Legal Articles and Guides

The Limpopo farmer who has been at loggerheads with the government for 18 years over the ownership of the Nooitgedacht farm has finally bought it.

Conveyancers and estate agents who celebrated the decision to allow the re-opening of deeds offices country-wide are disappointed as some have not opened a week later, Die Burger reports.

Pharmaceutical retailer Dis-Chem is facing a potential lawsuit that may force it to pay rent in full or lose its leases, says a Business Day report.

Many factors can delay your property transfer, and all of them are likely to cost you. A last-minute rush to comply with statutory requirements is one such pitfall to avoid. Beware therefore of the possibility that you will soon need (in some parts of the country you may already need), to lodge before transfer a formal “SPLUMA” (Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act) certificate of compliance.

An interdict granted three years ago ordering a Port Shepstone businessman to remove a prominent billboard, claiming the government ‘hijacked’ his property in a ‘land grab’, has been set aside.

Two neighbours in the posh Johannesburg suburb of Inanda are embroiled in a protracted court fight about a wall separating their properties, notes a Times Select report.

Residents of Empolweni informal settlement whose homes were demolished by the City of Cape Town won a victory in the Western Cape High Court against the city on Friday, notes a GroundUp report.

The Legal Resources Centre (LRC) has taken the City of Cape Town to court to prevent further demolition of shacks and evictions of residents.

The ditching of vulnerable people in the rainy-cold streets over the weekend has highlighted the alleged ‘anti-poor’ behaviour of Johannesburg, which was found to have acted unconstitutionally by the courts.

Two of SA wealthiest retailers have been the first to ‘go rogue’ on their rental obligations. A Moneyweb report says Edcon, the perennial patient, was expected to alert its long-suffering landlords that its already considerably trimmed-back rental obligations were likely to be an early victim of the Covid-19 lockdown, but for H&M and The Foschini Group (TFG) to lead the field of non-payers of rent was unexpected.

The SCA has reserved judgment on an appeal bid relating to a land dispute between two Eastern Cape groupings, which raises key issues on what constitutes a 'community', and the challenges in unpacking historical accounts of land dispossession between competing claimants.

Acting Judge of the Land Claims Court, Advocate Thembeka Ngcukaitobi SC, has dismissed a leave to appeal application by Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane in relation to her role in the District Six saga, says a Daily Maverick report.

Social justice lobby groups are celebrating a victory after the government heeded calls for evictions to be placed on hold following the lockdown.

The SCA has dismissed the Bo-Kaap community’s appeal against a previous finding that the City of Cape Town had followed due process in approving the land-use applications made by a developer for the construction of an 18-storey apartment block in the area.

A successful spoliation application in the Land Claims Court has ensured Muntu Khumalo (69) can continue to take a short cut across his neighbour’s farm to reach his home.