“The golden rule for the interpretation of testaments is to ascertain the wishes of the testator from the language used. And when these wishes are ascertained, the court is bound to give effect to them, unless we are prevented by some rule or law from doing so.” (Quoted in the judgment below) When drawing up your will (“Last Will and Testament”), remember that “clarity is king”. Ambiguity is one of the cardinal sins of will-drawing because it exposes your loved ones
“[w]here a seller recklessly tells a half-truth or knows the facts but does not reveal them because he or she has not bothered to consider their significance, this may also amount to fraud” … “a willful abstention from establishing the true facts does not constitute a lack of knowledge” (Extracts from the judgment below) Consider this all-too-common scenario: You buy your dream house and happily move in. Only then do you discover that the house has major defects, which were never
“If cars are required to be roadworthy, shouldn’t roads be required to be car-worthy?” (Online meme) If you fall victim to a pothole-infested road, don’t hesitate to sue for your losses. A recent High Court victory for a motorist claiming R8.6m in damages confirms yet again that those charged with maintaining our roads can be made to pay for failing to do so. R8.6m claimed for a pothole crash A motorist hit a pothole on a gravel road, lost control, and hit a
“In life, we never lose friends, we only learn who the true ones are” (Unknown) Lending money to a friend or family member in need sounds like a natural and informal sort of thing to do. But beware – if relations sour and your friend/relative can’t or won’t repay you, you may not be able to reclaim your money. The danger is that, if you should have registered as a credit provider in terms of the NCA (National Credit Act) but didn’t, the
