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HOUSE LANDLORD/TENANT? NEW LAWS YOU NEED TO KNOW ...
Recent amendments to the Rental Housing Act, which regulates the letting out of residential property, provide that rulings of the Rental Housing Tribunal (and attachment orders, spoliation orders and interdicts, which the Tribunal now has the power to issue) will be enforceable as court orders.
That should make it simpler and quicker for landlords to attach the possessions of defaulting tenants, and for tenants to protect themselves from unlawful or unfair action by landlords.
The bad news is that the Tribunal is specifically barred from hearing eviction applications - that process is, unhappily, still subject to the slow and complex "PIE" procedures.
And "self-help" is out too - locking out a tenant in breach, or cutting off "utilities" (electricity, water etc) has now been criminalised, with substantial penalties provided for contravention.
Reduce your risk - have your lease drawn properly in the first place, do your homework on prospective tenants, and don''t settle for too small a deposit!
THE UNWANTED CC MEMBER: YOUR REMEDY
If you are a member of a close corporation, and your relationship with the other member or members has deteriorated to the extent that it becomes untenable, it is open to you to apply for either: - - Liquidation of the CC, or
- A court order that one or the other of you ceases to be a member.
Take advice on which option is best in the circumstances. Whichever you choose, you will need to prove that it is "just and equitable" for the order to be granted.
But if you go the "cessation of membership" route, your application will fail unless you simultaneously propose (and justify) how much compensation the court should award to the departing member/s. This was clearly illustrated in a recent High Court case, where an otherwise perfectly sustainable application was dismissed simply because the compensation offered was arrived at arbitrarily (it seemingly related only to a loan account, and not also to the value of the actual membership).
MAINTENANCE AFTER DIVORCE - IS IT AUTOMATIC?
On divorce, the financially stronger spouse may be ordered to pay maintenance to the other - usually only for a limited "rehabilitative" period. It has been argued that such spousal maintenance has become an automatic right. But the High Court has recently held to the contrary - the spouse claiming it must actively establish an entitlement to maintenance.
Nor is there any automatic entitlement to "a standard of living commensurate with the standard of living that the parties enjoyed during the marriage". In exercising its discretion whether to award maintenance or not, the Court will consider what would be "just", "right" and "fair" in all the circumstances.
And, unless there is fault on the part of one spouse (in which case a "penalty consideration" may apply), the Court may well decline to award any post-divorce maintenance at all. This is exactly what happened in the case in question, where only a very short interim period of continued medical aid cover was awarded.
"I ACCEPT THE JOB" - IS ACCEPTANCE BY SMS VALID?
Acceptance of an offer of employment is valid only if- It is "clear, unequivocal and unambiguous", and
- It corresponds with the offer (including any deadline for acceptance), and
- It is made in the manner prescribed by the offeror, and
- It is properly communicated to the offeror.
But can a job offer be accepted by e-mail or SMS? Generally, electronic communication is sufficient to communicate acceptance, and the Labour Court recently held that acceptance by SMS, by e-mail, or by written document, are all valid unless the offeror has prescribed otherwise.
Be careful here - allowing electronic communication may, as happened in this case, lead to disputes as to whether an e-mail or an SMS has actually been received (and, if so, whether by someone authorised to receive it).
If you as a prospective employer allow acceptance by electronic means, avoid dispute by prescribing both the manner of communication, and how receipt by you will be confirmed. Allowing SMS acceptance is perhaps unwise - if, as again happened in this case, the original SMS is lost, you risk uncertainty as to the exact wording and import of the message.
WARNING! NEW RAF LIMITS RAISE RISKS
The limiting and capping of certain claims for damages suffered in motor accidents, introduced by the new Road Accident Fund ("RAF") amendments, introduce substantial risk for claimants. In particular the new limit of R160.000 per annum for loss of income/support claims leaves you/your dependents high and dry if you are permanently disabled and unable to support yourself and your family on that sort of compensation.
With South Africa''s road accident rate being one of the highest in the world, don''t delay - protect yourself now! Check that your various types of insurance cover give you enough protection both for your own losses (particularly disability and death cover), and for any possible claims against you that aren''t covered by the Fund.
LEAVING EARLY? PREMATURE TERMINATION PAYMENTS AND THE TAX RISK
"The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax" (Albert Einstein).
Perhaps the first hurdle you face is determining whether monies you receive are "income", or "capital". For example, if you are offered a payment as compensation for premature termination of a partnership or similar professional arrangement, you must be aware that if you claim the payment to be capital in nature, it is up to you to prove it - and if you fail, you will be taxed on it as income.
As confirmed in a recent High Court case, "whether an accrual is to be categorised as capital or income has to be decided on the facts of each particular case" - there are no hard and fast definitions to rely on here. That opens up a lot of uncertainty, as does the general test: "whether the accrual was received to fill a hole in the taxpayer''s income or to fill a hole in his capital assets".
You could be in for a nasty (and expensive) shock if you don''t take proper advice upfront as to whether SARS is going to view your receipt as capital, or as income.
AGRICULTURAL LAND SUBDIVISION: MINISTER''S PERMISSION STILL NEEDED!
The Supreme Court of Appeal held in September 2007 that the Minister of Agriculture''s permission was not required for the subdivision of certain agricultural land. That decision led at the time to speculation that much of South Africa''s farmland could now be up for subdivision/rezoning, subject only to local authority permission.
However the Constitutional Court has reversed that decision on appeal - so subdivision of agricultural land continues to be strictly controlled, and is only valid if authorised by the Minister.
WEBSITES OF THE MONTH: THE NEXT BIG IDEA, BENEFIT OR BUST, AND THE "SERIAL ENTREPRENEUR" BLOG
If you are an entrepreneur keen to spot the "Next Big Business Idea" - or if you are looking for some practical ideas on "Managing Your Business in an Economic Downturn" - download the worksheets on the Entrepreneur Magazine website at www.entrepreneurmag.co.za.
There's much, much more there too: -- Start a business
- Step-by-step business planning
- Buying and selling a business
- Marketing
- Find funding
- Grow a Business
- Etc, etc……………
For some really Fresh New Ideas from an online community of "serial entrepreneurs", browse the Ideate blog at www.ideate.co.za - "money, innovation, progress, and gob-smackingly brilliant concepts" - it's all there for the sharing.
P.S. Don't skip the Business Ideas page at http://www.ideate.co.za/category/business-ideas.
Spring, as they say, has Sprung - Enjoy it!
Note: Copyright in this publication and its contents vests in LawDotNews(law.news)
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