Will-stipulated purchase option: Are there transfer duty impacts?
Any person drawing up a last will and testament, and who intends to include an option to purchase any of their properties, should be aware of the transfer duty implications such provision might bring forth. This article intends on discussing the beforementioned implications at the hands of the case of Secretary for Inland Revenue v […]
Properly executing a will is extremely important
I gave instructions to my attorney to prepare a last will and testament for me as my will no longer reflected my wishes. At my request, my attorney emailed the will to me with clear instructions as to how I should go about signing it. I asked my neighbours to act and sign as witnesses. […]
Can trustees sell trust property to their own company?
The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) recently deliberated on whether a court sanction is necessary to validate the sale of shares owned by a trust to a company controlled indirectly by two of the trustees of the trust. This matter was addressed in the case of Kuttel vs Master of the High Court and Others. […]
Lost your original title deed?
What do you do?
Before the transfer takes place, the owner (seller) must make a written application to the registrar of deeds, requesting a certificate of the registered title (CRT) of the land in terms of Section 38 of the Deeds Registries Act 47 of 1937. The application must be accompanied by an affidavit attested to by the owner […]
Why co-executors of a will can’t act independently
A mother and an adult child were appointed as the co-executors of their late husband/father’s estate. One co-executor, who wanted to sell their family home, signed a sale agreement without the consent of the other. However, the sale agreement of their family home will not be valid. Where an immovable property has been acquired by […]
Are your heirs disqualifying themselves?
We all know that the will forms a vital part of the estate planning foundation. It is unfortunate then that the foundation of a deceased estate is so often left crumbling due to simple oversights in the drafting of the will. Just as with any piece of legal writing, the wording of your will matters. […]
To be(queath) or not to be(queath)
Some believe Shakespeare to have been a madman. Whether that is true or not, we cannot say, but we believe that he had no contemporary who wrote quite as much (or as well) about death and its implications. As certain as the fates of his protagonists and antagonists were, we don’t think leaving things up […]