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...

FICA v RICA We’ve all grumbled about being endlessly FICA’d and RICA’d. “Waste of time,” we mutter as we wade through all the red tape yet again. Compliance certainly is a hassle, but don’t blame the bank, service provider or conveyancer who asks for it. They are...

“One of the greatest disservices you can do a man is to lend him money that he can’t pay back.” (Jesse H. Jones, entrepreneur) A recent High Court decision provides yet another cautionary tale for lenders. The stakes are high: get this wrong, and you could lose...

"The big print giveth and the fine print taketh away." (Tom Waits) You have almost certainly signed a disclaimer at some point. A waiver before a trail run, an indemnity form before a bungee jump, a clause buried in a brochure. Businesses rely on these documents to...

"To avoid criticism, do nothing, say nothing, be nothing." (Elbert Hubbard) An unpleasant boss. A strained working relationship. A manager whose style leaves much to be desired. Sound familiar? For many employees, the line between a miserable workplace and an unlawful...

"Good rules make good neighbours." (Old proverb, updated) The many benefits of living in a residential complex come, naturally enough, with obligations as well as rights. With its innate potential for conflict between competing rights, community living requires a fine...