RECENT NEWS
Could your Trust be disregarded by the Courts?
The fact that you have a written trust deed is no guarantee that your assets are safe and that the trust is safe from attack. If you never intended to create a “genuine” trust from the outset, the trust may be attacked and labelled as a sham trust; in other...
Instruction on a will not enough, court rules
A written instruction to draft a will cannot be elevated to the status of a will, the Western Cape High Court has ruled. Rapport reports that family members of as deceased person approached the court to declare that her written and signed instruction to Nedbank to...
There are two outcomes
An assistant butchery manager at processed meat manufacturer, who went to work after testing positive for Covid-19 and even hugged a colleague who suffered from comorbidities – was dismissed fairly, The Star reports according to the Labour Court following a dismissal...
Trust clause ruled to be discriminatory
Wilkinson and Another v Crawford N.O. and Others [2021] ZACC 8 The facts of this matter were summarised in our previous reports about the judgements of the Cape High Court (WCHC) and the Supreme Court of Appeals (SCA). In short in 1953 a testator bequeathed part of...
All the new minimum wages in SA – with big increases for domestic workers
The new national minimum wage is R21.69 per hour, an increase of 4.5%. Farm workers' minimum wage is now equal to the national minimum wage for the first time. The minimum wage for domestic workers is still below the national wage, but has been hiked by 23% this...
A PERSPECTIVE ON BENEFICIARIES’ RIGHTS
This is a useful article by Phia van der Spuy setting out a simple explanation of beneficiaries rights trusts. Many trustees believe that beneficiaries have no rights, especially if they are contingent beneficiaries in a discretionary trust. Personal right against...
When a Trustee can and cannot be removed
Herewith an informative article written by Phia van der Spuy: Trustees are legally vested with the administration of the trust’s assets. They must manage the assets and liabilities of the trust in terms of the provisions of the trust instrument and the law, and not...
Master’s Offices bottleneck creating difficulties for attorneys and their clients
SA’s legal practitioners, already disgruntled with alleged corruption at the country’s 15 Master’s Offices, say the disarray in winding up deceased estates – worsened by Covid-19 deaths – risks taking them out of the R30bn sector. Business Day says the functioning of...
Euthanasia applicants exaggerating illnesses, claims HPCSA
The Health Professions Council (HPCSA) is opposing the latest bid to legalise euthanasia, claiming the applicants are exaggerating their illnesses. According to Rapport, the application by palliative care doctor Sue Walter (47) and her patient Dieter Harck (71) was...