviction
A wife whose husband secretly sold their home, leaving her and their children unlawful occupants, received a lifeline when a judge ordered an urgent inquiry about whether she and her children had other living options.
Court rules in favour of gay sperm donor
In a victory for unconventional families, a gay sperm donor has found solace in being granted permission to see his daughter after a prolonged legal battle with a lesbian couple to secure his parental rights.
SCA orders mother to return child to father in Canada
In a case which concerns the global phenomenon of child abduction and involves an application premised on the provisions of The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, the SCA has ruled a boy – now three years old – had to be returned to Canada where his father lived.
Ex-husband must pay maintenance to foster child
Confronted with a situation of whether a man is liable to pay maintenance to his divorced wife for a foster child in their care, the Western Cape High Court ruled that the interests of the child is of paramount importance.
Mandela family feud continues over disputed estate
Zenani Mandela-Dlamini, the daughter of political icons Nelson Mandela and Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, has failed to file an answering affidavit explaining why she should be the sole executor of her mother’s estate.
Forfeiture ruling overturned on appeal
The Eastern Cape High Court (Mthatha) has ordered that the decision of a Regional Court magistrate ordering the husband to forfeit the benefits arising out of a marriage in community of property be set aside and substituted with an order for the division of the joint estate.
Son can move with mother to Germany
Western Cape High Court Judge Gayaat Salie has ruled it would be in the best interests of a boy (12) to relocate to Germany following a custody battle between his divorced parents.
Mother ordered to return child to Australian-based father
Gauteng High Court (Pretoria) Judge Linda Retief has ordered a mother who lived in Australia with her husband – but who two years ago returned to SA with their son for a visit and never returned – to immediately return the child to Australia.
Legal battle over sperm ‘donors’ and ‘contributors’
A gay man who verbally agreed to provide sperm to a lesbian woman seeking to conceive, believing they would co-parent but live apart, has gone to court in a bid to change the law after the mother tried to restrict access to the child.
