The Commercial Case Law Index is a collection of judgments from African countries on topics relating to commercial legal practice. The collection aims to provide a snapshot of commercial legal practice in a country, rather than present solely traditionally "reportable" cases. The index currently covers 400 judgments from Uganda, Tanzania, Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa.
Get started on finding judgments that are relevant to you by browsing the topic list on the left of the screen. Click the arrows next to the topic names to reveal a detailed list of sub-topics. Most judgments are accompanied by a short summary written by subject-matter expert postgraduate students from the University of Cape Town.
The applicant in this application sought for an order staying the execution of the
judgment of the court of appeal until the determination of the appeal to this court, and
that costs of the application be provided for.
The court considered an application where the applicant argued that the Court of Appeal, in an earlier judgment in the same case, erroneously misconstrued s 272 of the Succession Act. The court held that an appeal could be re-heard if the matter is of great public importance. The court confirmed that great public importance and general importance depends on the facts and circumstances and may vary from case-to-case.
The guidelines for what would constitute public or general importance in certain cases are statements of law which affect
(1) a considerable number of people in their commercial practice;
(2) enjoyment of fundamental rights;
(3) the proper functioning of public institutions;
(4) the court’s scope to dispense redress; or (4) the discharge of duties of public officers.
If an appeal meets one of the criteria constituting public or general importance, the court will be permitted to re-hear an appeal on its merits. The court in this case held that this case raised a question of law of general importance and could be reheard.