Legal news and commentary from the offices of Simon Dippenaar
When promises in contracts fall short: a legal perspective A contract dispute is a conflict or disagreement between parties. Disputes occur when there are differing views or claims regarding the terms, obligations, or rights outlined in the contract. Some of the most common causes of disputes include ambiguity in the terms used – vague or […]
What is an application to compel and when would you use one? Are you going through a hostile divorce and your spouse’s attorneys are not being completely transparent in the discovery phase? Do you think your employment has been wrongfully terminated but your employer is withholding documents you need to make your case? In these…and […]
Stay safe this festive season It’s December, and Omicron notwithstanding, South Africans are beginning to celebrate the festive season. The public holiday on the 16th of December will herald the annual leave season, and drinking and driving will once again be an issue. Curfew This year there are a few new factors to keep in […]
Trust-to-trust: Is a trust an option to ring-fence a maintenance obligation upon divorce? Reprinted from iol.co.za, by Phia van der Spuy – 2021-11-04 A trust has various uses. A trust is a useful tool to utilise in a divorce settlement whereby a divorce settlement can be transferred into a trust and be applied for the […]
Navigating co-parenting decision-making for major decisions When a married couple with a child or children divorces, they may both hold parental responsibilities and rights for their child. In many circumstances, they may each act without the consent of the other. This often happens when the child’s primary residence is with one parent, who is then […]
Hayi bo! Are we married or not? Most couples know if they are married. They have held a wedding and invited friends and family, often at great expense. Or they have taken two witnesses and visited their local Department of Home Affairs for a simple ceremony. There should be no uncertainty about the answer to […]
Protected disclosures South Africa is ranked 69th out of 180 countries on Transparency International’s Corruption Index. Our score is 44 out of a possible 100 – 100 being very clean, zero being highly corrupt. So while many countries score lower than South Africa, 69th is nothing to be proud of. New Zealand and Denmark share […]
What are the rights and responsibilities of unmarried mothers and fathers? We’ve written a lot about the rights…and responsibilities…of parents in the event of divorce. As divorce attorneys, you would expect this of us. But SD Law is not just a firm of divorce lawyers. We are family lawyers. And families come in all shapes […]
If you sign as a witness to a will, make sure you know these facts These are sad times. Almost every day we hear of the passing of someone well known from COVID-19. And there are many more people who have lost loved ones who don’t make the news. Although the vaccination programme is […]
Can I relocate overseas with my child and new partner? The thought of travelling anywhere right now is little more than wishful thinking, but the pandemic won’t last forever. Italy has declared itself mask-free and low-risk, and fans lining the roads at the Tour de France are mostly not wearing masks, France having reached a […]
