Case Law[2024] ZAGPPHC 829South Africa
William Darier t/a Urban Soccer v City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality (18085/2020) [2024] ZAGPPHC 829 (13 August 2024)
High Court of South Africa (Gauteng Division, Pretoria)
13 August 2024
Headnotes
of events that culminated in the application and counter application, which are more extensively set out in the parties’ respective heads of argument and affidavits.
Judgment
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# South Africa: North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria
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## William Darier t/a Urban Soccer v City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality (18085/2020) [2024] ZAGPPHC 829 (13 August 2024)
William Darier t/a Urban Soccer v City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality (18085/2020) [2024] ZAGPPHC 829 (13 August 2024)
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sino date 13 August 2024
SAFLII
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Policy
IN
THE HIGH COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA
GAUTENG
DIVISION, PRETORIA
CASE
NO: 18085/2020
(1) REPORTABLE:
NO
(2) OF INTEREST TO OTHER
JUDGES:
NO
(3) REVISED:
NO
Date:
13 August 2024
Signature:
In
the matter between:
WILLIAM
DARIER t/a URBAN SOCCER
Applicant
And
THE
CITY OF TSHWANE METROPOLITAN
Respondent
MUNICIPALITY
JUDGMENT
NYATHI
J
A.
INTRODUCTION
[1]
The applicant seeks an order from this court in the following terms:
1.1
An interdict restraining the respondent from pursuing
a so-called C9
application and public tender of the property more fully described as
Erf 6[...], Hatfield, Pretoria.
1.2
Directing the respondent to comply with its obligations
set out and
contained in the said addendum to the original lease agreement.
1.3
Directing the respondent to state and debate the
applicant's
electricity account within sixty (60) days of this order.
1.4
Payment by way of a refund from the respondent,
of any monies found
to be owing to the applicant, in respect of his electricity bill with
the respondent.
[2]
In the alternative — and in the event that the court finds that
the addendum to the
lease agreement is invalid and/or not binding on
the respondent, the applicant seeks:
2.1
The expense incurred by the
applicant in preparing the strategic plan in the amount of R250
000.00.
2.2
Damages sustained by the applicant
in the amount of R 7 900 000.00 (Seven Million Nine Hundred
Thousand Rand) having made the
initial capital investment; rental and
electricity costs and having incurred the upkeep costs for the last
seven years.
[3]
In opposition to the above, the respondent:
3.1
Seeks condonation for the late
filing of its answering papers in terms of Rule 27(3) of the Uniform
Rules of Court.
3.2
Opposes the relief sought by the
applicant.
3.3
Brings a counter application to
self-review unlawful administrative decisions by its officials.
3.4
Seeks related declaratory relief
concerning the status of the addendum to the original lease agreement
arising out of the unlawful
administrative decision.
3.5
Seeks the ejectment of the
applicant from the premises.
[4]
In its riposte to the above, the applicant seeks to introduce
supplementary evidentiary
material.
[5]
The respondent opposes the introduction of such supplementary
evidentiary material on the
grounds that the evidence is not relevant
to the lawfulness of the addendum to the lease agreement.
B.
BACKGROUND
[6]
On 9 September 1968, the respondent concluded a written lease
agreement (hereinafter "the
lease”) with the Pretoria East
Bowling Club (hereinafter "the Club"), in terms of which
the Club leased the subject
property from the respondent.
[7]
The lease agreement did not include a termination date and would
endure for an indefinite
period - for as long as the parties complied
with the conditions of the lease agreement. The agreement could
however be terminated
by either party on 3 months' notice.
[8]
On 29 September 2011 the Club directed official correspondence to the
respondent in terms
of which it gave the respondent notification of
the termination of the lease, on three (3) months’ notice, as
provided for
in clause 3 of the Deed of Lease.
[9]
The respondent, per the Manager in the Sports, Recreation, Arts,
Culture and Library Service
Department, accepted the termination of
the lease on 06 October 2011, with such termination to take effect on
21 December 2011
— three months from date of termination of the
lease, as provided for in terms of clause 3 of the Deed of Lease.
[10]
During 2012 the applicant engaged with the respondent's authorised
representative, Zelda Breytenbach (“Breytenbach”),
who
proposed three possible locations owned by the respondent.
[11] On
28 February 2013 and at Pretoria, the applicant and the respondent
concluded
a written addendum to the lease agreement
in terms
of which the existing lease agreement between the Club and the
respondent, was
ceded
to the applicant thereinafter referred
to as the "Lease Agreement”). (Emphasis supplied.)
[12]
The applicant took possession of the property and caused permanent
alterations and improvements to be effected
to the property. The cost
of such alterations and improvements exceeded R7 900 000.00.
[13]
After being in undisturbed possession of the property for
approximately 4 years, during October 2017, the
applicant approached
the respondent with a proposal to develop student housing on the
subject property which would complement the
existing uses being
exercised on the subject property.
[14]
The respondent indicated its support for the proposed development on
various occasions between 17 October
2017 and December 2017.
[15]
Around this time disputes started arising between the parties and
escalated in 2019 when on 15 November 2019
the respondent informed
the applicant that there was no right or legal basis for the
applicant to be in occupation of Erf 6[...],
4[...] G[...] Street,
Hatfield (Pretoria East Bowling Club) — and requested applicant
to vacate the premises by no later
than 31 December 2019.
[16]
The above is a concise summary of events that culminated in the
application and counter application, which
are more extensively set
out in the parties’ respective heads of argument and
affidavits.
C.
APPLICANT’S SUBMISSIONS
[17]
The applicant submits that having invested in alterations and
improvements on the leased property, the respondent
then informed it
that the addendum through which the cession of the lease agreement
was effected was illegal because Breytenbach
was not authorised to
sign it on behalf of the respondent.
[18]
The respondent was aware of the lease agreement for approximately six
years. The respondent did not raise
the alleged illegality of the
lease agreement at any point in time before the applicant revealed
the potential of the Property,
by the redevelopment thereof for
purposes of student accommodation, and the possible income that can
be derived therefrom.
[19]
The respondent's legal department was at all times involved prior to
the concluding the addendum agreement
and should have been aware of
the fact that Breytenbach was not authorised to sign the lease
agreement or that the original lease
agreement between the Club and
the respondent had been cancelled which affected the respondent's
ability to cede and transfer the
rights afforded thereunder to the
applicant.
[20]
The respondent further illustrated its
mala fides
by
willy-nilly debiting an amount of R260,000.00 on the applicant's
municipal rates account, allegedly for the consumption of municipal
services at the subject property.
[21] In
an attempt to resolve the municipal account, the applicant submitted
a dispute in terms of the provisions
of Section 95(f) read with
section 102(2) of the Municipal Systems Act (hereinafter referred to
as the “MSA") on 4 June
2019.
[22]
The Applicant, acting
ex abundanti cautela
, and without
admitting the alleged illegal status of the existing lease agreement,
during October 2019, applied to the respondent
to lease the subject
property for a period of a further 3 years.
[23]
The respondent however failed and/or refused to formally respond to
the above lease application and informed
the applicant that it had 30
days to vacate the subject property. This was also the first time the
applicant was made aware of
the fact that the Club had terminated its
lease agreement with the respondent during 2011.
[24]
The respondent also debited an amount of R880 000.00 on the
applicant’s municipal account without
any legal basis.
[25]
After the filing of the main application, the respondent exacerbated
the issues in the applicant’s
municipal account by debiting a
further R415 995.20 on the account for alleged “arrear
rental”.
D.
ISSUES TO BE DECIDED
[26]
The issues to be decided are:
26.1
Whether the addendum to the
original lease agreement dated 28 February 2013 is valid and binding
as between the parties.
26.2
Whether the respondent is obligated
to perform its obligations in terms of the lease agreement.
26.3
Whether the respondent is obligated
to repay the applicant an amount of R7 900 000.00.
Is the addendum to the
lease agreement lawful?
[27]
The applicant argues that the lease agreement as it currently stand
constitutes a valid and binding contract
between the applicant and
the respondent which persists to date.
[28]
The applicant relies on
Oudekraal
Estates (Pty) Ltd v City of Cape Town and Others
[1]
where the Supreme Court
of Appeal stated:
“
[26] For those
reasons it is clear, in our view, that the Administrator's permission
was unlawful and invalid at the outset. Whether
he thereafter also
exceeded his powers in granting extensions for the lodgement of the
general plan thus takes the matter no further.
But the question that
arises is what consequences follow from the conclusion that the
Administrator acted unlawfully. Is the permission
that was granted by
the Administrator simply to be disregarded as if it had never
existed? ln other words, was the Cape Metropolitan
Council entitled
to disregard the Administrator's approval and all its consequences
merely because it believed that they were invalid
provided that its
belief was correct? In our view, it was not. Until the
Administrator's approval (and thus also the consequences
of the
approval) is set aside by a court in proceedings for judicial review
it exists in fact and it has Iegal consequences that
cannot simply be
overlooked. The proper functioning of a modern State would be
considerably compromised if all administrative acts
could be given
effect to or ignored depending upon the view the subject takes of the
validity of the act in question. No doubt
it is for this reason that
our Iaw has always recognised that even an unlawful administrative
act is capable of producing legally
valid consequences for so Iong as
the unlawful act is not set aside.”
[29]
Therefore, concluded the applicant, premised on the aforementioned,
even if the respondent's allegations
are correct i.e. that
Breytenbach was not authorised to conclude a lease agreement with the
applicant, that the Club terminated
the historic lease agreement
prior to same being ceded to the applicant, and that the prescribed
procurement procedures were not
complied with, the lease agreement as
it currently stands is valid and binding between the applicant and
the respondent.
[30]
According to the applicant, the respondent has to firstly satisfy the
court that the declaration of invalidity
of the lease agreement is a
just and equitable order as envisaged in section 172 of the
Constitution, and secondly, that its delay
to institute the review
application was not unreasonable, alternatively, if it is found that
the delay of the respondent to institute
the review application was
indeed unreasonable, that the court can condone such unreasonable
delay.
Alternative claim: the
condictio ob turpem vel iniustam causam
[31] In
the alternative, the applicant advances an unjustified enrichment
claim on the basis that it had performed
to its detriment in terms of
an illegal contract, and thus seeks to reclaim such performance.
[32]
The applicant places
reliance on the decision in
Afrisure
CC v Watson N.O. and Another
[2]
where the SCA held that:
"The central
requirement of the condictio ob turpem vel iniustam causam is that
the amount claimed must have been transferred
pursuant to an
agreement that is void and unenforceable because it is illegal..."
[33] It
is pursuant to the conclusion of the lease agreement that applicant
invested approximately R7 900 000.00
to refurbish the
clubhouse and to build 4 asphalt urban soccer fields on the Property,
to enable the applicant to use the Property
for the purpose for which
it was leased from the respondent.
[34] It
is only after the applicant initiated the main application that the
respondent for the first time provided
evidence — under oath —
which provided tangible evidence that the lease agreement may have
been concluded in an illegal
manner — in the sense that the
original lease agreement between the Club and the respondent had been
cancelled before same
was ceded to the applicant, that Breytenbach
was not authorised by the respondent to enter into the lease
agreement with the applicant,
and that the prescribed procurement
legislation and policies had not been complied with prior to the
lease agreement being entered
into.
E.
DISCUSSION
On the cession:
[35] A
party relying on cession must allege and prove the contract of
cession.
[36]
The maxim
nemo
plus iuris ad alium transfere postest quam ipse habet
means that one cannot
transfer legal rights greater than those that one lawfully possesses.
A consequence of this principle is that
a principal cannot empower
his agent to exercise more rights than the principal himself
possesses. It follows that no one can transfer
more rights in
property than he possesses in the property. The Supreme Court of
Appeal has affirmed this legal principle in
Brayton
Carlswald (Pty) Ltd and Another v Brews
.
[3]
[37]
The 'Deed of Lease' attached to the Founding Affidavit as annexure
'WD1' entered into between the City Council
of Pretoria and the
Pretoria East Bowling Club — was as a matter of law and fact
not capable of being ceded to the applicant
on 28 February 2013 on
account of the fact that the Deed of Lease was terminated by mutual
consent between the respondent (the
successor in title to the City
Council of Pretoria) and the Pretoria-East Bowling Club with effect
from 31 December 2011. The termination
was by way of three months’
notice in writing, as provided for in terms of clause 3 of the Deed
of Lease.
[38]
What took place on 28 February 2013 between the applicant and Ms
Breytenbach was the purported conclusion
of a new lease agreement.
This flouted procurement laws that have since come into being as a
result of the Constitution of the
Republic of South Africa.
[39]
The respondent is an organ of State and as such is obliged to procure
all goods and/or services in a manner
that complies with:
39.1
Section 217 of the Constitution.
39.2
The Local Government: Municipal
Finance Management Act 56 of 2003 (
“MFMA”
).
39.3
The Municipal Systems Act 32 of
2000 (
“the Systems Act”
).
39.4
The Asset Transfer Regulations,
2008.
39.5
The
Municipal Public-Private
Partnership Regulations
(
“Municipal PPP Regulations”
).
39.6
The
Municipal Supply Chain
Management Regulations
. (
“Municipal SCM Regulations”
).
39.7
The Respondent’s Supply Chain
Management Policy (
“SCM Policy”
).
[40]
The respondent is constitutionally and legally obliged to procure
goods and services in accordance with a
system that is fair,
transparent and equitable - open to all interested and qualifying
persons - and in which favouritism, corrupt
and irregular practices
are conspicuous by their complete absence.
[41]
Any contract entered into outside of or contrary
to the principles and provisions of procurement law is both unlawful
and void
ab initio
and
consequently of no force and effect. The reason for this is that the
organ of State is bereft of powers to enter into any contract
that
does not comply with its constitutional and legal obligations.
[42]
In
All
Pay Consolidated Investment Holdings (Pty) Ltd v Chief Executive
Officer, South African Social Security Agency and Others
[4]
it was put as follows:
“
Compliance with
the requirements for a valid tender process, issued in accordance
with the constitutional and legislative procurement
framework, is
thus legally required. These requirements are not merely internal
prescripts that SASSA may disregard at whim. To
hold otherwise would
undermine the demands of equal treatment, transparency and efficiency
under the Constitution.”
[43]
While affirming the duty
upon State owned entities to resist any attempts at enforcement of
procurement contracts/agreements concluded
in violation of the
procurement system contemplated in section 217 of the
Constitution,
[5]
the SCA in
Municipal
Manager: Qaukeni and Others v F.V. General Trading CC
[6]
observed as follows:
“
I therefore
have no difficulty in concluding that a procurement contract for
municipal services concluded in breach of the provisions
dealt with
above which are designed to ensure a transparent, cost effective and
competitive tendering process in the public interest,
is invalid and
will not be enforced”.
[44]
All the regulatory prescripts listed in paragraph 39 above were not
complied with when the “Addendum
to Lease Agreement” was
entered into between the respondent and applicant. This is primarily
because the Addendum was not
concluded pursuant to any competitive
bidding process. The detailed specifics are tabulated in the
respondent’s papers, more
particularly in paragraph 15 to 23 of
its heads of argument and need no repetition herein.
[45]
The primary relief sought
by the applicant is an interdict against the respondent. It is
settled law that interdicting an organ
of state from fulfilling its
obligations should only be resorted to in the clearest of cases. In
International
Trade Administration Commission v SCAW South Africa (Pty) Ltd
,
[7]
the Constitutional Court stated that:
"Where the
Constitution or valid legislation has entrusted specific powers and
functions to a particular branch of government,
courts may not usurp
that power or function by making a decision of their preference. That
would frustrate the balance of power
implied in the principle of
separation of powers.
The primary
responsibility of a court is not to make decisions reserved for or
within the domain of other branches of government,
but rather to
ensure that the concerned branches of government exercise their
authority within the bounds of the Constitution.
This would
especially be so where the decision in issue is policy-laden as well
as polycentric."
[46]
With respect to the
applicant’s endeavours to enforce a patently unlawful contract,
the SCA in
Premier,
Free State and Others v Firechem Free State (Pty) Ltd,
[8]
considered the duties of
an organ of state when faced with attempts to have an unlawful
contract enforced. Schutz JA explicitly
held that:
“
The province
was under a duty not to submit itself to an unlawful contract and
(was) entitled, indeed obliged, to ignore the delivery
contract and
to resist attempts at enforcement”.
[47]
Then Cameron J writing
for the Constitutional Court in
Trinity
Asset Management (Pty) Ltd v Grindstone Investments 132 (Pty) Ltd
,
[9]
encapsulated the position of how a court should deal in interdict
proceedings with a hopeless case, wherein he stated that:
"When the facts
are unclear, the interdicting court must weigh prospects,
probabilities and harm. But when the respondent who
is sought to be
interdicted has a killer law point it is just and sensible for the
court to decide that point there and then. The
court is in effect
ruling that, whatever the apprehension of harm and the factual rights
and wrongs of the parties’ dispute,
an interdict can never be
granted because the applicant can never found an entitlement to it."
The debating and
accounting of the electricity and rental claims as well as the claim
for damages:
[48]
Over and above the mandamus, the applicant seeks an order for the
debating and accounting of the accounts
central to a dispute between
the parties as well as a claim for damages.
[49]
The applicant is canvassing these claims in this application.
[50]
It is settled law that a
party should not approach a court on application proceedings in
circumstances where there are fundamental,
eminently and readily
foreseeable disputes of fact which cannot be resolved on the
papers.
[10]
50.1
If
the material facts are in dispute, and there is no request for the
hearing of oral evidence, a final order will only be granted
on
notice of motion if the facts as stated by the respondent together
with the facts alleged by the applicant that are admitted
by the
respondent justify such an order.
[11]
50.2
The
application for referral to oral evidence must be made
in
limine
and
not once it becomes apparent that the applicant is failing to
convince the court on the papers.
[12]
[51]
The accounting and debating of the electricity and rental accounts
would procedurally require:
51.1
A claim for the delivery of the
account.
51.2
A debatement about the actual
account itself.
51.3
The payment of the amount found to
be due.
[52]
The need for the accounting of the account inherently presupposes
that:
52.1
There are not yet facts sufficient
to support the relief that the Applicant seeks.
52.2
There will inevitably be disputes
of fact during the debatement of the account.
[53]
The damages, alternatively enrichment claims of the applicant —
arising out of either the applicant's
unsolicited property
development proposal, or disputes arising out of capital investments,
rental, electricity and upkeep costs
incurred by the applicant from
its beneficial use and possession of Erf 6[...], Hatfield,
(Pretoria-East Bowling Club) —
are all disputed on the grounds
that:
53.1
The underlying lease agreement on
which they are purportedly based is either void
ab
initio,
alternatively
illegal and of no force and effect.
53.2
Any damages claim arising out of
the contract is thus in its entirety being resisted by the respondent
(as it has already been submitted,)
on the basis that illegal
contracts are unenforceable under the
ex
turpi causa non oritur actio
principle.
53.3
Similarly, the enrichment claim for
restitution under the condictio
ob
turpem vel iniustam causam
is
being resisted on the basis of the
par
delictum
rule –
in
pari delicto potior est conditio possidentis.
[54]
On the facts of the
instant application, it is clear that the unsolicited property
development proposal of the applicant did not
comply with the
requirements for an unsolicited bid. There is no right to an
unsolicited bid received outside of its normal bidding
processes at
all.
[13]
[55]
If the respondent elects
to consider an unsolicited bid it may only do so in accordance and
within a prescribed framework, which
requires the municipality to,
only consider unsolicited bids if one or more of the following
considerations are applicable:
[14]
55.1
The product or service offered in
terms of the bid is a demonstrably or proven unique concept.
55.2
The product or service will be
exceptionally beneficial to or have exceptional cost advantages for
the Municipality.
55.3
The person who made the bid is the
sole provider of the product or service.
55.4
The reasons for not going through
the normal bidding processes are found to be sound by the accounting
officer.
[56]
Taking into account the circumstances around the ‘conclusion’
of the Addendum to lease agreement
between and by the respondent and
the applicant on 28 February 2013, it is clear that it was not
concluded pursuant to the above-stated
peremptory requirements.
[57]
The Addendum was also not entered into as per the requirements for a
Public – Private - Partnership
Agreement.
The self-review
Application by the Respondent:
[58]
In
State
Information Technology Agency SOC Limited v Gijima Holdings (Pty)
Limited
[15]
the question arose as to
by what means may an organ of state seek the review and setting aside
of its own decision? May it invoke
the Promotion of Administrative
Justice Act
[16]
(PAJA)? Or is
the appropriate route legality review? The question begs the answer
herein as well.
[59] In
SITA v Gijima
, the parties had entered into an agreement which
was extended several times by way of addenda. A payment dispute arose
between
the parties. When the dispute could not be resolved,
Gijima
instituted arbitration proceedings.
SITA
resisted the claim on
the basis that the agreement, as well as the three extending addenda
that followed it, were invalid as there
was non-compliance with the
provisions of section 217 of the Constitution when the parties
concluded the agreement.
[60]
As in the instant case,
SITA
was adopting this stance
for the first time as it had always assured
Gijima
that all relevant
procurement processes had been complied with.
SITA
approached the High Court
to set aside the agreement and the three
addenda.
The High Court held that
the decision to award and renew the agreement qualified as
administrative action in terms of the provisions
of PAJA but that the
review had been brought way out of the 180-day period stipulated in
section 7(1) of PAJA.
[17]
[61]
The Constitutional Court
disagreed with the above findings, asserting instead that the
appropriate route was a legality review.
The Constitutional Court in
SITA v
Gijima
held,
with reference to
Pharmaceutical
Manufacturers
Association
of SA
[18]
that the principle of
legality is “an incident of the rule of law” which is a
founding value of our Constitution.
[19]
[62]
Ngcobo J (as he then was)
put it thus in
Affordable
Medicines Trust:
[20]
“
The exercise of
public power must therefore comply with the Constitution, which is
the supreme law, and the doctrine of legality,
which is part of that
law. The doctrine of legality, which is an incident of the rule of
law, is one of the constitutional controls
through which the exercise
of public power is regulated by the Constitution.”
[63]
The long and short of it
is that the exercise of public power which is at variance with the
principle of legality is inconsistent
with the Constitution itself.
In short, it is invalid.
[21]
[64] In
SITA v Gijima
as in this case, it was not in dispute that the
award of the disputed agreement by SITA was not pursuant to a
competitive bidding
process.
[65]
SITA had delayed by just
under 22 months before approaching the High Court for review. What
impact, if any, should this delay have?
It may indeed cross the
court’s mind that the delay may be unreasonable, however,
condonation may be granted in circumstances
where it is in the
interests of justice to do so.
[22]
The relevant considerations are:
[23]
65.1
The nature of the application –
with reference to the relief being sought. In the present case, the
applicant seeks to resist
an unlawful agreement.
65.2
The strength or weakness of the
merits of the application. In the instant case the addendum was
concluded without any adherence
to basic procurement law.
65.3
The effect of the relief sought by
the applicant is that the rule of law and constitutional principles
would be vindicated.
[66]
With all this having been
said, just as in
SITA
,
where the delay of nearly 22 months before the launch of the review
application was not condoned, this instant case is even worse.
The
addendum at the heart of the “cession” at issue was
concluded on 28 February 2013. The condonation and counter
applications are dated 02 December 2020. It took 8 years before the
respondent launched the self-review application.
[24]
[67]
This does not mean that the cession agreement is in any way legal. It
has been amply demonstrated that it
was concluded contrary to
constitutional prescripts and is thus illegal. Section 172(1)(a) of
the Constitution enjoins a court
to declare invalid any law or
conduct
that it finds to be inconsistent with the
Constitution. The award of the contract by way of the addendum thus
falls to be declared
invalid.
[68]
Section 172(1)(b) grants
a court deciding a constitutional matter a wide remedial power to
make any order that is just and equitable.
[25]
[69] As
was the case in
Gijima,
the respondent (“City of
Tshwane”) must not benefit from its assurances to the applicant
that Breytenbach was authorised
to represent it in concluding the
addendum and consequently investing monies on the property and
belatedly raising the question
of invalidity of the lease and
addendum. In the circumstances, a just and equitable remedy is that
the award of the lease contract
by concluding the addendum, be
declared invalid, with a rider that the declaration of invalidity
must not have the effect of divesting
the applicant of any rights to
which – but for the declaration of invalidity – it might
have been entitled. Such rights
as ventilated already, pertaining to
an action for damages arising from the condictio
ob turpem vel
iniustam causam.
[70]
The declaration of invalidity of the addendum represents nominal
success for the respondent in its counter
application for the
declaration of invalidity of the addendum.
[71]
The lease contract being illegal, it follows that the respondent’s
counter-application succeeds and
the written addendum to the lease
agreement is declared null and void.
[72]
The applicant chose to proceed on an action for damages for the
amounts of money it alleges that it expended
on improvements and
development on the property by way of application proceedings.
Similarly, the relief for the debatement of
electricity and rental
account are misplaced in this application. The circumstances
were clear from the onset that disputes
of fact around this abound.
Without belabouring the point, this application cannot succeed.
[73] It
is established law that costs shall follow the event.
[74] In
the result, the following order is made:
(a) The application
is dismissed with costs. (The applicant is not divested of its rights
as fully stated in paragraph [69]
above.)
(b)
The counter-application
is granted with costs.
[26]
(c) The order of
invalidity as fully stated in paragraph 69 above does not have the
effect of divesting the respondent of
any rights it would have been
entitled to under the written addendum to the lease agreement
concluded on 28 February 2013, but
for the declaration of invalidity.
J.S.
NYATHI
Judge
of the High Court
Gauteng
Division, Pretoria
Date
of hearing: 15 May 2024
Date
of Judgment: 13 August 2024
On
behalf of the Applicant: Adv. S van der Walt (Ms).
Duly
instructed by: Jaques Classen Attorneys; Pretoria
e-mail:
roelien@propdevlaw.co.za
On
behalf of the Respondent: Adv. S.M Tisani
Duly
instructed by: Diale Mogashoa Attorneys, Pretoria
e-mail:
Mundia@dm-inc.co.za
Delivery
:
This judgment was handed down electronically by circulation to the
parties' legal representatives by email and uploaded on the
CaseLines
electronic platform. The date for hand-down is deemed to be 13 August
2024.
[1]
2004
(6) SA 222
(SCA) at para 26.
[2]
2009
(2) SA 127 (SCA).
[3]
2017
(5) SA 498
(SCA) para 12 and 13.
[4]
2014
(1) SA 604
(CC) at 619G – 620B para 40.
[5]
See
also
Premier,
Free State and Others v Firechem Free State (Pty) Ltd
2000
(4) SA 413
(SCA) at [36].
[6]
2010
(1) SA 356
(SCA) para 16.
[7]
2012
(4) SA 618
(CC) at para 39.
[8]
2000
(4) SA 413.
[9]
2018
(1) SA 94
(CC) at 128 C - D.
[10]
Transnet
Ltd t/a Metrorail v Rail Commuters Action Group
2003 (6) SA 349
(A) at
368, and
Adbro
Investment Co. Ltd v Minister of the Interior
1956
(3) SA 345
(A) at 350.
[11]
Stellenbosch
Farmers Wine Ltd v Stellenvale Winery (Pty) Ltd
1957 (4) SA 234
(C) at
235;
Plascon
- Evans Paints Ltd v Van Riebeeck Paints (Pty) Ltd
[1984] ZASCA 51
;
1984
(3) SA 623
(A) at 634.
[12]
Law
Society Northern Provinces v Mogami
2010
(1) SA 186
(SCA) at 195.
[13]
s113(1) of the MFMA, read together with s37(1) of the Municipal SCM
Regulations and s18(1) of the Respondent's SCM Policy.
[14]
Ibid.
[15]
[2017]
ZACC 40.
[16]
Act
3 of 2000.
[17]
[2015] ZAGPPHC 1079 (High Court judgment) at Para [19].
[18]
Pharmaceutical
Manufacturers Association of South Africa: In re Ex Parte President
of the Republic of South Africa
[2000]
ZACC 1
;
2000 (2) SA 674
(CC);
2000 (3) BCLR 241
(CC) at para 17.
[19]
Paragraph 39 of
SITA
v Gijima.
[20]
Affordable
Medicines Trust v Minister of Health
[2005]
ZACC 3
;
2006 (3) SA 247
(CC);
2005 (6) BCLR 529
(CC) at para 49.
[21]
Gijima
para
40.
[22]
SA
National Roads Agency Ltd v City of Cape Town
[2016]
4 All SA 332 (SCA).
[23]
Mandela
v Executors: Estate Late Mandela
[2016]
2 All SA 833 (ECM).
[24]
Filed
at Caselines 011-2.
[25]
Section 172(1) provides:
“
When
deciding a constitutional matter within its power, a court—
(a)
must declare that any law or conduct that is inconsistent with the
Constitution is invalid to the extent of its inconsistency;
and
(b)
may make any order that is just and equitable, including—
(i)
an order limiting the retrospective effect of the declaration of
invalidity; and
(ii)
an order suspending the declaration of invalidity for any period and
on any conditions, to allow the competent authority
to correct the
defect
[26]
Para
71
supra
.
sino noindex
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