Pay attention to your surroundings and don’t run into trouble This festive season, our beaches and public spaces are all open as normal. That means the popular Sea Point Promenade, in Cape Town’s Sea Point suburb, is likely to be busy with walkers, runners, skateboarders, cyclists, dogs, and people on scooters. All of these prom […]
Men need to be allowed to be vulnerable to end gender-based violence The 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children has ended. But the intentions of the campaign must continue. We cannot tolerate the abuse or death of more women and girls. We’ve written recently about the root causes of gender […]
Don’t drink and drive! It’s December. Thank goodness for that. Everyone is tired. This year, unlike the past two years, we are free from Covid-19-related restrictions such as lockdowns, beach closures, curfews, and alcohol bans. Life has more or less returned to normal. Let’s not allow that to mean a return to high rates of […]
How do we change the root causes of inequality? Regular readers of our blog know we like to keep up with legal news around the world. It’s great to see where South Africa is leading the way, and where we can learn from other countries. Recently, we spotted an initiative from Scotland. The 2022-23 Programme […]
Why are we still fighting high rates of femicide? As we stagger towards the end of the year, exhausted but at least relieved that the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic is behind us and life has returned to some semblance of normality (Eskom’s woes notwithstanding), it’s time once again to turn our attention to the […]
Whose duty is it to check consent has been given? When couples are married in community of property, which is still the most common matrimonial regime in South Africa, both spouses are equally responsible for the management of their joint estate. Therefore, certain transactions require consent from the other spouse and both parties need to […]
What matters most to clients when hiring a lawyer In most lives, there comes a time when the services of a legal professional are required. Your marriage may break down, you may need to draw up a contract, or you may want to bring a case against someone for damages or failure to pay. You […]
Are Airbnb’s cancellation policies in conflict with the CPA? A client recently asked us if her Airbnb host was within his rights to offer no refund if a reservation was cancelled more than 48 hours after booking (the booking was made a month in advance and was for 30 days). While Airbnb allows its hosts […]
Reprinted from the Daily Maverick, by Geoffrey Allsop – 2022-09-27 We explain in detail what the courts have ruled Since the Covid pandemic began, occupations of public land by destitute people have increased in various parts of the country. Below, we explain what the law currently says about when the government can lawfully remove people from […]
What you need to know about cyber extortion Have you received emails with subject lines such as “Please can we work on this project?” or “Your abandoned fund at King Shaka Airport, Durban”? Hopefully you’ve got a spam folder set up and your email server automatically redirects these fraudulent emails. Unless you check your spam […]
Court rules grow clubs do not constitute “private use” The Haze Club is – or was – a cooperative-type arrangement whereby individuals brought their own seeds to the club to be cultivated by horticulturists, in return for the harvested and dried plant for their private use when ready. Grow clubs like this, claims owner Neil […]
Four new laws have been approved by Cabinet, to address gaps in South African legislation. This article from BusinessTech explains. Reprinted from BusinessTech – 2022-09-01 Cabinet has recently approved a number of new bills that have subsequently been submitted to parliament, including new legislation which focuses on financial crime, divorce and substances. There are over […]
