11/10/2026 Bertus Preller Best Interests of the Child, Children, Parental Rights, Parental rights and responsibilities, Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013, School rugby governance, School rugby recruitment, School sport law, Schoolboy Rugby South Africa, Schoolboy rugby transfers best interests of the child section 28, Bought Not Built, Centre for Child Law v Media 24, child privacy South Africa, Children’s Act 38 of 2005, divorce school move child, family law South Africa, Information Regulator complaint, NM v Smith privacy, parental consent children’s act, parenting plan school change, POPIA administrative fine R10 million, POPIA children’s information, POPIA penalties imprisonment, Press Code children, publication of schoolboy rugby transfers, rugby blog privacy, rugby bursary school transfer, schoolboy rugby poaching, schoolboy rugby recruitment, schoolboy rugby transfer sheets, section 18 parental responsibilities and rights, section 30 co-holders, section 31 major decisions, section 34 POPIA, section 35 POPIA competent person, section 7 POPIA journalism exclusion, section 99 POPIA damages, separated parents school decision Schoolboy Rugby Transfer Sheets: What Parental Consent Means in Family Law and What POPIA Does to Blogs That Publish Without It. In a recent article for my Substack newsletter I looked at the running "transfer sheets" that some rugby websites keep of schoolboy players moving between schools, and I asked a… READ MORE
06/10/2026 Bertus Preller Accrual Calculation, Accrual Calculator, Accrual claims, Accrual system, Curator Ad Litem, Direct and substantial interest, Discretionary family trust, Divorce, Divorce and trusts South Africa, Joinder of beneficiaries, Joinder of trustees, Locus standi of beneficiary, Matrimonial Property Act 88 of 1984, Rule 10 Uniform Rules of Court, Section 13 Trust Property Control Act, Sufficient interest in trust, Termination of trust, Trust joinder divorce, Trust Property Control Act 57 of 1988, Trusts, Trusts, Variation of trust provisions : joinder of trust in divorce, accrual system, amendment of particulars of claim, curator ad litem, de facto control of trust, direct and substantial interest, discretionary family trust, divorce and trusts South Africa, duties of trustees, family law South Africa, inherited farm, joinder of beneficiaries, joinder of mortgagee, joinder of trustees, locus standi of beneficiary, Master of the High Court, Matrimonial Property Act 88 of 1984, minor beneficiaries, non-joinder, Northern Cape High Court, points in limine, Rule 10 Uniform Rules of Court, Rule 28 amendment, section 13 Trust Property Control Act, substantially the same question of law or fact, sufficient interest in trust property, termination of trust, Trust Property Control Act 57 of 1988, variation of trust provisions Joining a Family Trust to a Divorce: Why Rule 10 Shut the Door in S[…] v S[…] and Others: In re: S[…] v S[…] (2115/2020) [2026] ZANCHC 86 (5 October 2026). An Inherited Farm, a Discretionary Family Trust and a Marriage at an End: The Facts In S v S and Others: In re: S v S (2115/2020) ZANCHC 86 (5… READ MORE
03/10/2026 Bertus Preller Best Interests of the Child, Children, Constitutional Court customary law, Customary Law, Customary Marriages, gender equality, Imbeleko, Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 120 of 1998, section 211(3), section 9 Constitution, Ulwaluko, Umgidi, Umngeno, Xhosa initiation age of majority, Attorney and Client Costs, Bhe case, co-holder consultation, customary law and Constitution, declaratory order, dependent adult child, final interdict, Gender Equality, Imbeleko, living customary law, Mbungela, MM v MN, parental responsibilities and rights, rule 6(12) urgency, section 18 Children's Act, section 211(3), Section 31 Children's Act, section 9 Constitution, Self-Created Urgency, Setlogelo, Shilubana, standing of parent, Superior Courts Act, Ulwaluko, Umgidi, Umngeno, Xhosa initiation, Z v Z A Mother’s Place at the Umgidi: Living Customary Law, Gender Equality and the Myth of the Magic Age of 18 — S.Z.Z v S.Z (2026/196397) [2026] ZAGPJHC 1099 (25 September 2026). The Facts: A Mother Excluded from Her Son's Rite of Passage In S.Z.Z v S.Z (2026/196397) ZAGPJHC 1099 (25 September 2026) a divorced mother approached the Gauteng Division, Johannesburg, on… READ MORE
03/10/2026 Bertus Preller Alimony, Best Interests of the Child, Care and Contact, Child Maintenance, Childcare Expert, Children, Children's matters South Africa, Civil contempt South Africa, Contact Rights, Contempt of Court, Costs, Curator Ad Litem, Divorce, Forensic psychologist mandate, Hired Gun Expert, Maintenance, Parental rights and responsibilities, Pendente Lite, Primary Residence, Primary residence dispute, Rule 43, Rule 43 Applications, Rule 43 Contempt, Rule 43 orders, Unlawful retention of a child, Urgency, Urgent applications, Variation Rule 43(6) best interests of the child, breach of court order, child abuse allegations, Children’s Act 38 of 2005, Contact rights, court-appointed expert, curator ad litem, divorce litigation, DTL v GB, expert bias, family advocate report, family law South Africa, forensic psychologist mandate, Gauteng High Court Johannesburg, hired gun expert, interim care and contact, parental alienation, parental rights and responsibilities, pendente lite order, primary care, primary residence, Rule 43 variation, Rule 43(6), Rule 67A(3), scale C costs, self-help, sheriff enforcement, unlawful retention of a child, Urgent Application Self-Help Never Pays: Unlawful Retention of a Child and the Limits of Rule 43(6) — L.C.E v C.E (2026/226362) [2026] ZAGPJHC 1070 (29 September 2026). Neutral Citation: E v E (2026-226362) ZAGPJHC --- (29 September 2026) The Facts: A Four-Year-Old Caught in the Crossfire of a Brutal Divorce The parties in L.C.E v C.E (2026/226362)… READ MORE
19/09/2026 Bertus Preller Best Interests of the Child, Children, Children's Act, Children's matters South Africa, National Code, Player Status Regulations, Players' Agents Regulations, Rugby agents, Rugby bursaries, Rugby poaching, Rugby regulations, Rugby scouts, School rugby governance, School rugby recruitment, School sport law, Schoolboy Rugby South Africa, Schoolboy rugby transfers, Schools, Section 28 Constitution, South African Schools Act 80 per cent rule, best interests of the child, child protection in sport, children's act, Craven Week, FIFA compensation model, first XV, independent schools, John Smit, KwaZulu-Natal Headmasters' Agreement, National Code, Player Status Regulations, Players' Agents Regulations, Pridwin, rugby agents, rugby bursaries, rugby poaching, rugby scouts, SA Rugby regulations, school rugby governance, school rugby recruitment, school sport law, schoolboy rugby, schoolboy rugby transfers, Section 28(2), South African Schools Act, under-18 players, Western Province poaching resolution, World Rugby regulations Bought, Not Built: the South African schoolboy rugby market has no rules, and the law of children already has them. The Market in Schoolboy Rugby Players in South Africa: the Law, the Rules, and How the Movement of Children Should Be Governed is a research paper of nearly a hundred… READ MORE
17/08/2026 Bertus Preller Alimony, Arrear Maintenance, Child Maintenance, Children, Contempt of Court, Divorce, Maintenance Court, Procedural Law, Rule 43 Contempt, Rule 43 orders, Spousal Maintenance ad factum praestandum, attorney and own client costs, Bannatyne v Bannatyne, committal, contempt of court, Divorce, Divorce Attorney Cape Town, dolus eventualis, emoluments attachment, Fakie v CCII Systems, family law South Africa, Firestone v Genticuro, HG v AG, interim maintenance, M.D.V v F.M.D.V, maintenance enforcement, Maintenance Order, mala fides, medical aid, Pheko v Ekurhuleni, purging contempt, reimbursement of expenses, Rule 43, spousal maintenance, Suspended Sentence, Western Cape High Court, wilfulness, Writ of Execution, ZAWCHC 411 Pay Now, Argue Never: Husband’s Selective Compliance with Rule 43 Maintenance Order Lands Him a Suspended Prison Sentence — M.D.V v F.M.D.V (2025/091265) [2026] ZAWCHC 411 (14 August 2026). The Western Cape Division has once again demonstrated that it will not tolerate maintenance debtors who treat interim maintenance orders as optional, negotiable or subject to their own private assessment… READ MORE
28/07/2026 Bertus Preller Alimony, Bystander test, Child Maintenance, Children, Consent paper rectification, Divorce, Divorce settlement agreement, Dum casta clause, Educational expenses divorce, Holiday allowance maintenance, Implied terms contract, Maintenance, Maintenance Court, Maintenance order variation, Medical expenses divorce, rReasonableness of maintenance expenses, Spousal Maintenance best interests of the child, business efficacy, bystander test, citing a trust in litigation, consent paper rectification, contempt of court maintenance, Divorce Attorney Cape Town, divorce settlement agreement, dum casta clause, educational expenses divorce, Endumeni interpretation, family law South Africa, good faith negotiation, holiday allowance maintenance, implied terms contract, maintenance disputes, maintenance order variation, medical expenses divorce, post-divorce litigation, public policy contracts, reasonableness of maintenance expenses, rectification of agreement, RJS v LAS, trustees representative capacity, upper guardian of minor children, variation of consent paper, Western Cape High Court, Wille J, ZAWCHC 377 The Limitless Gold Credit Card Myth: Why “All” Maintenance Expenses Must Still Be Reasonable — R.J.S and Others v L.A.S (A228/2025) [2026] ZAWCHC 377 (27 July 2026). The Facts: A Consent Paper and a Tsunami of Post-Divorce Litigation The judgment of Wille J in R.J.S and Others v L.A.S (A228/2025) ZAWCHC 377 (27 July 2026) arises from… READ MORE
23/07/2026 Bertus Preller Alimony, Best Interests of the Child, Children, Cohabitation, Costs, Divorce, Financial non-disclosure, Interim Maintenance, Maintenance, Non-disclosure consequences, Procedural Law, Rule 43, Rule 43 Applications, Rule 43 Contempt, Rule 43 orders, Spousal Maintenance ability to pay, best interests of the child, child maintenance, Divorce Law, divorce proceedings, earning capacity, family law judgment, financial disclosure, financial non-disclosure, full and frank disclosure, H.L v B.L, inflated expenses, interim maintenance, interim relief, legal costs contribution, maintenance claim, Maintenance Order, maintenance pendente lite, marital standard of living, Minor Children, Njokweni J, Rule 43, Rule 43 Application, South African case law, South African Family Law, spousal maintenance, uberrima fides, Western Cape divorce, Western Cape High Court Candour, Children and the Limits of Interim Maintenance: H.L v B.L (2025/216979) [2026] ZAWCHC 350 (13 July 2026). The factual background and the parties’ competing claims In H.L v B.L (2025/216979) ZAWCHC 350 (13 July 2026), the Western Cape High Court was required to determine an application for… READ MORE
25/06/2026 Bertus Preller Alimony, Arrear Maintenance, Arrear maintenance claims, Child Maintenance, Children, Civil contempt South Africa, Contempt of Court, Contempt of court maintenance, Divorce, Financial non-disclosure, Maintenance, Maintenance Court, Maintenance Court, Maintenance order enforcement, Non-disclosure consequences, Plascon Evans Rule, Post-divorce maintenance, Post-divorce maintenance enforcement, Spousal Maintenance, Uberrimae fidei matrimonial proceedings Arrear Maintenance, Attorney and Client Costs, beyond reasonable doubt, child maintenance, Civil Contempt, contempt of court, Contempt Proceedings, Davis AJ, Dezius v Dezius, Divorce Act, dolus eventualis, Eke v Parsons, evidential burden, Fakie v CCII Systems, family law South Africa, financial disclosure, full and frank disclosure, inability to pay defence, luxuries non-essentials, maintenance court variation, maintenance debtor, Maintenance Order, parental maintenance obligations, Pheko v Ekurhuleni, Plascon-Evans rule, poverty defence, settlement agreement order of court, Western Cape High Court, wilful and mala fide When “I Can’t Pay” Becomes Contempt: Luxuries, Maintenance Arrears and the Duty of Full Disclosure in D.W v J.L.K (12604/2015) [2026] ZAWCHC 322 (17 June 2026). D.W v J.L.K (12604/2015) ZAWCHC 322 (17 June 2026) The facts: a maintenance debtor who paid for luxuries before his children The applicant and respondent divorced in 2015. In terms… READ MORE
15/06/2026 Bertus Preller 1996 Hague Convention, Abducting parent defences, Abduction, Article 13 defences, Article 13(a) consent, Article 13(b) grave risk, Children, Children's Court, Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction acquiescence, Ad Hoc Central Authority, ameliorative measures, Article 12, Article 13, Article 13(a), Article 13(b), Central Authority, Chapter 17, child abduction South Africa, Children’s Act 38 of 2005, Cloete J, ex post facto consent, grave risk defence, habitual residence, Hague Convention, International Child Abduction, KG v GB, Koch case, Penello, Plascon-Evans, relocation application, return order, rights of custody, Smith v Smith, Sonderup v Tondelli, undertakings, Western Cape High Court, wrongful retention Real, Positive and Unequivocal: How Ad Hoc Central Authority for the Republic of South Africa and Another v L.C.C (2026/034707) [2026] ZAWCHC 301 (10 June 2026) Tests Consent and Grave Risk Under the Hague Convention. This judgment is a useful working illustration of how our courts now approach return applications under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, incorporated into our… READ MORE