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Suretyship vs Guarantee. What’s the difference?

02 May 2024

In this article, we look at two primary forms of security commonly found in financial transactions, namely suretyship agreements and... guarantees, and explain the difference between these two forms of security.

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4
Article

Leave to Appeal vs Special Leave to Appeal

02 May 2024

On 4 April 2024 in the matter of Savannah Country Estate Homeowners Association v Zero Plus Trading 194 (Pty) Ltd... and Others (773/2022) [2024] ZASCA 40, our Supreme Court of Appeal (“SCA”) had to address the important difference between an application for leave to appeal and an application for special leave to appeal. In this article, we analyse the SCA’s views in this regard.

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7
Article

Can Landlords unilaterally charge for additional services?

02 May 2024

The relationship between landlord and tenant can be a complex one fraught with dangers for a careless landlord. In this... article, we explore whether a landlord can provide additional value-added services to its tenants beyond the scope of what is outlined in the lease agreement and then unilaterally charge extra for such services or remove existing services without consequence.

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3
Article

Blazing changes in the National Veld and Forest Fire Amendment Bill

24 April 2024

In early April 2024, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the National Veld and Forest Fire Amendment Bill.  

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3
Article

Can a Homeowners Association take over refuse removal from a local authority?

27 March 2024

With many local authorities struggling to provide municipal services to residents, a key question that arose in a recent case... was whether a Homeowners Association was entitled to take over the function of refuse removal from the local authority and whether the local authority was still entitled to charge for refuse removal.

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49
Article

What to expect from the new draft Employment Equity Act Regulations

27 March 2024

The Employment Equity Amendment Act 4 of 2022 (“Amendment Act”) was introduced in April 2023 but the commencement date has... yet to be promulgated. To address the sectoral numerical targets provided for in the Amendment Act, new draft regulations were issued for comment on 1 February 2024 (“Draft Regulations”). In this article we take a look at the draft regulations and what they mean for employers.

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83
Article

How liable is an owner for damage caused by animals?

26 March 2024

One has often read about owners being held liable for a dog attack on a person, but what about an... animal on the road which ends up causing an accident? Can the owner be held liable for the resulting damage?

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653
Article

To click or to ink? Are electronically signed sale of property agreements valid in SA?

26 March 2024

In the current digital era, the use of electronic signatures has substantially increased, reshaping traditional practices with their convenience and... efficiency. From large corporations to small businesses, organisations are embracing electronic signatures to streamline processes and adapt to a digital business landscape. This article explores the validity of electronic signatures and specifically how it affects the validity of a sale of property agreement. 

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669
Article

Suretyship vs Guarantee. What’s the difference?

02 May 2024

In this article, we look at two primary forms of security commonly found in financial transactions, namely suretyship agreements and... guarantees, and explain the difference between these two forms of security.

READ MORE
4
Article

Leave to Appeal vs Special Leave to Appeal

02 May 2024

On 4 April 2024 in the matter of Savannah Country Estate Homeowners Association v Zero Plus Trading 194 (Pty) Ltd... and Others (773/2022) [2024] ZASCA 40, our Supreme Court of Appeal (“SCA”) had to address the important difference between an application for leave to appeal and an application for special leave to appeal. In this article, we analyse the SCA’s views in this regard.

READ MORE
7
Article

Can Landlords unilaterally charge for additional services?

02 May 2024

The relationship between landlord and tenant can be a complex one fraught with dangers for a careless landlord. In this... article, we explore whether a landlord can provide additional value-added services to its tenants beyond the scope of what is outlined in the lease agreement and then unilaterally charge extra for such services or remove existing services without consequence.

READ MORE
3
Article

Blazing changes in the National Veld and Forest Fire Amendment Bill

24 April 2024

In early April 2024, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the National Veld and Forest Fire Amendment Bill.  

READ MORE
3
Article

Can a Homeowners Association take over refuse removal from a local authority?

27 March 2024

With many local authorities struggling to provide municipal services to residents, a key question that arose in a recent case... was whether a Homeowners Association was entitled to take over the function of refuse removal from the local authority and whether the local authority was still entitled to charge for refuse removal.

READ MORE
49
Article

What to expect from the new draft Employment Equity Act Regulations

27 March 2024

The Employment Equity Amendment Act 4 of 2022 (“Amendment Act”) was introduced in April 2023 but the commencement date has... yet to be promulgated. To address the sectoral numerical targets provided for in the Amendment Act, new draft regulations were issued for comment on 1 February 2024 (“Draft Regulations”). In this article we take a look at the draft regulations and what they mean for employers.

READ MORE
83
Article

How liable is an owner for damage caused by animals?

26 March 2024

One has often read about owners being held liable for a dog attack on a person, but what about an... animal on the road which ends up causing an accident? Can the owner be held liable for the resulting damage?

READ MORE
653
Article

To click or to ink? Are electronically signed sale of property agreements valid in SA?

26 March 2024

In the current digital era, the use of electronic signatures has substantially increased, reshaping traditional practices with their convenience and... efficiency. From large corporations to small businesses, organisations are embracing electronic signatures to streamline processes and adapt to a digital business landscape. This article explores the validity of electronic signatures and specifically how it affects the validity of a sale of property agreement. 

READ MORE
669
Article
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Filter: BEE
When should you register your B-BBEE transaction with the B-BBEE Commission?

20 October 2022

Should your business consider an ownership transaction which may affect your ownership recognition for BEE purposes, it will be important... to also consider whether this transaction will require registration with the B-BBEE Commission. In this article we briefly unpack what the requirements for registration of a major B-BBEE transaction are.

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561
Article
B-BBEE in state tenders done?

14 June 2022

With all the media attention around the Supreme Court of Appeal’s ‘scrapping’ of the regulations around preferential procurement at the... end of 2020, and recent media statements by the Democratic Alliance that they wish to have B-BBEE removed as criteria from government tendering, one can be excused for being uncertain what role B-BBEE will continue to play in state tendering.

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369
Article
How to maximise your training for BEE recognition

19 May 2022

The various types of skills training available in South Africa and the corresponding BEE recognition it provides, has become very... technical, resulting in many businesses finding it difficult to decide on and implement the appropriate training programmes to achieve their desired training and BEE goals. Here we discuss and simplify the most prevalent types of training in South Africa and also address BEE recognition applicable to the different types of training.

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329
Article
The drive to transform under the new Property Practitioners Act

13 April 2022

With all the media focus lately on the new Property Practitioners Act and new regulations and requirements regarding Fidelity Fund... certificates, it’s easy to miss the impact this Act intends to make on much-needed transformation of the property sector. Here we highlight a few of the key measures that will impact on transformation in the property industry.

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376
Article
Can a foreigner qualify as BEE shareholding in your business?

13 April 2022

Your company is looking at to increase its BEE shareholding and you have identified a potential BEE partner. Despite being... very optimistic about the partner, you have in your due diligence discovered that your potential partner - although a black person - was not born in South Africa. This raises the question of whether this partner would qualify as a BEE partner should you continue with the BEE deal?

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376
Article
Is Preferential Procurement really important for your business?

21 March 2022

As much as B-BBEE legislation and scorecards have become a general part of the business landscape for many companies, the... procurement aspect remains a difficult one for businesses to get right and understand how important it is to their overall scorecard result. Below we unpack the Preferential Procurement Element of the B-BBEE Scorecard in more detail to illustrate how careful a business should be not to ignore this crucial element in their planning.

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304
Article
The Competition Commission is also an enforcer of BEE

08 February 2022

Companies showing substantial growth, are likely to attract the interest of investors who may want to acquire the company. Should... a company be black-owned and such ownership be dramatically affected by an acquisition, such acquisition my run the risk of being blocked by the Competition Commission. 

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328
Article
Who qualifies as a Black person under the BEE Act?

14 December 2021

I have a black woman that has been working for me for a number of years. She is an asset... to my business and I have been planning to give her shares in my company. However, she’s from Zambia and is only a permanent resident of South Africa. Will she qualify as a black shareholder for purposes of BEE legislation if I make her a shareholder?

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329
Article
Why Enterprise and Supplier Development cannot be only a tick-box exercise

12 October 2021

While the BEE scorecard is well-intentioned, it should not be treated as a simple checklist, but rather seen as an... instrument to facilitate real transformation. When it comes to building and supporting small black-owned businesses in South Africa, a much longer-term view needs to be taken. 

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423
Article
Management accounts still OK for BEE verifications?

14 September 2021

My manufacturing business has been growing steadily and I expect it will go above the R50 million turnover mark this... financial year. That said, its not a given, and I’m hesitant to spend on BEE planning before I’m sure we will go over this mark. Will I be able to first wrap up the financial year and thereafter do the necessary BEE expenditure and verify the business using management accounts for the first quarter after the financial year-end?

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491
Article
The importance of women in Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment

10 August 2021

There is often media reports about BEE and its importance, but one gets the impression the focus is often on... black males with black women taking a backseat. Is there any value for companies to consider black women empowerment?

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444
Article
DTI sheds light on collective enterprises

14 July 2021

I’ve taken over the management of a non-profit trust that is focused on the development of previously disadvantaged scholars based... in rural communities. Increasingly, companies that want to fund and work with us are asking us for a BEE certificate. However, our auditors have told us that it’s not so easy for a trust like ours to be rated as we don’t have named beneficiaries. Is this correct and what are our options?

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271
Article

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