Without Prejudice - latest Issue

The headlines of South Africa’s newspapers emphasise why the mood in the country is so gloomy. Those who respond by saying everyone should look to the positive rather than concentrating on the negative are, of course, right; but until such time as those who are in positions of leadership are demonstrably overwhelming tide will remain.

The new “top-up” provision in the latest Mining Charter gazetted on 15th June may prove to be unconstitutional, and may lead to further expensive legal action by the industry.

With the recent factory fire at the Transnet-owned wax-production facility in South Durban, employers are reminded how quickly a burning building can translate into tragedy and destruction.

During consultation with clients, the question that often arises is which individuals in a company would be considered a Prescribed Officer in terms of the Companies Act (71 of 2008), and what this means for such an individual? Is it merely a selection based on random function or is there logic and motivation driving the decision?

On receipt of an appropriate application, a court is obliged to consider whether the actions of a director of a company in carrying out his or her functions amount to gross negligence, wilful misconduct or breach of trust and whether they should be declared a “delinquent director” in terms of s162(5)(c)(iv)(aa) of the Companies Act, (71 of 2008). The concept of a “delinquent director” was introduced by the 2008 Act, however, the criteria listed are not new to South African corporate law.

The constitutional nature of the right to dispose of property and wealth after death was, for a long time, left unanswered by our judiciary. It took 17- years after the enactment of the Constitution for the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) in In re BoE Trust Ltd NO and Others 2013 3 SA 236 (SCA) to confirm that s25 (1) of the Constitution guarantees freedom of testation as a constitutional property right.

Volatile economic circumstances forced banks and other financial institutions to become more reliant on security they hold, securing cutomers’ debts with securities ranging from suretyships to covering mortgage bonds

You walk into a cell-phone shop with the intention of buying a cell phone and on completion of the transaction, the sales person asks you whether you want insurance cover for your new phone. You answer in the affirmative. He hands you insurance documents and points to a clause that contains the calculation of your monthly installment. You are happy and he shows you where to sign. You sign the documents. Did the sales person, in this scenario, provide “advice” in terms of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Service Act and did he/she comply with the Act?

In July 2015 the South African government launched a long overdue review of various maritime statutes as part of the Operation Phakisa initiative to grow the ocean economy. Echoes of that initiative can be found in the latest iteration of the draft maritime transport policy and are reflected in the Departments of Transport and Justice’s focus on changes to legislation summarised in this article. The changes will bring our legislation into line with modern commercial practice and harmonise our domestic legislation with our international obligations. Once effected, these amendments will change South Africa’s maritime legal landscape substantially, and will have a significant impact on players in the shipping industry.

I am reliably informed that on the night of 1 October 2012, as the final and 12th gong of the clock tower bell rang ominously over the sleeping taxpayers in the Hamlet below, the drafters could be heard screaming deliriously from on top of the steeple at Castle Megawatt Park: "Look! It's moving. It's alive... IT'S ALIVE!" Or words to that effect. And so it came to pass on that fateful night, a decree ordered the birth of the Tax Administration Act (28 of 2011) (the TAA) and the Juggernaut known as "the SARS official". Victor Frankenstein would have been very proud.

On 10 November 2016,the full bench of the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria in the case of the Member of the Executive Council for Co-Operative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs & 43 Others v Mogalakwena Local Municipality & Another, High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria, Case Number 89657/2014, held that the "next highest court" referred to in s18(4)(ii) of the Superior Courts Act (10 of 2013) is, in this instance, the full bench of the Gauteng Division.

Recently, the Labour Appeal Court and the Supreme Court of Appeal were required to pronounce on contempt of court. The reasoning in the two judgement appears to be at odds. The question that lingers in litigants’ minds is which judgement is correct. In this article, we attempt to shed some light in this regard.

Feature

More often than not, people sign up for social media accounts without reading the particular platform's terms of service. As a result, they are usually completely unaware of the conditions of use or the rights they have signed away in order to create their profile. Have you ever stopped to consider who owns your Facebook account or your Instagram profile picture? If not, you may be surprised to discover the reality as we break down the terms that you have agreed to on various social media platforms.

As evidence of massive corruption at the highest level continues to trouble South Africa, it can be argued that one important response is for all businesses to practise zero tolerance of fraud and corruption. Here is a case that gives a good – and bad – example of what’s at stake.

The threat of an African exodus from the ICC is constantly in flux. In January, the African Union adopted a non-binding resolution (opposed by Nigeria and Senegal) in which it called on African states to follow its recommended withdrawal strategy. However, South Africa and Gambia have since terminated their withdrawal procedures. As it is open to these states and any others to begin withdrawal procedures at any stage,

Transgender teen can use boys’ restroom

Wrong lawyer suspended on mistaken identity

Resale of used ink cartridges allowed despite patent

Sex bias case unresolved after 27 years

Google retains trademark though its name used as a verb

Pictures rejected as evidence because of unlawful search

Lawsuit rejected claiming Facebook liable for aiding terrorism

$2 million judgment against alleged creators of fraudulent imitation website

Coffee customer awarded $100K for burns from hot coffee

Court strikes down voting districts as racial gerrymanders

Supreme Court upholds caps on political party contributions

Lawyer suspended for muttered obscenity to judge’s ruling

Former prostitute wins $1.7M for privacy invasion

Lawyer sanctioned for 600 objections

Mistakenly released inmate reprieved by judge but arrested by immigration agents 

The world has changed dramatically over the past 10 – 15 years. Researchers are now using artificially intelligent greenhouses to grow vegetables for maximum deliciousness. The MIT Media Lab has developed "food computers" that adjust their internal climate constantly to find the perfect combination of light, humidity, and nutrients for the specific crop growing inside. The "climate recipes" that come out of this are tweaked by boosting specific flavour molecules to make the vegetables tastier.

Ay’esha Seedat is Head of Legal at Sanofi Aventis South Africa.

The Public Protector (PP) is known in the South African lexicon as a Chapter 9 institution. This is because it derives its powers as a state institution supporting our Constitutional Democracy from Chapter 9 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996. The other Chapter 9 institutions are the South African Human Rights Commission, the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities, the Commission for Gender Equality, the Auditor-General and the Electoral Commission.