The “Aedilitian Remedies” A common sense principle inherited from early Roman law is that the buyer of an item discovering a latent (hidden) defect in it after the sale has a choice of remedies: either cancel the sale and return the item to the seller for a full...

"Justice cannot be for one side alone, but must be for both." (Eleanor Roosevelt) Under the antenuptial contract alone, she would have had no claim on his estate. The court found otherwise. A woman who spent three decades running a home, raising her husband's...

“A creature with a big enough head to make a contract should have the sense to make one it can keep.” (Barbara Kingsolver) A R1.725 million deposit. A bank guarantee that never arrived. A property that ultimately sold for significantly less than the original price....

“I can't afford to die; I'd lose too much money.” (George Burns, comedian) At the heart of any estate plan lies your will. Pair it with a file containing all the information and documents that your executor and heirs will need to wind up your estate, and you’ve laid a...

"The buyer needs a hundred eyes, the seller not one." (George Herbert) A Marina Da Gama property. A collapsed wooden deck. A purchase price of R1.55 million and repair costs claimed of just over R100 000. The facts are not complicated. But the legal battle that...

“Nemo plus iuris ad alium transferre potest quam ipse habet” As intimidating as that old Roman law adage sounds, it has a very simple and common sense meaning: No one can transfer more rights to another than he himself has. Often referred to as the nemo plus...

The National Minimum Wage (NMW) for each “ordinary hour worked” has been increased from 1 March 2026 by 5% from R28,79 per hour to R30,23 per hour. Domestic workers: Assuming a work month of 22 days x 8 hours per day, R30,23 per hour equates to R241,84 per day or...

“Fraud unravels property transactions even where innocent third parties are involved.” (Extract from judgment) Congratulations, you’re the proud new owner of your dream home! Your name’s on the title deeds, and your ownership is registered in the Deeds Office. That’s...

“Lemon law, noun – a law that states that you can return a motor vehicle to get it repaired or your money back if the vehicle is no good.” (Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries) The car you just bought on instalment sale turns out to be a complete lemon. But when you return...