Tips for First-Time Property Sellers

First-time sellers often focus only on the asking price, take a few photographs, list the property, and wait for the first offer. Good marketing matters in property sales, but it’s rarely where the issues show up. What causes problems is discovering the real risks only after a buyer is already interested. Missing documents, municipal issues, […]

The Clauses Your ANC Can’t Override: Marital Contract Myths Debunked

Planning a wedding comes with a mountain of decisions, including seating charts, menu tastings, and, for the forward-thinking couple, sitting down with a notary to draft an antenuptial contract (ANC). When tailored correctly, an ANC offers incredible financial clarity and peace of mind. However, a common misconception exists that a prenuptial agreement acts as an […]

What Property Owners Should Know about Sole Mandates

Selling your home can be a daunting experience. From ensuring that the correct legal procedures are followed to marketing the property and finding potential buyers, the process can quickly become overwhelming. This is often where the services of an estate agent can be particularly valuable. Property practitioners, more commonly referred to as estate agents, act […]

Relying on vis major clause in a contract in times of COVID-19

Vis major clauses Many businesses will seek to rely on the enforcement of vis major clauses to relieve their performance of certain obligations resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak. The term vis major refers to an event or occurrence, which renders contractual performance impossible. These clauses allow a contracting party to escape the normal consequences of non-performance or late performance […]

Shared titles, shared responsibility?

The case of Du Plooy and The Cascades Body Corporate and Another deals with a slip-and-fall incident by one of the owners in the scheme and member of the body corporate who was subsequently entrusted by the owners with the duty of the cleaning and gardening services. Mr. Du Plooy, as Plaintiff, slipped and fell […]

MOVING OUT? WHAT TENANTS NEED TO DO BEFORE MOVING OUT

We all know that moving can be stressful and time-consuming, but before you start packing your boxes, there are certain things that you need to keep in mind before move-in day.  As stressful and time-consuming as moving might be, it can also be exciting as you are moving on to better and greater things. However, […]

CANCELLING A CONTRACT?

Every person, whether an individual or a juristic person, will find themselves in a situation where they will want to terminate a contract. The aim of this article is to set out the requirements for terminating a contract as well as to give basic guidance when doing so. When a person wants to cancel a […]

AM I PREJUDICED BY AN ARBITRATION CLAUSE IN MY BUILDING CONTRACT?

Contracts for the building of a house or providing for substantial alterations to a house commonly contain an arbitration clause. This article looks at the advantages of resolving disputes relating to building contracts by arbitration rather than by litigation in the courts. I had a written contract with a builder to make substantial alterations to […]

ANTENUPTIAL CONTRACTS: CAN I GET ONE AFTER MARRIAGE?

Couples who are interested in an antenuptial contract often make the decision to get one before they are married. That is the ideal scenario. However, some couples may have already gotten married in community of property, and later decide to change to another form of marriage contract. Can it be done? The Matrimonial Property Act […]

ANTENUPTIAL CONTRACTS: CAN I GET ONE AFTER MARRIAGE?

Couples who are interested in an antenuptial contract often make the decision to get one before they are married. That is the ideal scenario. However, some couples may have already gotten married in community of property, and later decide to change to another form of marriage contract. Can it be done? The Matrimonial Property Act […]