Recent Industry Articles - Ashersons Attorneys

07 Jan 2025

How Can I Buy Property in South Africa as a Foreigner?

“I never knew of a morning in Africa when I woke up that I was not happy.” (Ernest Hemingway) Are you a visitor dreaming of waking up with giraffes on your lawn and wondering how to make it happen? Or a local being asked by overseas friends and relatives: “This country’s magic, how can I buy myself a property here?” We have all the answers… First up, can you even buy as a foreigner? The good news here is that we’re as welcoming to property buyers as we are to visitors! Foreigner or local, there are very few restrictions on…

07 Jan 2025

By Ashersons Attorneys

Directors: Here’s How to Avoid Being Sued for Company Debts

“To be prepared is half the victory.” (Miguel de Cervantes, author of Don Quixote) Perhaps you’re a director losing sleep over the risk of losing everything if creditors sue you personally for your company’s debts because you’re asset-rich, and they can’t squeeze anything out of the company. Or maybe you worry about the company itself suing you for losses it suffers because of something you have or haven’t done.There can be big money involved, as we shall see from the SCA (Supreme Court of Appeal) case below, so those are risks well worth keeping a close eye on. Preparation really…

07 Jan 2025

By Ashersons Attorneys

A New School Year Dawns – Can Unpaid Fees Bar Your Child From Enrolling?

“I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.” (Mark Twain) Our Constitution guarantees everyone rights to education, but that doesn’t mean parents can necessarily pick and choose which schools they send their children to. Nor does it mean that they can expect schools to continue educating their children if they don’t pay the agreed fees. A recent High Court judgment provides a perfect example. Breaking the camel’s back – 4 years of arrears totalling R407k A father’s failure to settle a bill of over R407k in unpaid school fees for his daughter’s education at “an elite private school”…

07 Jan 2025

By Ashersons Attorneys

Revenge Porn and a Fake Facebook Profile – Online Defamation Costs a Couple R3.55m

“The scariest thing about digital abuse is how a victim can never know how far it went, how many people it reached, and how much those who saw it bought it.” (Psychology Today) Our laws are always protective of our rights to privacy and dignity, and a recent High Court decision confirms that defamation can be a very costly business for perpetrators. In serious cases such as those involving “revenge porn” (a term commonly used to describe “the publication of non-consensual intimate images, recordings or depictions”) offenders face criminal prosecution as well as substantial damages claims. As evidenced by a…

26 Nov 2024

By Ashersons Attorneys

Who Appoints the Conveyancer? Your House, Your Choice

“A man’s home is his castle.” (Sir Edward Coke, English common law ruling, 1604) Of course, what we all want to hear at the end of our house-selling journey is something like this: “Congratulations! You sold for a good price, the buyer’s taken transfer and you’ve been paid the purchase price. Time to pop the bubbly🍾”. Having your sale go this smoothly is about a lot more than just finding the right buyer at the right price. It’s also about navigating a complex legal process to ensure a smooth and timely transfer of ownership. A critical part of this journey is…

26 Nov 2024

By Ashersons Attorneys

Gift or Loan? A Cautionary Tale for the Season of Giving

“The bluntest pencil is better than the sharpest mind” (Unknown) The Festive Season is traditionally a time for giving, and it seems a pity to have to mention the hard realities of the law right now. But, as a recent High Court dispute confirms, things can go horribly wrong if the people involved have different notions on whether what’s being given is a gift, or a loan. “Here’s R400k Ma” – But was it a loan, or a gift? The setting for this dispute is a small caravan park, with 13 caravan sites, nine flatlets and two chalets, in the…

26 Nov 2024

By Ashersons Attorneys

Estate Planning: Why it Matters, and How To Get Started

“When the hurly-burly’s done, when the battle’s lost and won.” (One of the witches in Shakespeare’s Macbeth) Another year draws to a close! If you’re taking a break, now’s a great time to get started on an estate plan – or to update your existing one. Estate planning is one of the most important steps you can take to protect your assets and to ensure that your loved ones are cared for after you’re gone. It goes beyond just having a will, although that is of course an essential first step when it comes to executing your plan. An estate…

26 Nov 2024

By Ashersons Attorneys

Fired for not Working on the Sabbath

“One of the hallmarks of an enlightened egalitarian society is the right to freedom of religion.” (Extract from judgment below) Our courts do not tolerate unfair discrimination in the workplace, and employers need to tread particularly carefully when it comes to the concept of “automatically unfair discrimination”. Get that one wrong and you could be penalised with an order to pay your employee two years of earnings as compensation. What is “automatically unfair discrimination”? A dismissal is automatically unfair if based on any “arbitrary ground”, including, but not limited to, a person’s race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, family responsibility,…

28 Oct 2024

By Ashersons Attorneys

Blue Skies Ahead for Property? Be Prepared with this Buyer’s Checklist

“Don’t wait to buy land, buy land and wait.” (Will Rogers) Summer’s a great time to look for property. With the year winding down and the holiday season upon us, many sellers who’ve been holding back are now putting their properties back onto the market, so expect to see some great new buys out there. But that’s not the only reason… Blue skies ahead? The recent interest rate cut, which hopefully heralds more cuts to come, will not only make bond repayments more affordable, but it should also help stimulate our economy generally. If these positive trends hold, the resultant…

28 Oct 2024

By Ashersons Attorneys

This Wedding Season: What’s in a Surname?

“That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet.” (Shakespeare, in Romeo and Juliet) Your wedding to-do list will be a long one, and getting all the “boring legal bits” in order before you marry may not seem like a huge priority. But it is. Choices you make now will affect both of you (and your families) forever. One of those choices is what surname/s you want to adopt in your marriage. We’ll discuss your options below. And although they’re currently available only to women, there’s good news on that front – a recent High…