ConCourt judgment widens High Court’s jurisdiction in tax cases
The Court replaces the restrictive ‘exceptional circumstances’ test with a flexible ‘good cause’ standard, creating new forum-choice opportunities.
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NHI Act | Sakeliga opposes Health Minister’s stay-and-consolidate application
The business group says the proposed stay will shield the Act from judicial review while allowing implementation to continue.
Employers must update leave policies after landmark ConCourt ruling
The Constitutional Court has struck down parts of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act and UIF Act, finding that current provisions unfairly discriminate between mothers, fathers, and adoptive and surrogate parents.
Gender-neutral surname ruling shakes up families and institutions
Employers, banks, insurers, and other identity-verifying bodies must accept surname assumptions by any spouse and update onboarding and benefits procedures accordingly.
Draft amendments narrow taxpayers’ ‘bona fide inadvertent error’ defence
The proposal restricts the ‘bona fide inadvertent error’ defence under the understatement penalty regime to cases where the tax shortfall is a ‘substantial understatement’.
Trustees now have ‘clear guidance’ on dependency and benefit allocations
Dependency is assessed at the member’s date of death, and trustees must conduct active investigations and apply a principled equitable allocation process.
ConCourt clarifies scope of section 30P of the PFA proceedings
The Adjudicator breached audi alteram partem by making adverse findings about a Fund’s investigation without giving it a substantive opportunity to respond.
Apex court clarifies timing of dependency test for death benefit payouts
The Constitutional Court rules that whether someone qualifies as a dependant must be determined as at the date of a retirement fund member’s death, not when the fund decides how to distribute the benefit.
Funds must fully verify dependency before allocating a death benefit
The Constitutional Court finds that a fund relied on unverified, one-sided information and failed to establish the extent of factual dependency.
Courts will be able to override antenuptial contracts upon divorce
The General Laws (Family Matters) Amendment Bill will empower the courts to order fair asset transfers in marriages out of community of property without accrual.
Dual‐citizenship ban ruled unconstitutional after 30 years
The Constitutional Court declares invalid the section of the South African Citizenship Act that automatically revoked citizenship upon acquisition of another nationality.
VAT hike halted – but legal uncertainty keeps SA on fiscal edge
Tax specialist Louis Botha answers pressing questions about the suspended VAT increase and its broader implications for budget-making power and taxpayer rights.
ConCourt divided over employers’ right to dismiss post-retirement employees
Can an employer rely on section 187(2)(b) of the Labour Relations Act when dismissing an employee who has worked beyond the normal or agreed retirement age?
How the dispute between the RAF and Discovery unfolded
Discovery Health’s quest for reimbursement from the RAF for medical expenses incurred by road accident victims has faced multiple legal hurdles, with new RAF directives complicating the situation.
Fidentia scandal: end of the road for trust’s case against Old Mutual?
The Constitutional Court dismisses an application for leave to appeal against the Supreme Court of Appeal’s ruling in favour of Old Mutual Unit Trust Managers.
ConCourt clarifies when medical schemes can cancel membership for non-disclosure
Medical schemes cannot cancel membership based solely on the non-disclosure of a diagnostic procedure that does not lead to the diagnosis of a serious medical condition.
‘Instructive remarks’ from the Constitutional Court on understatement penalties
Expert legal interpretations, even if contrary to SARS’s stance, may not automatically result in understatement penalties.
