Defences to liability for dog bites

By Donald Dinnie on September 16, 2020 Posted in General

The owner of a dog that attacks a person who neither provoked the attack nor by their negligence directly caused their own injury is liable, as owner, to make good the resultant damages. Based on Roman law, for nearly 200 years the law in South Africa has been accepted that owners of animals are strictly … Continue reading

Liability for independent contractors and the legal fiction of non-delegability

By Donald Dinnie on February 28, 2020 Posted in General

The Western Cape High Court in the December 2019 decision of Holtzhauzen v Cenprop Real Estate and Naheel Investments confirmed the general proposition that a principal is not liable for the negligent conduct of its independent contractor. This was a slip and trip claim where the shopping mall owner had delegated cleaning services to a … Continue reading

Section 61 CPA liability only attaches to a supplier-consumer relationship

By Candice Grieve and Patrick Bracher (ZA) on January 9, 2017 Posted in General

A cyclist who suffered electrical burns after coming into contact with a low-hanging powerline had not entered into a transaction with Eskom, nor was he the beneficiary of the electricity supplied. There was no supplier-consumer relationship, as required for a product defect claim under s61(1)(b) of the Consumer Protection Act 2008. This was the finding … Continue reading