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If you have a smartphone, you probably use Whatsapp daily. This handy little app has 1,3 billion monthly active users, but is often controversial - sending your data to Facebook…
Mediation: 3 leading misconceptions
Few clients request mediation of their attorney, and few attorneys advise their clients to consider mediation. Our clients often approach us when they feel that they have exhausted rational dialogue,…
The enforcability of restraints of trade
Employing a key staff member can feel like risky business. They will get to know your clients, your systems, your "tricks of the trade". All well and good: you want…
A R10 million oversight – the consequences of inadequate disclosure to an insurer
In the recently decided Supreme Court of Appeal case of Regent Insurance Company versus King’s Property Development, the court considered what was a material non-disclosure which would entitle an insurer to reject…
Employee or independent contractor?
The question whether someone is an employee or an independent contractor is one which the courts and CCMA have had to consider time and again over many years. The issue…
Making sense of legalese: the “whole agreement” clause
Almost any agreement you sign will conclude with a number of paragraphs, written in dense legalese, and often printed in very small letters. These concluding paragraphs are not only scarcely legible -…
What is a spoliation? A relic of Roman canon law, alive and well in SA in 2013
A spoliation is any wrongful deprivation of another’s right of possession. It can include various acts, such as when a thief steals your car, or a landlord owed arrear rentals…
Decoding Legalese: Part 1 SEVERABILITY
Most written agreements end off with a number of “boilerplate” clauses, being the small print that is usually glossed over. These are standardised clauses which deal with general matters and…
Decoding legalese – part 2: “entire agreement” clauses
This series of updates seeks to decode the legalese in some of the most common "boilerplate" clauses commonly found at the end of contracts. Another very common clause is the…
Making sense of Contracts – Presumptions in the Interpretation of Contracts
Presumptions are aids for obtaining clarity when reading and applying the terms of written contracts. They originate from what is known to happen in the ordinary course, and generally promote…