04/12/2024 Bertus Preller Namibia Divorce Law asset division Namibia, child custody Namibia, child support Namibia, child welfare divorce Namibia, Dissolution of Marriages Act 2024, divorce court Namibia, divorce law Namibia 2024, divorce law reform Namibia, divorce mediation Namibia, equitable divorce Namibia, family court Namibia, High Court divorce Namibia, irretrievable breakdown divorce Namibia, joint custody Namibia, legal reforms Namibia, magistrate courts Namibia, maintenance laws Namibia, marriage dissolution Namibia, modern divorce laws Namibia, Namibia Divorce Act, Namibia family law, Namibia judicial system, Namibian divorce process, Namibian legal system, no-fault divorce Namibia, privacy in divorce Namibia, property division Namibia, spousal maintenance Namibia, vulnerable parties divorce Namibia Namibia’s Divorce Revolution: A Comprehensive Guide to the Dissolution of Marriages Act, 2024. Namibia’s New Divorce Act: A Modern Approach to Marital Dissolution On 24 October 2024, Namibia introduced the Dissolution of Marriages Act 10 of 2024—commonly referred to as the Divorce Act—heralding a… READ MORE
03/12/2024 Bertus Preller Adult Children, Arrear Maintenance Variation, Arrears, Children, Maintenance, Maintenance Court, Procedural Law Tale of Two Judgments: High Court’s Evolution on Adult Child Maintenance – O V v C M V [2024] ZAGPPHC vs D.W.T v M.T [2022] ZAWCHC 203: Which Path Forward? Introduction: The Maintenance Dilemma for Adult Children The recent High Court judgment in O V v C M V (Case No. 84818/2017) ZAGPPHC delivered by Acting Judge Scheepers grapples with… READ MORE
02/12/2024 Bertus Preller Actio communi dividundo, Division of Estate, Divorce, Islamic Law, Muslim Marriages, Procedure actio communi dividundo, bound co-ownership, constitutional equality, equal rights, free co-ownership, High Court Judgment, Islamic divorce, Islamic law, Islamic marriage, joint ownership, joint property, legal precedent, marital home, Marriage Dissolution, marriage property, property co-ownership, property dispute, Property Division, property division Islamic marriage, property rights, property sale, property settlement, Property Valuation, South African Law, South African property law, spousal contributions, spouse rights, Talaaq, Western Cape High Court Islamic Marriage Property Rights: High Court Champions Equal Division in K.A v A.E and Another (15857/24) [2024] ZAWCHC 392 (27 November 2024). Background: From Islamic Marriage to Property Dispute The Western Cape High Court recently grappled with a property division dispute stemming from a dissolved Islamic marriage in K.A v A.E and… READ MORE
30/11/2024 Bertus Preller Anti-Dissipation Interdicts, anti-dissipatory relief, Division of Estate, Divorce, In Community of Property, Interdict, Procedural Law, Procedure Attorney Conduct, auction process, civil procedure, conveyancing, court order, divorce agreement, divorce proceedings, divorce settlement, execution debtor, execution sale, High Court Judgment, judicial fairness, judicial interpretation, judicial oversight, Legal Ethics, legal fairness, legal precedent, market value, matrimonial assets, matrimonial property, procedural fairness, property auction, property dispute, property law, property rights, property rights protection, Property Transfer, Property Valuation, sale in execution, Sheriff's sale, South African Law From R1.5 Million to R1000: How a Divorce Property Sale Went Terribly Wrong – M.R.M v M.F.M and Others (M614/2023) [2024] ZANWHC 289 (26 November 2024). In what could be dubbed "The Case of the Thousand Rand Mansion," the North West High Court recently had to grapple with a property sale that would make any estate… READ MORE
29/11/2024 Bertus Preller Divorce, Procedure, Redistribution Claim amendment applications, amendment costs, amendment of pleadings, amendment rules, civil procedure, court amendments, Court Applications, court process, court rules, divorce amendments, divorce claims, divorce courts, Divorce Law, divorce litigation, divorce pleadings, divorce proceedings, High Court judgments, Judicial Discretion, legal amendments, legal developments, Legal Procedure, matrimonial property, pending divorces, pleadings procedure, procedural law, property claims, property redistribution, redistribution claims, Rule 55A Amending Divorce Pleadings: RVB v JVB (A92/2024) [2024] ZAFSHC Opens Door for Redistribution Claims. Background: Marriage and Divorce Proceedings In October 2009, a couple embarked on their marital journey with a clear legal framework in place. They entered into an antenuptial contract that explicitly… READ MORE
29/11/2024 Bertus Preller Alienation, Best Interests of the Child, Children, Costs, Curator Ad Litem, Divorce, Parental Alienation, Sexual Abuse, Sexual Abuse, Shared Residency abuse investigation, best interests of child, case coordinator, child protection, child safety, child sexual abuse allegations, child testimony, child welfare, child's voice, children's act, court-ordered therapy, curator ad litem, custody disputes, custody evaluation, evidence assessment, expert evidence, family court experts, family court procedure, family dynamics, forensic interviewing, forensic social workers, parental contact, Parental Rights, professional expertise, psychological evaluation, sexual abuse assessment, sexual misconduct claims, social work credentials, social work evaluation, supervised access Sexual Abuse Allegations & Expert Social Workers: High Court Sets New Standards in Child Care and Contact – N.J.B.D. v C.D (8780/2021P) [2024] ZAKZPHC 112 (27 November 2024). Background: A Complex History of Custody Disputes and Sexual Misconduct Allegations In a compelling judgment delivered by Acting Justice Nicholson in the KwaZulu-Natal Division of the High Court, Pietermaritzburg, the… READ MORE
19/11/2024 Bertus Preller Adversarial Legal System, Appeal, Best Interests of the Child, Children, Coercive Control, Conduct of Childcare Experts, Costs, Divorce, Family Law Court System South Africa, In Community of Property, Marital Regimes, Pacta sunt servanda, Parental Alienation, Parental Rights, Punitive Cost Orders, Relocation, Settlement agreements, Shared Residency best interests of child, breastfeeding rights, Child Custody, children's rights, children's act, Constitutional Rights, costs order, custody agreement, custody battle, divorce proceedings, divorce settlement, Family Advocate, family advocate recommendations, Family Court, Family Law, financial coercion, joint estate, Judicial Discretion, legal precedent, matrimonial property, Medupi Power Station, Parental Rights, parenting plan, Primary Caregiver, primary residence, settlement agreement, South African courts, Supreme Court of Appeal, unilateral relocation, upper guardian When Power Moves Meet Parental Rights: High Court Pulls the Plug on Dad’s Custody Settlement in ZDE v CE (1011/2022) [2024] ZASCA 159. (18 November 2024). Background to the Matter Picture this: the corridors of the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein, where legal dramas unfold with the regularity of load-shedding schedules. But this time, the… READ MORE
15/11/2024 Bertus Preller Abuse, Costs, Defamation, Revenge Porn civil damages quantum, civil remedies, cyber harassment, cyber violence remedies, cybercrime South Africa, cybersecurity jurisprudence, digital abuse precedent, digital evidence law, digital harassment damages, digital privacy law, digital rights South Africa, Facebook harassment, Gauteng High Court, image-based abuse, internet privacy law, intimate image abuse, Justice Mia judgment, online defamation, online harassment damages, online privacy rights, online protection precedent, privacy breach compensation, privacy litigation breakthrough, privacy violation, protection orders, psychological damages, revenge porn damages, social media abuse judgment, social media defamation, social media law Face(book) the Music: Justice Mia’s R4.3 Million Digital Privacy Judgment in KS v AM and SHM (2021/28121) [2024] ZAGHC. High Court Awards Landmark R4.3 Million in Revenge Porn Case In a watershed judgment that's giving social media abusers a very expensive wake-up notification, the Gauteng Local Division of the… READ MORE
13/11/2024 Bertus Preller Alimony, Appeal, Arrear Maintenance Variation, Arrears, Best Interests of the Child, Child Maintenance, Children, Costs, Maintenance, Maintenance Court, Variation child interests, child maintenance, child rights, Constitutional Court, court access, judicial authority, judicial integrity, Legal Practitioners, Maintenance Act, maintenance appeals, maintenance arrears, maintenance beneficiaries, maintenance claims, maintenance compliance, maintenance courts, maintenance default, maintenance discharge, maintenance enforcement, maintenance judgments, maintenance jurisdiction, maintenance law, maintenance obligations, maintenance officers, maintenance orders, maintenance proceedings, maintenance variations, maintenance write-offs, Prescription Period, punitive costs, SS v VV-S Maintenance Orders in South African Law Constitutional Court Jurisprudence and Fundamental Principles Introduction The enforcement of maintenance orders in South Africa has evolved significantly through Constitutional Court jurisprudence. The landmark case SS v VVS 2018 (6)… READ MORE
12/11/2024 Bertus Preller Antenuptial Contracts, Antenuptial Contracts, Costs, Divorce, Marital Regimes, Procedural Law, Procedure Antenuptial Contract, attorney misconduct, caveat subscriptor, civil procedure, court costs, divorce proceedings, elderly marriage, explanatory affidavits, factual disputes, legal documents, legal presumptions, legal signatures, legal trust, marriage law, matrimonial disputes, matrimonial property, motion application, motion proceedings, notary, oral evidence, personal relationships, Plascon-Evans rule, professional conduct, property regime, Rule 6(5)(g), signing documents, South African Law, wedding gift, wedding MC, Western Cape High Court From Wedding MC to Legal Emergency: How a Rushed Signature Led to a Marriage Property Crisis – B C B v L L B and Others (15788/2024) [2024] ZAWCHC 206 (11 November 2024). The Marriage and the Disputed Antenuptial Contract - A 90-Year-Old Groom and His 60-Year-Old Bride In a remarkable case that recently came before the Western Cape High Court, a marriage… READ MORE