Aslam Moosajee (ZA)

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A liquidation application is not appropriate for disputed debts

In November 2016, the Supreme Court of Appeal reiterated that if a respondent in a liquidation application disputes the indebtedness on bona fide and reasonable grounds, the liquidation application should be refused. Liquidation proceedings are not designed for the enforcement of disputed debts. In the case of Freshvest Investments (Pty) Ltd v Marabeng (Pty) Ltd, … Continue reading

Acceleration clauses and prescription

If a loan is repayable in instalments and includes an acceleration clause that if the debtor defaults on paying any instalment, the creditor is entitled on notice to terminate the loan agreement and claim the full balance outstanding, the debt ordinarily only prescribes three years after the date of the notice claiming the full outstanding … Continue reading

New NCA regulations prescribing maximum interest rates and service and initiation fees come into force as court application fails

The new regulations prescribing the maximum rates of interest, initiation fees and service fees that credit providers can charge come into effect on 6 May 2016. An urgent application by Micro Finance South Africa (MFSA) to stay the implementation of the new regulations pending the outcome of an application to set aside the Minister of … Continue reading

Insist on clear court orders that affect you

All laws and court orders must be written in a clear and accessible way. Vague laws or court orders violate the rule of law, which is a founding principle of our Constitution. In Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs v Kloof Conservancy, the Supreme Court of Appeal set aside part of a court order because it … Continue reading

Business rescue: Constitutional Court upholds SCA judgment regarding interpretation of binding offer in Section 153(1b)(ii) of the Companies Act

The Constitutional Court refused leave to appeal against the Supreme Court of Appeal decision that a “binding offer” to a creditor in business rescue proceedings, made under s 153(1)(b)(ii) of the 2008 Companies Act, is not automatically binding on the creditor. The appeal had “no prospects of success” which effectively confirms the correctness of the interpretation of … Continue reading

Amendments to Banks Act

With effect from 29 June 2015, the Banks Act has been amended. The amendments to the Banks Act enable the provisions in the Companies Act on arrangements and compromises to apply to banks under curatorship and to expand the basis on which a curator of a bank may dispose of all or part of the … Continue reading

Business rescue: binding offer to purchase voting interest is not automatically binding on creditor that votes against the plan

In an important judgment delivered by the Supreme Court of Appeal on 20 May 2015 in African Banking Corporation of Botswana Ltd v Kariba Furniture Manufacturers (Pty) Ltd and others, the Supreme Court of Appeal held that a purportedly binding offer made to a creditor, who opposes a business rescue plan, is not automatically binding … Continue reading

Section 163 of Companies Act not wide enough to allow a court to authorise a shareholder to institute action in the name of the company

If the board of directors of a company refuses or is unable to institute legal proceedings to recover any loss suffered by the company from a third party, an aggrieved shareholder or director should not rely on Section 163 of the Companies Act to obtain permission from a court to institute or continue legal proceedings … Continue reading

Serious consequences if you use money mistakenly transferred into your account

In the digital age, more and more people are using electronic banking. The risks associated with electronic banking include typing errors which result in money being transferred to an incorrect account or more money being paid than is due. If a person receives money mistakenly transferred to their account and uses that money, knowing that … Continue reading

Business rescue and sureties

The latest appeal court decision of New Port Finance Co v Nedbank reinforces our view that every suretyship securing a company’s debts should specifically preserve the creditor’s rights against a surety despite discharge of any part of the principal debt by a business rescue plan and that creditors should ensure that claims against sureties are preserved … Continue reading
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