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
In this case, the claimant fell at the entrance of the defendant’s restaurant premises.
The claimant sued alleging negligence on the part of the defendant.
One of the issues for determination was whether the defendant was absolved of any liability by virtue of the disclaimer notice.
The disclaimer notice read (in capital letters):
“
This judgement considered whether section 69 of the Consumer Protection Act (CPA), which provides that a person may not seek to enforce any right in terms of the CPA, or in terms of a transaction or agreement or otherwise to resolve a dispute by approaching the court with jurisdiction of the matter unless “all
Author: James Donald, Candidate Attorney
In an April 2021 judgement, the Eastern Cape high court held that a standard form guest indemnity used by a game reserve was not in conflict with applicable provisions in the Consumer Protection Act 2008 (the CPA). The plaintiff was a tourist to South Africa, on holiday at a
This blog was co-authored by James Donald, Candidate Attorney
In an April 2021 judgement, the Eastern Cape high court held that a standard form guest indemnity used by a game reserve was not in conflict with applicable provisions in the Consumer Protection Act 2008 (the CPA). The plaintiff was a tourist to South
Indemnity clauses and the Consumer Protection Act
In a recent Eastern Cape High Court judgment which you can read about here, the claimant fell into an unfenced pool at the game reserve and injured herself. The court found in the evidence that the claimant’s conduct was the sole cause of her stepping into the
In dismissing an application for summary judgment a US supreme court found that the trial court may well decide that Amazon was liable as the ‘seller’ of a defective thermostat that was installed in premises and caused a fire resulting in damage.
Amazon alleged that all they did was to allow a third party seller
The High Court has refused to apply the terms of a disclaimer notice to defeat the claim of a shopper who tore his bicep while trying to stop a rack from falling.
The shop owner’s defence relied on the display of a disclaimer notice alongside the entrance to the store which contained an exemption
For the first time, a South African court in Van Wyk v UPS dealt with the application of the Consumer Protection Act to disclaimer clauses in a contract. On the facts, the court applied sections 22, 49 and 52 to sever from the agreement the specific clauses on which the defendant sought to escape liability
The manufacturer of a hip prosthesis system (which was of a metal-on-metal design) for use in total hip replacement operations was sued by 313 individual claimants who alleged metal-wear debris damaged surrounding soft tissues necessitating revision surgery. The court found that the system was not defective and the claimants had not proved that it did