Daniel Breier

Exemption clause enforceable in cases of liability arising from employee theft

By Daniel Breier on July 5, 2023 Posted in Insurance

An exemption clause which has the effect of excluding a party’s liability for theft by its employees is not contrary to public policy and is enforceable. This was the ruling of the Constitutional Court in Fujitsu Services Core (Pty) Limited v Schenker South Africa (Pty) Limited [2023] ZACC 20. This issue divided the Court, with five judges … Continue reading

SCA ruling on Covid-19 rental remissions

By Daniel Breier on April 27, 2023 Posted in Drafting tips, General

In April 2023 the Supreme Court of Appeal confirmed that a tenant may claim a remission of rental where vis major interferes with the tenant’s beneficial use and enjoyment of the property, unless the terms of the lease provide otherwise. However, if the premises are sub-let there will be no interference with the head tenant’s … Continue reading

Ruling on conveyancer’s liability for cyber fraud losses

By Daniel Breier on January 18, 2023 Posted in General

On 16 January 2023, the Gauteng High Court ruled that a conveyancing attorney had a legal duty towards a property purchaser to implement adequate precautions and provide adequate warnings to protect the purchaser against her own email accounts being compromised by cyber fraud and was liable in delict for the purchaser’s loss for failing to … Continue reading

The nature of a broker’s mandate

By Patrick Bracher (ZA) and Daniel Breier on November 10, 2022 Posted in Insurance

In a decision involving a broker who introduced business to a medical scheme, the court drew an important distinction between a mandate to enter into contracts on behalf of the medical scheme as the principal and a mandate or authority to introduce business to the medical scheme. Where a principal appoints someone to perform juristic … Continue reading

Rental, covid-19 and impossibility to pay rent

By Donald Dinnie and Daniel Breier on November 9, 2022 Posted in Insurance

In this judgment the Supreme Court of Appeal decided that the lessor was entitled to evict its tenant as a result of non-payment of rental because the tenant’s pleas that it could not pay rent because of the Covid-19 pandemic could not excuse non-payment from September 2020. The court said that it was trite that … Continue reading

Effect of lockdown regulations on landlords and tenants

By Daniel Breier on March 27, 2020 Posted in General

What is the effect of clauses 11B(1)(b), (c) and (d) of the lockdown regulations which read: “(b) All businesses and other entities shall cease operations during the lockdown, save for any business or entity involved in the manufacturing, supply, or provision of an essential good or service. (c) Retail shops and shopping malls must be … Continue reading