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# South Africa: North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria
South Africa: North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria
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[2022] ZAGPPHC 832
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## Commissioner for The South African Revenue Services v Moloto and Others (63778/2021)
[2022] ZAGPPHC 832; [2023] 1 All SA 607 (GP); 85 SATC 470; (2 November 2022)
Commissioner for The South African Revenue Services v Moloto and Others (63778/2021)
[2022] ZAGPPHC 832; [2023] 1 All SA 607 (GP); 85 SATC 470; (2 November 2022)
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sino date 2 November 2022
FLYNOTES:
MAREVA INJUNCTION
Civil
procedure – Mareva injunction – Interdict sui generis
in South Africa – SARS wishing to preserve assets
for claim
on customs liabilities – Movement of funds and assets to
defeat claim – Provisional anti-dissipation
order confirmed.
IN
THE HIGH COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA
GAUTENG
DIVISION, PRETORIA
CASE
NO: 63778/2021
REPORTABLE:
YES
OF
INTEREST TO OTHER JUDGES: YES
REVISED:
NO
02
November 2022
In
the matter between:
THE
COMMISSIONER FOR THE SOUTH
AFRICAN
REVENUE SERVICES
Applicant
and
MASHILO
OBRIEN MOLOTO
First Respondent
BUSTQUE
542 (PTY) LTD
Second Respondent
YOUNG
EMERGING EQUITIES CC
Third Respondent
MOM
ESTATE (PTY) LTD
Fourth Respondent
MASHILO
OBRIEN MOLOTO N.O.
Fifth Respondent
KHOLOFELO
MOLOTO N.O.
Sixth Respondent
MASHILO
OBRIEN MOLOTO N.O.
Seventh Respondent
OFENTSE
MAMONGANE LETTA MASINGA N.O.
Eighth Respondent
CORALLO
RESOURCES (PTY) LTD
Ninth Respondent
EL
CAZADOR GUEST HOUSE CC
Tenth Respondent
NULANE
INVESTMENTS 143 (PTY) LTD
Eleventh Respondent
PROUDAFRIQUE
TRADING 408 (PTY) LTD
Twelfth Respondent
MOHAU
& KGAUGELO CC
Thirteenth
Respondent
TR
SOLUTIONS 877 (PTY) LTD
Fourteenth
Respondent
MASHAKGOMO
INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS
(PTY)
LTD
Fifteenth Respondent
SIYAGHOPA
TRADING 417 (PTY) LTD
Sixteenth Respondent
Summary:
The return day for a provisional order – The applicant
seeking
to make the order final. The
Mareva
injunction
not a remedy fully available in our law, although it is akin to our
interdict remedy. South African law recognises an
interdict
sui
generis
for matters of this nature. Requirements of the
interdict
sui generis
are (a) presence of a
bona
fide
claim and (b) that the debtor is dissipating assets
or likely to do so with an
intention
to defeat
the
bona fide
claim. The applicant has made out
a case that meets those requirements. The applicant is entitled to
the relief being made final.
Held: (1) The provisional order
confirmed and made final with the necessary changes effected as set
out in the order to be detailed
in the judgment.
JUDGMENT
MOSHOANA,
J
Introduction
[1]
On 21 January 2022, this Court,
per
my sister Van der Schyff J in an
ex
parte
application issued a
provisional order. Given the nature of this application, the order so
issued was put into immediate effect.
Such an order gave birth to
other interlocutory applications. Judgment in respect of one of the
interlocutory applications is still
pending. The provisional order
was extended a few times and ultimately, the present application came
before me as a special motion
for the final confirmation or discharge
of the order. Having heard all the parties involved, judgment in
respect of the present
application was reserved by this Court.
Background
facts
[2]
For the purposes of this judgment only
the essential facts shall be outlined herein. It is common cause that
Bustque 542 (Pty) Ltd
(Bustque) and Mashilo Obrien Moloto (Moloto)
are as at 31 March 2022 liable to pay the South African Revenue
Services (SARS) an
amount of R64 404 096.00 and R112 456 900.63
respectively in respect of customs dues (customs liability). In this
application,
there are fourteen other respondents other than Bustque
and Moloto. Some of the respondents opposed the confirmation of the
order
whilst others did not. The basis of joining the other
respondents is that according to SARS, Bustque and Moloto are busy
dissipating
assets belonging to them by transferring those assets to
all these other entities. It being the case of SARS that those assets
that are being dissipated are assets that will satisfy a judgment to
be obtained against Moloto and Bustque for the custom liability.
[3]
It is not in dispute that certain assets
moved from Moloto and Bustque to some of the respondents. It is not
necessary for the purposes
of this judgment to list all the said
assets and funds that moved. In a rather elaborative manner, SARS, in
its founding papers
commendably outlined all the transactions that
demonstrates a move of funds and assets. It suffices to mention that
the respondents
contend that the transactions, which led to the
movement of assets, were normal arm’s length transactions. They
argue further
that these transactions were not effected with the
intention to dissipate assets in order to avoid any execution of a
judgment
related to the custom liability. With regard to the
thirteenth respondent, Mohau & Kgaugelo CC (Mohau), it is
undisputed that
it is not liable towards SARS and that
ex
facie
the
Natis
documents, it is the registered owner of the vehicles that SARS seeks
to lay a hand on in order to satisfy the liability of Moloto
and
Bustque. The fourteenth respondent, TR Solutions 877 (Pty) Ltd did
not file any opposing papers.
[4]
In the main, the defence of Bustque,
Moloto and the other respondents was that they were not busy
dissipating assets with the intention
to defeat the liability of
SARS. Most, if not all, of the assets movement occurred before the
liability was raised in March 2019,
so they contended. It is alleged
that, since the liability was raised in March 2019, Moloto and
Bustque have not moved any assets
and that Bustque has no assets to
move. As indicated above, Mohau contends that it is not liable to pay
SARS and its assets are
not executable for the liability of Moloto
and Bustque.
[5]
It
is common cause that the third respondent, Young Emerging Equities CC
(YEE) is liable for other taxes other than customs liability.
Such
liabilities are collectable in terms of a procedure outlined in
section 163 of the Tax Administration Act (TAA)
[1]
.
However, for the purposes of the present application, SARS contends
that Moloto has admitted that some of the funds of Bustque
were
deployed to obtain assets belonging to YEE. For that reason alone,
SARS contends that in executing its judgment for the liability
of
Moloto and Bustque, the assets of YEE shall be executable in due
course. Owing to that, it fears that assets held by YEE are
likely to
be dissipated, given the advice provided to Moloto to move assets.
One Joshua Moloto, the brother of Moloto, disclosed
the advice
received by Moloto to SARS. It remains common cause that a web of
legal entities or vehicles were registered, all of
whom has Moloto as
the common denominator. SARS alleges that in an action it
contemplates to institute, it will demonstrate that
Moloto abused
those legal entities and in due course the corporate veil shall be
pierced, which piercing shall expose all the assets,
allegedly, owned
by the other respondents, which are liable to execution in order to
satisfy the custom liability debt. SARS wishes
this Court to preserve
those assets as well. Again, it is unnecessary for the purposes of
this judgment to list all those assets.
It suffices to mention yet
again that in its founding papers, SARS elaborately listed those
assets and made out a case that in
reality those are assets of Moloto
and Bustque.
[6]
Four counsel appeared before me. A team
led by Mr. Snyman represented SARS. Mr Barnard appeared for Mohau and
Mr Nondwangu appeared
for the majority of the respondents. All
counsel provided this Court with helpful written heads of argument.
It is unnecessary
for the purposes of this judgment to repeat the
contents of the written submissions. It suffices to mention that this
Court for
its own benefit sufficiently debated the relevant legal
principles with counsel.
Analysis
[7]
Before this Court delve into the legal
requirements of the application serving before it, it is important to
dispel immediately,
the mislabelling of this type of an application.
Is it a
Mareva
injunction in its purest form or is it an interdict
sui
generis
? Regard being had to the
defences raised in this present matter, it is incumbent on this Court
to clarify the legal position with
regard to a
Mareva
injunction (interdict). Moloto and Bustque seemed to labour under a
wrong impression that the present application is only possible
under
section 163 of the TAA. Before me, SARS disavowed any reliance on
section 163. However, for the sake of clarification of
the common law
remedy involved herein, it is necessary to touch on the provisions of
the section. Section 163 (1) references an
ex
parte
application for the purposes
of obtaining a preservation order in respect of any assets of a
taxpayer. Once so granted the taxpayer
or another person shall
subject to certain conditions and exceptions be prohibited from
dealing in any manner with the assets to
which the order relates. In
my view, these statutory provisions are a codification of a common
law remedy of an interdict and perhaps
blended adroitly with
Mareva
injunction. More is not to be said about section 163 since it finds
no application before me. I must state though that the bulk
of the
respondents’ defence is that SARS ought to have invoked the
provisions of section 163. Reliance on the section having
been
disavowed, it is self-evident that the respondents are left with very
little to sufficiently oppose this application.
The
Mareva injunction remedy
[8]
The
remedy of
Mareva
injunction owes its origin from the English legal system. The remedy
is referred to as
Mareva
,
but it first emerged in
Nippon
Yusen Kaisha v Karageorgis (Kaisha)
[2]
.
Therefore,
in reality the remedy is the
Kaisha
injunction. In the
Kaisha
case,
the plaintiff company had chartered a ship to the defendants. A large
sum was claimed for the hire. The charterers could not
be found but
there was evidence of funds at a bank in London. An
ex
parte
application was then launched for an order restraining the charterers
from disposing of or removing from the jurisdiction any of
the assets
which were within the jurisdiction. The application was refused by
the Court
a
quo
.
On appeal, the order sought was granted. The reasoning behind the
granting of the order was that the assets were in danger of
being
removed from the jurisdiction so as to frustrate a money judgment
which the Japanese ship-owners had against the Greek charterers.
The
charterers had disappeared but had funds in London Banks.
[9]
In light of the above, it is perspicuous
that what the Court seeks to protect is a money judgment that could
be satisfied by attaching
the assets that are in the danger of being
removed. Owing to the situation in
Kaisha,
it seems to be so that for an applicant to succeed, that applicant
must prove the following: (a) There is a money debt and or judgment
in its favour; (b) in order to satisfy the debt and or judgment, it
must lay execution on the assets owned by the respondent; (c)
The
assets that could satisfy the debt or judgment are in danger of being
disposed of or removed.
[10]
A
month later, the Court of Appeal followed
Kaisha
in the matter of
Mareva
Compania Naviera SA v International Bulkcarriers SA (Mareva)
[3]
.
Briefly, what obtained in
Mareva
is that ship-owners were owed money for charter hire and the
charterer had money in a London Bank. Similarly, an
ex
parte
interim freezing injunction was made stopping the funds from being
taken out of the jurisdiction. Both
Kaisha
and
Mareva
were penned by the erudite Honourable Lord Denning. In
Kaisha
he said:
‘
We
are told that an injunction of this kind has never been granted
before; it has never been the practice of English courts to
seize
assets of a defendant in advance of judgment or to restrain the
disposal of them. There is no reason why the High Court or
this court
should not make an order such as is asked here
…the
High Court may grant a
mandamus
or injunction or appoint a receiver by interlocutory order in all
cases in
which it appears
to the court to
be just or convenient
so to do. It seems to me that this is just such a case.
There
is a strong
prima facie
case that the hire is owing and unpaid.
If an injunction is not granted,
these
monies may be removed
out of the
jurisdiction and the
ship-owners will
have the greatest difficulty in recovering anything.
Two days ago we granted an injunction
ex
parte
and we should continue it.’
(Own emphasis).
[11]
Discernibly,
the following requirements emerged from
Mareva
;
namely (a) just, justice or justness; (b) convenience; (c) strong
prima
facie
case of owing and unpaid; (d) assets may be removed; and (e) great
difficulty in recovery. Thus, in my view, for an applicant to
succeed, that applicant must establish the existence of those five
requirements. Both
Kaisha
and
Mareva
were
ex
parte
applications. Years later an opposed matter arose in
Rasu
Maritima SA v Perusahaan Pertambangan Minyak Dan Gas Bumi Negara
(Pertamina) and Government of Indonesia (as interveners) (Rasu)
[4]
.
Briefly,
in
Rasu
,
the plaintiff ship-owner sued defendant charterer for damages arising
from a breach. After numerous futile attempts in several
countries to
attach the defendant’s assets, the plaintiff finally found some
equipment purportedly belonging to defendant
waiting to be shipped
from Liverpool. Plaintiff immediately applied
ex
parte
for an injunction to restrain the shipping of the equipment.
Plaintiff obtained the order but the order was later discharged.
Interestingly, the basis of the discharge was that (a) there was a
serious question as to whether the defendant held valid title
to the
attached equipment; and (b) the value of that equipment far
outweighed its value to the plaintiff if seized and sold in
execution
of the judgment. Differently put, it was not just or convenient to
issue an injunction on the facts of
Rasu
.
[12]
Having
clarified the English law position, the remedy ultimately comes to
this: A
Mareva
interdict is designed to protect the claimant against the dissipation
of assets against which the claimant might otherwise execute
judgment
either immediately or in the future. For as long as the claimant has
a claim against the defendant and that the defendant
has assets,
which may be used to satisfy the judgment, a claimant may
successfully apply for a
Mareva
interdict.
[5]
The
South African situation
[13]
In
the South African law, traces of a remedy akin to the
Mareva
injunction emerged long before the innovation by Lord Denning in
1975. In
Fredericks
v Gibson
[6]
and
Robinson,
Miller & Co. v Lennox and Another,
[7]
it was confirmed that the property of the respondent may be attached
if the respondent threatens to do away with his or her assets.
Consummately, the Honourable erudite Hopley J in
Mcitiki
and another v Maweni (Maweni)
[8]
provided the desired clarity in applications of this nature. Briefly,
the facts in
Maweni
are that a father of a daughter gave the hand of the daughter into
marriage. As dowry (
lobola
)
cattle had been given. Later the daughter deserted. The father of the
son demanded the return of the cattle. An action was being
brought to
recover from the respondent father cattle, which had been given to
him as dowry since he refused to return them following
the desertion
of the daughter. The father of the son discovered that the respondent
father had moved a number of stock from his
kraal, presumably with
the intention of hiding them. Apparently, the respondent had told the
applicant that he intended delaying
the action and disposing of his
cattle in order to defeat the claim of the applicant. The applicant
father obtained a rule
nisi
that restrained the respondent father from selling or disposing of 15
head of cattle and three horses pending the result of the
litigation
between the parties. On the return day, the rule was made absolute.
[14]
In making the rule absolute, Hopley J
felicitously stated amongst others, the following:
‘
In
this case I am satisfied that Maweni
has acted so that appellants
would find nothing to execute upon if they got judgment, and in these
circumstances I think it is not
a revolution of the practice of the
Court, but a confirmation of it, and goes in the spirit in which the
Court has always acted
to interdict as prayed.
Whatever he may do
with the rest of his property
he should keep sufficient stock to
satisfy this judgment if he is in the wrong.
The case is coming
on. I can see no danger to Maweni. His cattle are left in his
possession but the Court says he cannot deal with
a specified portion
of them till this matter is decided.
He would have been very much
better advised if he had simply not opposed, but had consented to
that, because I do not see that he
is in any way damaged, especially
as he says he has not a slightest idea of parting with his animals…’
(Own emphasis).
[15]
What influenced the granting of the
interdict in
Maweni
was the desire not to do an injustice to the plaintiff by reason of
leaving the debtor possessed funds sufficient to satisfy the
claim,
when the circumstances show that such debtor is wasting or getting
rid of such funds to defeat his or her creditors or is
likely to do
so. Hopley J went further and clearly stated the law as being the
following:
‘…
The
doctrine has been extended a little further where the respondent
is a prodigal wasting his money or is purposely making away with
funds
although remaining an
incola
of the country, so that
eventually when his creditor gets a judgment it may be a barren one;
and, to
use a graphic phrase in one of our old law cases, when he
went there with his writ of execution such creditor would find he was
“fishing behind the net”. It is to protect a
bona
fide
plaintiff against a defeat of justice in such a case
that such orders are given
’. (Own emphasis).
[16]
Based
on
Maweni
,
the sole purpose of orders of the nature sought in the present
application is, firstly, to do justice to the plaintiff not to
be
saddled with a hollow victory and secondly to protect a
bona
fide
claim at its embryotic stage. It then seems to me that the
requirements of the granting of such an interdict are; (a) presence
of a
bona
fide
claim; (b) fear of being visited with an injustice, which fear is
inculcated by the conduct of prodigality. The Supreme Court of
Appeal
in
Knox
D’Arcy v Jamieson (Knox)
[9]
approved this approach with less hesitation. Taking a leaf from
Knox
,
Acting Justice Erasmus had the following to say in
Poolman
v Cordier and others
[10]
:
‘
[17]
A
Mareva
injunction is a species of an interim interdict
compelling a respondent/defendant to refrain from dealing freely with
his assets
to which the applicant can lay no claim. The purpose
thereof is to prevent the intended defendant,
who can be shown to
have assets
and
who is about to defeat the plaintiff’s
claim or defeat the plaintiff’s claim or dissipating assets
,
from doing so. To be successful, the applicant must show that the
respondent is
wasting or secreting assets with the
intention
of defeating the claims of creditors.’ (Own emphasis).
[17]
Proper reading of
Knox
suggests to me that the Justices of the Appellate Division were not
particularly happy to adopt the
Mareva
injunction as formulated by Lord Denning. They reluctantly accepted
the name but unequivocally stated that the interdict they were
dealing with was one
sui generis
.
The Court held that such an interdict should not be granted in cases
where the respondent is in
good faith
disposing of his assets, or threatening to do so, and has no intent
to render the applicant’s claim nugatory. The Court asked,
‘What then must an applicant show?’ The Court went
further and referred with approval to what Hopley J said in
Maweni
when he said:
‘…
they
all proceed upon
the wish of the Court
that the plaintiff
should not have an injustice done to him by reason of leaving his
debtor possessed of funds sufficient to satisfy
the claim,
when
circumstances show that such debtor is wasting or getting rid of such
funds to defeat his creditors, or is likely to do so.’
(Own
emphasis).
[18]
It is clear that the South African
position is that such orders are granted under the requirements of an
interim interdict.
English
law position pre-Mareva.
[19]
Returning
to the English law position, the earlier position was such that a
debtor or defendant could not be restrained from dealing
with his
property in favour of a plaintiff or claimant in the absence of the
plaintiff or claimant having a judgment against the
defendant or
debtor. The leading case on that position was that of
Lister
& Co. v Stubbs
[11]
,
where Cotton L.J had the following to say:
‘
I
know of no cause where because
it was highly probable that if the
action were brought to a hearing
the plaintiff could establish
that a debt was due to him from the defendant, the defendant has been
ordered to give security until
that has been established by the
judgment or decree.’(Own emphasis).
[20]
In
Lister
case, the plaintiff was a manufacturing company which employed the
defendant. In his capacity as a foreman, the defendant who was
responsible for the purchase of material on behalf of the plaintiff,
allegedly received some kickbacks and bribes from one of the
suppliers. The defendant subsequently invested his ill-gotten gains
in land and securities. Having discovered what the defendant
was
doing, the plaintiff brought an action against him. Afterwards, the
plaintiff brought an interlocutory injunction, seeking
to restrain
the defendant from dealing with the real estate in which his
ill-gotten gains had been invested. The injunction was
dismissed by
both the Court a
quo
and
the Court of appeal.
[21]
Years
later, Estey J was incensed about the inequities of the common law
position as outlined by
Lister
and in
Aetna
Financial Services Ltd v Feigelman
[12]
,
he commented as follows:
‘…
the
depredations of shady mariners operating out of far away havens,
usually on the fringe of legally organised commerce.’
[22]
It
was against the backdrop of the centuries old position that Lord
Denning stepped in to create a new remedy of
Mareva
.
Legal scholars lauded Lord Denning for the activism he demonstrated.
A new maxim
Ubi
Jus Ibi Remedium
–
where there is a right, there ought to be a remedy - was developed to
champion equity
[13]
. According
to Spry, ‘
it
is certainly with inherent jurisdiction of the courts of equity to
grant Mareva injunctions’.
South
African Law position.
[23]
Returning
to the South African situation, in
Knox
,
the Court rejected amongst others the requirement of the presence of
an alternative remedy. It is well known since
Setlogelo
v Setlogelo
[14]
that one of the requirements of an interim interdict is the
non-availability of an alternative remedy in due course. The Court
in
Knox
resorted
to calling a
Mareva
look alike
an interdict
sui
generis
.
It is either available or it is not. No other remedy can really take
its place except in certain circumstances, so opined the
learned
Grosskopf JA.
[24]
To my mind, what appears to be a
difficulty for an applicant for a remedy of this nature is the
demonstration of a
mala fide
intent
of preventing execution in respect of an applicant’s claim.
Sadly, in my view,
Knox
did not with respect provide sufficient guidance with regard to
determining the said intent. This aspect of presence of an intention
derives from
Maweni
.
I shall in due course return to this aspect. In this case, I am
satisfied that SARS has a substantial and
bona
fide
claim against Moloto and
Bustque. Thus, the first legal requirement of the present application
would be satisfied. This Court is
acutely aware that SARS intends to
demonstrate that Moloto is abusing the corporate veil and it further
wishes to have that corporate
veil pierced.
Owing
to the fact that the purpose of the present application is to protect
a
bona
fide
claim, it is unnecessary at this stage to resolve the question of who
the true owner of the assets to lay the hands on is. It is
enough, in
my view, at this stage to demonstrate the link between the assets and
the debtors (Moloto and Bustque). On the preponderance
of
probabilities, this Court is satisfied that the majority of the
assets identified to be in possession of the other respondents
are
linked to the debtors. They certainly would be executable, should the
piercing of the corporate veil and the disentangling
of the web
demonstrate that the assets belong to the debtors. At this juncture,
the Court will not be authorising execution over
the assets, but it
will simply seek to preserve those assets in order to protect the
bona
fide
claim of SARS. The respondents are not divested of ownership of the
assets. It is for that reason that I reject an argument that
the
granting of this order shall implicate the provisions of section 25
(1)
[15]
of the Constitution of
the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (Constitution).
[25]
The
other reason why this Court takes a view that the ownership of the
assets at this stage is irrelevant is that at the execution
stage,
should the debtors fail to satisfy the judgment debt, the supposed
owner of an asset to levy execution upon may join issue
with the
sheriff of the Court and state that the property upon which execution
is laid belongs to it, him or her. The Rules of
this Court make
provisions for interpleader proceedings
[16]
.
The issuing of interpleader notice suspends proceedings in an action,
pending the decision of the interpleader case
[17]
,
unless the Court orders otherwise at the request of another party.
[26]
The
Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) in
Bassani
Mining (Pty) Ltd v Sebosat (Pty) Ltd & others (Bassani)
[18]
approved
Knox
.
Additionally, the Court approved that the requirements of an interim
interdict find application in matters of this nature. In
upholding
the High Court decision, the SCA, innovatively, in my view, approved
the phrase coined by the High Court of a real risk.
This real risk is
not necessarily annexed to the requirement of an irreparable harm,
but to the likelihood of dissipating or diminishing
of assets in
order to avoid the efficacy of a Court order and to leave the
applicant with a hollow judgment should the applicant
succeed. This,
to my mind, speaks to an intention or state of mind whence the assets
are being moved and / or dissipated. I shall
in due course return to
the issue of intention, which constitute part of the second leg of
remedies of this nature. I hasten to
mention that the SCA was also
concerned that absence of assets to lay a claim on defeats remedies
of this nature. I am acutely
aware that I earlier took a view that at
this stage the ownership of the assets does not play a major role. On
the facts of
Bassani,
it was common cause that Bassani had no assets. In this case, the
allegation that Bustque has no attachable assets is not common
cause.
On SARS’s version, which may become true after the piercing of
the corporate veil, Bustque has assets and Moloto has
dissipated
those assets, with the solitude mind to defeat the custom liability
claim. For an example, there is an allegation that
has not been
properly controverted, that Moloto used the funds of Bustque to
purchase assets of YEE and a further lamely controverted
testimony
that Joshua Moloto disclosed the advice to move assets to SARS. On
application of the well-known
Plascon-Evans
principle, I must accept this allegation that Joshua Moloto disclosed
the advice. The respondents resisted the admission of this
evidence
on the basis that it constituted inadmissible hearsay evidence. No
confirmatory affidavit was obtained from Joshua Moloto.
Ineluctably,
Joshua Moloto by reasons of affinity may not be expected to depose to
a confirmatory affidavit. However, section 3
(4) of the Law of
Evidence Amendment Act
[19]
,
provides that hearsay evidence is admissible in instances where the
interests of justice so demand. In my opinion, such evidence
must be
admitted in the interests of justice
[27]
The
correctness of
Knox
was
also affirmed by the SCA in
Carmel
Trading Co Ltd v CSARS and others.
[20]
It was in
Carmel,
wherein the statement by Lord Donaldson of Lymington MR in
Derby
& Co Ltd and others v Weldon and others (No 2),
[21]
alluding to the growing commercial and financial sophistication
[22]
was endorsed. Likewise, as Erasmus AJ, guided and bound by
Knox,
suggested that to be successful the applicant must show that the
respondent is wasting or secreting assets with the intention of
defeating the claims of the creditors. It was for that reason that
the learned Acting Justice reached a conclusion that an attempt
to
make out a
Mareva
case has not been made or argued before him. Earlier, I indicated
that what pertains in matters of this nature is an interdict
sui
generis
as opposed to
Mareva
injunction in its purest form. In order to draw the necessary
distinction between
Mareva
injunction and the South African interdict
sui
generis
,
I now, purely for the sake of posterity and illustration, turn to the
requirements of
Mareva
injunction in its purest form and consider them in turn against the
facts before me.
Just,
justness or justice
.
[28]
In the understanding of Lord Denning,
this requirement simply means equity and fairness. Interest of
justice in general terms means
that the Court is satisfied that the
decision clearly needs to be made. The English maxim alluded to
earlier suggests that where
there is a right there ought to be a
remedy. It is not in dispute that Moloto and Bustque owe SARS; and
that certain of the assets
of the company are being disposed of under
very dubious and questionable circumstances. Without deciding, this
Court is sceptical
as to whether the transactions were made at arm’s
length. This issue would certainly arrest the attention of the trial
judge
in the impending action against Moloto and Bustque.
[29]
The
argument that some of the transactions occurred before a debt is
raised is of no consequences in my opinion. It may well be
so that
such goes to presence or absence of intention. In my view, the moment
Moloto and Bustque engaged in a transaction, contrary
to the Customs
and Excise Act (CEA)
[23]
, they
ought to have known that a liability in favour of SARS would arise.
During argument, Mr Nondwangu submitted that the custom
liability
only arose in March 2019. In complete disagreement, Mr Snyman argued
with reference to a schedule prepared and annexed
to the founding
affidavit that the liability arose around September 2017. It is more
probable that where one knows that a liability
exists in favour of a
creditor, one of the means to avoid that liability, particularly when
it is heading to the roof top, as in
affordability, will be for a
debtor to device some means to avoid any financial haemorrhage on his
or her part, considerably to
the chagrin of the creditor. One such
devisable means is to hive off assets. It is interesting to note that
in
Maweni
,
Hopley J stated that all the cases before it proceeded upon the wish
of the Court that the plaintiff should not have an injustice
done to
him.
Convenience
[30]
This requirement is linked to the two
other requirements, in particular, the one where a party demonstrates
a strong
prima facie
claim. In due course, a strong
prima
facie
claim may translate into a
judgment debt. It must be so that a party armed with a hollow
judgment will be inconvenienced if, at
a particular point, his or her
judgment to be obtained later had the potential of being satisfied
through some assets that have
been dissipated or secreted. The
Mareva
injunction, as I understand it, is not aimed at taking ownership of
the assets away from the owner. It simply seeks to show deference
to
a potential judgment debt. All it seeks to do is to prevent
dissipation of the assets. As a by the way, non-dissipation of an
asset may prove to be beneficial to the owner as well. In the event
that the strong
prima facie
case does not materialise, it follows axiomatically that the owner
will be free to enjoy the use of the asset uninhibited. The
other
requirement linked to this one is that of clear evidence of the owner
disposing of the asset. Clearly, where there is a strong
prima
facie
claim, allowing disposition of
assets that may satisfy that claim is a great source of
inconvenience. In considering convenience,
a judge seized with an
application for a
Mareva
injunction would, in my view, be required to make a value judgment in
as far as convenience is concerned.
[31]
The other requirement linked to this one
is that of experiencing great difficulty in recovery. A party who
demonstrates on a balance
of probabilities that he or she will
experience a great difficulty in recovering what is owed to him or
she is ordinarily inconvenienced
by a refusal of an injunction.
A
strong prima facie claim
[32]
As
to what a strong
prima
facie
case mean, I can do no better that the Honourable Mr Justice Robert
J. Sharpe in his work,
[24]
when he said:
‘
While
it is difficult to be precise about the strength of case the
plaintiff must demonstrate, it is clear that the courts have
proceeded cautiously, recognising the risk of substantial harm and
inconvenience that may be caused to the defendant. The
Mareva
injunction
is one which calls for careful scrutiny of the merits
of the claim and refusal of injunctive relief unless there is a good
prospects
of success at the trial
. The Canadian courts have
tended to emphasize the importance of the plaintiff establishing a
strong
prima facie
case…’ (Own emphasis).
[33]
The
take away from what the erudite Robert J. Sharpe perspicuously states
is that a view must be formed that an applicant possesses
good
prospects of success on the claim to be instituted. Prospects of
success is an assumption regarding one’s chances of
successfully pursuing a case. What the reasonable prospects of
success postulates is a dispassionate decision, based on the facts
and the law that there is likely to be a success.
[25]
The Canadian Court of Appeal of Manitoba in
Clark
et al v Nucare PLA,
[26]
took a somewhat hard and uncompromising approach as compared to the
one taken by British Columbia in the matter of
Mooney
v Orr
[27]
,
where Huddart J stated that ‘
the
overarching consideration in each case is the balance of justice and
convenience between the parties
’.(Emphasis
added).The hard-line approach adopted in
Nucare
,
was that
Mareva
injunctions are unavailable against defendants who do not evidence an
intention to frustrate the plaintiff’s potential judgment.
Scott C.J.M writing for the majority concluded that some risk of
non-payment must be shown.
[34]
On the contrary, Lord Denning indicated
that the case did not have to be so strong as to justify the Court
issuing a summary judgment.
He stated that it is sufficient for the
applicant to demonstrate a good arguable case.
Assets
may be removed
[35]
This require a call for some speculative
evidence that assets may be removed. Such implies that the applicant
may present some evidence
that demonstrates the removal of assets or
the potential of them being removed. In
Maweni
,
it was concluded that the likelihood to defeat creditors by removing
assets is a factor to be considered in this type of remedy.
In the
present circumstances, there is probative testimony that Moloto has
already received an advice that in order to defeat the
claim of SARS,
moving assets away is an available means to do so. As I have already
pointed out, on the evidence before me, the
transactions that saw a
bulk of the assets of Bustque being moved away to some of the
respondents before me are dubious and appear
not to have been made at
arm’s length. Differently put they were not made in good faith.
Difficulty
of recovery
[36]
An applicant would establish this
requirement by demonstrating the potential of obtaining a hollow
judgment. Although in
Nucare
mention was made that some risk of non-payment need to be shown, it
is, in my view, difficult to show such a risk. However, it
may be
easy for an applicant to demonstrate that he or she shall seat with a
hollow judgment given the behaviour of the defendant
in removing
assets.
What
then is a Mareva injunction?
[37]
There is no doubt that the remedy was
developed and fashioned by Lord Denning under the English law.
Therefore, in order to understand
the remedy, one must defer to the
English cases more than any other cases. Dr Alenaze, in his article,
after surveying jurisdictions
like Canada, Hong Kong, USA, Australia
and Nigeria with regard to their application of
Mareva
injunction reached the following conclusion:
‘
The
initiative taken by Lord Denning in the Court of Appeal by creating
Mareva
injunction has made history
in
the matter of protecting interests of creditors in commercial
transactions
…
In other words, the work of the Court of Appeal was a measure, on the
one hand, to protect creditors in the commercial
world and a work, on
the other hand to protect the majesty of English Law as
well…’
[28]
(Own
emphasis).
[38]
It
seems to me that the correct approach to take, with regard to the
remedy, is to say, the
Mareva
injunction forms part of our common law. All that is required is to
develop it with the view of protecting the interests of creditors.
The revolutionary approach taken by Corbett CJ in
Administrator
of Transvaal and others v Traub and others
[29]
in accommodating yet another innovation by Lord Denning of the
doctrine of
legitimate
expectation
may require repetition. This may not be the appropriate case for such
call for the adoption of
Mareva
since Mr Snyman submitted that the
Mareva
injunction in its purest form is not what SARS seeks before me.
Further
analysis of the South African legal position
.
[39]
As indicated earlier, the remedy
contemplated in this matter was available as far back as 1913 or
earlier. However, it does seem
that the territorial marking in South
Africa arises from, the leading authority of
Knox.
When
Knox
is carefully considered, it does seem that the
Mareva
injunction was not openly welcomed in the South African legal system.
The SCA preferred a home brewed remedy as suggested by Hopley
J. As
an opening gambit, Stegmann J, although he granted an interdict
prohibiting the respondents from freely dealing with their
assets, he
later described it as a draconian remedy. Stegmann J did not like the
name
Mareva
-type
interdict and he said giving the interdict that name suggested that
English principles are automatically applicable. The Appellate
Division agreed with the criticism of suggesting automatic
application of the English principles. Ultimately, the Appellate
Division
rejected names proposed by Stegmann J (interdict in
securitatem debiti
and anti-dissipation interdict). The Appellate Division chose not to
propose a name but stated that it is an interdict
sui
generis
.
[40]
Thus, the Appellate Division adopted the
approach by Hopley J and added that an applicant need to show a
particular state of mind
on the part of the respondent, which is that
he or she is getting rid of the funds, or is likely to do so with the
intention of
defeating the claims of creditors.
[41]
Therefore,
the conclusion to reach is that the present application is a form of
an interdict. Since
Setlogelo
v Setlogelo
[30]
,
it is known what an interdict seeks to prevent an unlawfulness.
Effectively, it seeks to protect legally protectable rights. In
Setlogelo
,
the right that was protected by way of an interdict was the right to
possess land, albeit in terms of the laws of the land at
the time,
Setlogelo could not own land. Regard being had to the sentiments of
Hopley J as approved by
Knox
,
the requirements of this type of an interdict seem to be the
following:
a.
The plaintiff should not have an
injustice done to him/her;
b.
The debtor is possessed with sufficient
funds to satisfy the claim;
c.
The debtor is wasting or getting rid of
such funds, or he is likely to do so, to defeat the creditors; and
d.
He or she is wasting or getting rid of
such funds or likely to do so with the
sole
mind
(intention) of defeating the
creditors.
[42]
Once all of these requirements are
proven on the balance of probabilities, the interdict
sui
generis
ought to be granted. All of
these requirements must be present in order to grant the relief.
Absence of one ineludibly leads to
the refusal of the interdict. With
regard to the intention or state of mind, the Court in
Knox
spoke, in my respectful view, in forked tongues. It said:
‘
[67]
…There was some argument on whether the fact that the assets
were secreted with the intent to
thwart the petitioner’s claim
had to be proved on a balance of probabilities or merely
prima
facie.
However, it seems to me that here also the relative
strength or weakness of the petitioner’s proof would be a
factor to be
taken into account and weighed against
other features
in deciding whether an
interim interdict should be granted
.’
(Own emphasis).
[43]
In my view the debate around the issue
of proof, whether on the preponderance of probabilities or mere
prima
facie,
was, with respect not
resolved with absolute certainty. It remains unclear whether the
intention must be proved on balance of probabilities
or by mere
prima
facie
proof. However, it seems to me
that the proof must be a mere
prima
facie
one. I say so because; the
Court referenced ‘other’ features of an interim
interdict. The primary feature of an interim
interdict is a
prima
facie
right even though open to some
doubt. Additionally, the Court agreed with the approach that the
petitioner’s claim was that
they have proved
prima
facie
that the respondent had an
intention to defeat claims or to render them hollow by secreting
their assets.
Prima facie
means based on the first impression, accepted as correct until proven
otherwise.
[44]
Stegmann
J discharged the rule
nisi
that granted what he termed a draconian order. On appeal, his order
discharging the rule was upheld. In rejecting the presence
of the
Mareva
injunction, the Court in
Knox
,
referenced
Polly
Peck International Plc v Nadir and others (No 2),
[31]
particularly where the Court of Appeal stated that
Mareva
injunction is not available in the absence of a claim against the
defendant. For two reasons below, Lord Justice Scott rejected
the
continuance of the
Mareva
injunction. Those were; (a) the case against the defendant was
speculative; and (b) since liability had not been established, the
protection will be against a speculative cause of action.
[45]
If a return to
Maweni
is made, it shall be observed that
the sole state of mind is contemplated. The veritable question
becomes how is an applicant to
demonstrate a state of mind with
regard to the dissipation of an asset. As a matter of law, the owner
of a property is entitled
to dispose of his/her property, either in
order to be liquid or to deal with any of his debts. Thus, the legal
position is such
that a sale of own asset or disposition thereof is
not an unlawful act
per se
.
Moloto argues that in instances where there is clear evidence of
disposition of assets, he did so in the normal ordinary course.
Differently put he acted in good faith. Therefore, in the event that
the Court accepts Moloto’s argument, then SARS must
fail
because it would have failed to demonstrate that the sole mind of
Moloto was to defeat the legitimate claim of SARS.
[46]
In our law, there are three forms of
intention; namely; (a)
dolus directus
(direct intention); (b)
dolus
indirectus
(indirect intention); and
(c)
dolus eventualis
(legal
intention). Regard being had to
Maweni
as approved in
Knox,
the intention must be linked to the disposition of the funds or
assets or the likelihood to dispose of the funds or assets to be
preserved. Mr Snyman submitted that the intention contemplated is not
the same intention as in a criminal sense but it is actually
the
reason to believe by the applicant. The suggestion being that if the
applicant holds a view that the debtor is disposing of
the asset with
one frame of mind – to defeat the action – such is
sufficient. I do not agree. The SCA in
Knox
was very clear. It said:
‘
The
question which arises from this approach
[32]
is whether an applicant
need
to show a particular state of mind
on
the part of the respondent i.e. that he is getting rid of the funds,
or is likely to do so,
with
the intention
of
defeating the claims of the creditors. Having regard to the purpose
of this type of interdict, the answer must be
,
I consider yes
,
except in exceptional cases. As I have said, the effect of the
interdict is to prevent the respondent from freely dealing with
his
own property to which the applicant lays no claim.
Justice
may require this restriction in cases where the respondent is shown
to be acting
mala
fide
with the intent
of preventing execution in respect of the applicant’s
claim.’(Own emphasis).
[47]
To
my mind, in order to succeed, an applicant must show an intention as
opposed to forming a reason to believe. It is clear that
the
applicant must on the preponderance of probabilities show that the
respondent acts with a
mala
fide
intent.
In
Bassani,
the Court approved the showing of the real risk. Rogers J in
CSARS
v Tradex (Pty) Ltd and others
[33]
,
dealing with a section 163 of the TAA matter reached a conclusion
that at common law, the applicant must establish
prima
facie
that the respondent will dissipate his assets with the intention of
defeating the applicant’s claim. He further concluded
that when
section 163 (3) refers to ‘required’ it entails proof of
such intention on the part of the taxpayer. When
Rogers J referred to
such intention, he was referring to the intention alluded to in
Knox
;
namely the intention to defeat the claim. However, he concluded that
‘required’ suggests that SARS is to show that
there is a
material risk that assets which would otherwise be available in
satisfaction of tax will, in the absence of a preservation
order, no
longer be available. Mr Snyman urged this Court to take a similar
approach as Rogers J did. I am not to succumb to that
urge because
Rogers J made it perspicuous that he was not dealing with the
intention alluded to in
Knox
.
Perhaps a case which, with less ambivalence, demonstrate the
intention required in this instance is that of
Bricktec
[34]
.
McEwan J concluded that the following are the applicable principles:
a.
If the applicant
can
show that the respondent intends to dispose of his property in a way
that will defeat any ultimate right that the applicant
may have to
levy execution upon it, the applicant may be able to obtain an
interim interdict restraining the respondent from disposing
of the
property;
b.
It is by no means clear that the
applicant is entitled to such an interdict if he can show
no
more than a fear that the respondent
may so dispose of his property;
c.
In my view, further, the mere fact that
the respondent has ceased to reside permanently in this country does
not necessarily give
rise to an inference that he intends to dispose
of the properties concerned. (Emphasis added).
[48]
Of importance, in coming to the
conclusion that the rule
nisi
must be discharged, the learned McEwan J concluded that assuming that
the test laid in
Maweni
was the correct one – wasting or getting rid of (his assets) to
defeat his creditors or is likely to do so, proof is required
that
the respondent is doing so or likely to do so
.
Bricktec
was quoted with apparent
approval in
Knox
.
In refusing to uphold the appeal against Stegmann J’s order of
discharging the rule
nisi
,
Grosskopf JA, sharply stated the following:
‘
In
view of the above circumstances, the petitioners’ contention
that they
have proved an intention on the part of the respondents
to frustrate
any judgment against them by secreting their assets
rests on very flimsy grounds.’ (Own emphasis).
[49]
This conclusion suggests that the
applicant must prove intention to defeat on very firm grounds. McEwan
J suggested that a mere
fear is not enough. Regard being had to
Knox
,
the need to demonstrate intention is predicated on the principle of
justice, given the effect of the interdict sought.
Bassani
referred to a real risk. In my view, quintessentially, that implies
demonstration of intention. The conclusion I reach is that,
an
applicant must demonstrate an intention to defeat the action.
[50]
This
Court does appreciate and do sympathise with SARS or similarly placed
applicants that it seems to be an uphill to with certainty
show an
intention required. It was for that reason that Mr Snyman opted for
‘reason to believe’, as employed in section
25 (1) of the
Prevention of Organised Crimes Act (POCA)
[35]
.
With considerable regret, I do not believe that the statutory test
and or requirement must be applied to a common law remedy of
an
interdict
sui
generis
.
In his written heads of argument, Mr Snyman suggested that the second
requirement of an order of this type is that ‘
the
applicant must show that there
are
reasonable grounds to suspect
that the respondent is getting rid of his assets in order to defeat
his creditors
’.
(Emphasis added). As correctly submitted by Mr Barnard, the above
quoted submission does not truly reflect the second requirement
as
suggested in
Maweni
and accepted by
Knox,
Bricktec
and
Bassani
.
The addition of ‘reasonable grounds to suspect’, seeks to
replace ‘intention’ as required. Then the question,
I
must quintessentially turn to is whether the second requirement of an
intention to defeat or the likelihood to defeat has been
shown or
not. This will require this Court to carefully analyse the case as
pleaded by SARS in particular.
Did
SARS show an intention to defeat the claim or not?
[51]
In motion proceedings, a party makes its
case in the founding affidavit. It is trite that an affidavit serves
two purposes; namely,
it is a pleading and it is also serves as
evidence. A party is not allowed to make its case in reply. In its
founding affidavit,
SARS dedicated almost eighty-four paragraphs to
demonstrate the assets to be preserved and their movement from one
entity to the
other over a period of about two to three years. At a
particular stage, Bustque had nine trucks registered in its name. In
a matter
of a year or so, six of those vehicles were transferred to
Mohau, Mashakgomo and TR Solutions, in the circumstances where
already
about 118 transactions resulted in a custom liability. Most
importantly, on or about 24 October 2018, SARS commenced probing
those
transactions, which spurn a period from 2 September 2017 up to
and including 5 September 2018.
[52]
Around May 2018, at which time, the
flagged 118 transactions had been occurring, an amount of about R2.7
million flew out of the
account of Bustque. For a period, January
2017 up to and including March 2021, Moloto had about eight vehicles
registered in his
name. As at the hearing of the current application
Moloto had no vehicles registered in his name. About 109 transactions
were already
conducted by Moloto, which resulted in a custom
liability against Him. During the period of 2017 to 2021, Moloto
transferred those
vehicles to Nulane Investments (Nulane) and
Mashakgomo. Moloto made huge payments out of his account and acquired
properties for
Mohau, Nulane and Moyahabo Family Trust (Moyahabo). In
2019, YEE acquired about six vehicles. Moloto admitted that he used
funds
of Bustque to acquire vehicles for YEE. However, he later
attempted to recant the admission. Shortly after the acquisition of
those
vehicles, about eight of the vehicles registered in the name of
YEE were transferred to Siyagopha Trading 417 (Pty) Ltd (Siyagopha).
For a period February 2018 to September 2019, funds to the value of
about R6.8 million were moved out of the YEE bank account.
[53]
During 2017, Moloto transferred two
immovable properties in Soshanguve to MOM Estate (Pty) Ltd (MOM). In
2018, YEE provided funds
to Moyahabo in order to acquire immovable
properties from Corallo Resources (Pty) Ltd (Corallo). There is clear
evidence that assets
moved from Bustque and Moloto to several of the
respondents before me. On the evidence before me, all of these funds
and property
movements happened at the time when Bustque and Moloto
had amassed a sizeable amount of liability in custom debt.
[54]
Intention is nothing but a state of mind
(
mens rea
).
SARS alleged in the founding affidavit that all the transfers and
movement of funds and assets were made with the sole purpose
to evade
or delay and frustrate its attempts to recover outstanding debt.
Additionally, it alleged that Joshua Moloto had warned
it that Moloto
received an advice to move assets with the sole intention to
frustrate it. SARS alleged that the bulk of the movement
that
happened during 2018 and 2019, took place after SARS had advised
Moloto and Bustque of a possible liability.
[55]
In
my view, the acts of Moloto and Bustque demonstrates an intention to
defeat the claim of SARS. The old rule of evidence is that
a man is
presumed to intend the natural and probable consequences of his
acts
[36]
. In his answering
affidavit, all what Moloto did other than raising a technical defence
regarding the applicability of section
163 of the TAA was to be vague
and ambiguous. He placed no facts to controvert the acts from which
this Court will certainly infer
intention on his part. Intention is
always determined by objective means
[37]
.
Unless epiphany kicks in, the actor will not readily confess its
intention. However, circumstantial evidence more often than not
shall
reveal an intention. There can be no ‘direct’ evidence of
intention except perhaps if the respondent is prepared
to admit to
having held the required intention. Otherwise intention is inferred
from the circumstances and all other available
evidence to determine
what it is that the respondent ‘must have’ been thinking.
In this way, the law relies on the
‘must have’ inference
in determining the intention.
[56]
Regard being had to the undisputed
conduct of Moloto and Bustque, the most plausible inference to be
drawn is that the movement
of funds and assets happened with one sole
intention and that is to defeat the claim of SARS. On a consideration
of the undisputed
evidence before this Court, I am satisfied that
SARS has shown on the preponderance of probabilities that the
movement of funds
and assets was made with an intention to defeat the
claim of SARS. Furthermore, I am convinced that there exists the
likelihood
that Moloto and Bustque will continue on the same path of
dissipation. Unless an order sought by SARS is issued, by the time
execution
inevitably arrives, given the strong
prima
facie
case against Moloto and
Bustque, SARS will only then learn that it was indeed trawling with a
damaged net or ‘fishing behind
the net’. The interests of
justice demands that SARS should not be saddled with an injustice of
being armed with a hollow
judgment to the tune of about R200 million,
in the circumstances where the granting of this order would protect
its legally protectable
rights.
Conclusion
[57]
The conclusion to reach is that
undoubtedly, SARS has a
bona fide
claim against Moloto and Bustque. There is, before this Court,
incontrovertible testimony that the assets and funds of Moloto and
Bustque moved into the hands of all of the cited respondents like
blood streaming into the veins. Out of such movement, the only
plausible inference to be drawn is that the intention of Moloto and
Bustque was to defeat the on-coming and undisputable claim
which
arose out of the custom liability. Accordingly, in my view, SARS
managed to meet the requirements of the interdict
sui
generis
. Axiomatically, the interim
order must be confirmed and an appropriate order must, in the
circumstances and on the unique facts
of this case, be made.
En
passant
, I must mention that the
evidence tendered by SARS was materially detailed and well
elaborated, and it must have gone through a
painstaking process to
present its testimony before Court.
Order
[58]
For all the above reasons, the following
order is made:
1.
The provisional anti-dissipation
order granted on 21 January 2022, in the terms set out below, is
hereby confirmed and to the extent
that the provisional order has not
yet been given effect to, it must be give effect to, forthwith.
2.
The respondents are hereby
interdicted and restrained from dealing with, encumbering or
disposing of any of their assets, pending
the outcome of the action
instituted under case number 13584/2022 (“
the
action
”).
3.
Kobus van Niekerk of JI van
Niekerk Incorporated, is appointed to act as curator
bonis
in whom the rights, title and
interest in the moveable, immovable and incorporeal assets of the
respondents vest, and without derogating
from the generality of these
class of assets, the assets under preservation include cash found at
any of the respondents’
premises and the assets listed in
Schedule
A
hereto (“
the respondents’
known assets
”), pending the
outcome of the action
and
pending any execution against the assets of the respondents in terms
of any court order entitling the applicant to execute against
these
assets for the tax debts of the first and second respondents.
4.
The curator
bonis
is authorised to immediately take control of the respondents’
assets.
5.
No-one, except the curator
bonis
may deal with the respondents’ assets, subject to the
conditions and exceptions contained in this order, save with the
prior
written consent of the applicant, which consent may not be
unreasonably withheld.
6.
The powers of the curator
bonis
relating to the vested assets be exercised with the objective of
preserving the respondents’ assets.
7.
To ensure that the value of the
respondents’ assets are maintained, the curator
bonis
is authorised to take control of all bank accounts of the respondents
in order to manage the flow of funds.
8.
The respondents and the present
directors, shareholders, members of the close corporations, and
trustees of the respondents are
ordered to:-
8.1
immediately deliver to the curator
bonis
all financial records and books of account (“
books
and records
”) in the
respondents’ possession or under their control, that relate to
the affairs of the respondents;
8.2
inform the curator
bonis
as to the whereabouts of books and records that are not in the
possession of or under control of the respondents, to the extent
that
the respondents are aware of the whereabouts of such books and
records of the respondents, or how it can be ascertained where
they
are and to assist the curator
bonis
to obtain access thereto, and if possible, possession thereof;
8.3
to comply with the legislation
regulating the director’s / shareholder’s / member’s
/ trustee’s functions
and obligations;
8.4
to comply with the requirements of
section 75
of the
Companies Act 2008
, concerning personal financial
interests of the director / member / trustee or related person;
8.5
to assist, and co-operate with the
curator
bonis
as may reasonably be required and to provide the curator
bonis
with information about the respondents’ business and tax
affairs as may be reasonably required, including full particulars
of
all insurance contracts in respect of the assets of the respondents,
this information must be furnished to the curator
bonis
forthwith;
8.6
to continue to exercise the
functions of directors / members / trustees, subject to the authority
of the curator
bonis
and to continue to exercise any management function within the
respondents in accordance with the express instructions or directions
of the curator
bonis
to the extent that it is reasonable to do so and as long as he or she
remains to be a director / member / trustee.
9
Any person having books and records or
assets of any one or more of the respondents in his/her possession,
must, subject to what
is provided for below, when this order comes to
that person’s knowledge, notify the curator
bonis
of the fact that such are in his/her possession and hand such to the
curator
bonis
on demand, or within such time as the curator
bonis
may allow and, should that, for
any valid reason, not be possible, or should the person have a right
to retain possession, then
such person must make the documents or
assets available to the curator
bonis
for inspection and supply the
curator
bonis
with copies of any document pertaining to any one or more or all of
the respondents, on demand by the curator
bonis
.
10
No person may remove any item from any
property owned or premises occupied by the respondents, without the
permission of the curator
bonis
,
such permission may not be withheld unreasonably.
11
The curator
bonis
is authorised, in order to give
effect to this order, to interview the respondents and/or employees
of the respondents, who are
obliged to furnish the curator
bonis
with full particulars of all the respondents’ assets and how
such assets were acquired, within seven days of service of this
order
on the respondents.
12
That, to give effect to this order, the
curator
bonis
is
authorised, to interview any person, who may have knowledge of the
whereabouts of the assets of the respondents.
13
The curator
bonis
,
will, in his sole discretion, be entitled to replace any guards at
any gates or elsewhere on properties with guards under his
command,
provided that any guard in the employ of the respondents, will be
entitled to continue to receive compensation or remuneration
and
other benefits in accordance with his or her conditions of employment
until such is duly terminated in terms of the applicable
laws and
only if the curator
bonis
is of the opinion that such termination is necessary in the interests
of the respondents concerned.
14
The guards will have those powers that
the curator
bonis
entrust to them, within the bounds of what is reasonable and
generally acceptable.
15
The curator
bonis
is entitled, on behalf of the respondents concerned, to apply to a
competent court for the eviction of any person in occupation
of any
portion of any premises belonging to the respondents.
16
Pending such eviction, the person so
occupying any premises will be entitled to such of the furniture and
equipment as are required
for functional occupation of any portion of
the premises, provided that the curator
bonis
may, if required for purposes of disposing of assets of the company,
replace such furniture or other moveable items as may be concerned,
with other items of less value that fulfil the same function.
Any items to be removed that are in use in the household concerned
will only be removed with five days prior written notice.
17
Any removal of any item from any
premises occupied for domestic purposes will be at a time that takes
into account the reasonable
requests of the occupant.
18
Within seven days of the granting of
this order all motor vehicles belonging to the respondents must be
delivered to the curator
bonis
.
Pending such delivery such motor vehicles may be used by the person
presently entitled to use such vehicle, provided that
before any such
use the curator
bonis
be satisfied, by presentation to him of such proof as he may
reasonably require that the vehicle is properly insured in favour
of
the respondents and that the vehicle will only be used in terms of
the restrictions of such insurance policy. In case
of no
insurance existing, the curator
bonis
may obtain such insurance, after which the said vehicle may be
utilised as provided for above.
19
In addition to any other powers set out
elsewhere herein, the curator
bonis
will be entitled on 24 hours’ notice to the occupant in control
to access any dwelling belonging to the respondents, occupied
by
anyone for the purpose of inspection of the premises and the making
of an inventory of all movable items and fixtures and fittings.
The curator
bonis
may take photos and may make a video recording. The curator
bonis
will be entitled to request any person to give him information, if
any, and to give information in respect of any claim of right
to
possess any article.
20
The said inspection may only be
conducted during normal office hours with due regard to any
reasonable request by the occupant and
for the dignity and privacy of
the occupants.
21
Any occupant whose residence is to be
inspected in terms hereof, must be furnished with a copy of this
order and his or her attention
should be drawn to the relevant
provisions hereof.
22
The curator
bonis
may not proceed with the disposal of assets in satisfaction of the
customs and tax debts of the first and second respondents, unless
the
applicant is entitled to execution against such assets in accordance
with the laws of the Republic of South Africa, which includes
an
order of court order.
23
In order to give effect to this order,
the curator
bonis
is
authorised to dispose of the respondents’ assets, by means of
auctions or out of hand sales, in order to secure the collection
of
taxes and in satisfaction of the tax debt and to pay the net proceeds
to the applicant.
24
The auctions and/or out of hand sales
referred to above must take place as follows:-24.1
any auction sale must, at the very least, be advertised in the manner
required in the event of a sale in execution, and in the
case of
movable assets, an advertisement must be published at least five
business days prior to the auction.
24.2
Any sale out of hand sale may take place without prior notice, but
such sale will only take effect after expiry of four business
days
after notice of the sale has been given to any respondent who may
have an interest in the said asset.
25
An aggrieved party may approach the
relevant Court for relief.
26
The curator
bonis
must exercise the above powers in the interest of the respondents
and with the objective of ensuring that the maximum
value
of the assets be maintained and/or recovered.
27
The powers of the curator
bonis
will continue, subject to the
provisions of this order, pending the finalisation of the action and
pending any execution in terms
of any court order authorising the
applicant to execute against the assets forming the subject of this
order.
28
The powers of the curator
bonis
may be amended or terminated on application by any
interested party.
29
The costs of the curator
bonis,
occasioned by and incurred in the implementation of this order, be
paid by the respondents jointly and severally. That such costs
to
include:-
29.1
Costs occasioned by the curator
bonis
in respect of services rendered by him in the execution and
implementation of this order;
29.2
The curator
bonis’
fees; and
29.3
Costs occasions by the curator
bonis
for monies disbursed by him in order to obtain support and advisory
services in his capacity as curator
bonis
,
in the execution and implementation of this order.
30
The curator
bonis
will be liable for any damages caused by him as result of acting
ultra vires
or unreasonably in executing his duties in terms of this order and
the applicant will be responsible to ensure that any damage
suffered
as a result of the curator
bonis
not having put up security for
compliance with his duties in terms, will be mitigated.
31
The respondents are ordered to pay the
costs of this application jointly and severally, the one paying the
other to be absolved,
which costs to include the costs occasioned by
the appointment of two counsel.
32
If a respondent satisfies the Court
that: -
32.1
He/she has made full disclosure under
oath of all his/her direct or indirect interest in assets that are
subject to the order; and
32.2
He/she cannot meet his/her reasonable
living expenses or that of his/her legal dependants out of his/her
unrestrained assets;
32.3
Then, the curator
bonis
shall release such of the
realisable property within his control as may be directed by the
Court to meet the reasonable current
and prospective living expenses
of such respondent and his/her family or household.
33
The applicant is granted leave to, if
required, approach this court to vary this order on the same papers
and to file whatever additional
affidavits that may be required.
GN
MOSHOANA
JUDGE
OF THE HIGH COURT
GAUTENG
DIVISION, PRETORIA
APPEARANCES:
Counsel
for the Applicant :
Adv. H.G.A Snyman SC & Adv. C. Haud
é
Instructed
by:
Macrobert Attorneys
Counsel
for the 1
st
, 7
th
, 9
th
, 12
th
,
14
th
to
16
th
Respondents :
Adv. K. Nondwangu
Instructed
by :
Vilakazi NLV Attorneys
Counsel
for the 8
th
& 13
th
Respondents : Adv.
T. Barnard
Instructed
by :
VFV Attorneys
Date
of the hearing :
20 to 21 October 2022
Date
of judgment :
02 November 2022
[1]
Act
28 of 2011 as amended.
[2]
Nippon
Yusen Kaisha v Karageorgis
[1975] 1 WLR 1093.
[3]
Mareva
Compania Naviera SA v International Bulkcarriers SA
[1980] 1 All ER 213 (CA).
[4]
Rasu
Maritima SA v Perusahaan Pertambangan Minyak Dan Gas Bumi Negara
(Pertamina) and Government of Indonesia (as interveners)
[1977]
3 All ER 324;
(1978)
1 QB 644 (CA).
[5]
See
Falcon
Private Bank Ltd v Borry Bernard Edouard Charles Limited
(HCA 1934/2011);
Zimmer
Sweden AB v KPN Hong Kong Ltd and Brand Trading Limited
(HCA 2264/2013) and Article by Dr Mohammed Saud Alnasair Alenaze:
The
Mareva Injunction as a means of affording protection to the interest
of creditors.
[6]
Fredericks
v Gibson
(9
C.T.R. 445)
[7]
Robinson,
Miller & Co. v Lennox and Another
(18
C.T.R. 402).
[8]
Mcitiki
and another v Maweni
(
1913)
CPD 684.
[9]
Knox
D’Arcy Ltd and others v Jamieson and others 1996 (3) All SA
669 (A);
1996
(4) SA 348 (A).
[10]
Poolman
v Cordier and others
(2452/2016) ZANCHC 49 (10 March 2017) (Unreported judgment).
[11]
Lister
& Co. v Stubbs
(1890) 45 Ch.D. 1 (CA).
[12]
Aetna
Financial Services Ltd v Feigelman
[1985] 1 SCR 2.
[13]
Snell
Principles
of Equity
New Civil Court in action 247 (1948) and Spry:
The
principles of Equitable remedies
(5
th
ed., 1997) 515.
[14]
Setlogelo
v Setlogelo
1914 AD 241.
[15]
Section
25 (1) No one may be deprived of property except in terms of law of
general application, and no law may permit arbitrary
deprivation of
property.
[16]
See
Corlett
Drive Estates v Boland Bank Bpk
1971 (1) SA 863 (C).
[17]
See rule 58 (7) of the Uniform Rules.
[18]
Bassani
Mining (Pty) Ltd v Sebosat (Pty) Ltd & others
(835/2020)
[2021] ZASCA 126.
[19]
Act 45 of 1998 as amended.
[20]
Carmel
Trading Co Ltd v CSARS and others
2008
(2) SA 433 (SCA).
[21]
Derby
& Co Ltd and others v Weldon and others (No 2)
[1989]
1 All ER 1002 (CA).
[22]
See
Metlika
Trading Ltd v CSARS
2005
(3) SA 1 (SCA).
[23]
Customs
and Excise
Act
91 of 1964, as amended.
[24]
Sharpe
,
Injunctions and Specific Performance
,
loose-leaf (Aurora: Canada Law Book, 2005).
[25]
See
Smith
v S
2012 (1) SACR 567 (SCA).
[26]
Clark
et al v Nucare PLA
2006 MBCA 101.
[27]
Mooney
v Orr
[1994] B.C J. No 2652 (S.C).
[28]
Alenaze, “
The
Mareva Injunction as a means of affording protection to the interest
of creditors
”
Page 49.
[29]
Administrator
of Transvaal and others v Traub and others
1989
(4) All SA 924 (AD).
[30]
Setlogelo
v Setlogelo
1914
AD 221.
[31]
Polly
Peck International Plc v Nadir and others (No 2)
[1992] EWCA Civ 3
;
[1992] 4 All ER 769
(CA) at p 785g-h
[32]
The
approach in
Maweni
and
other cases mentioned above, including
Bricktec
(Pty) Ltd v Pantland
1977
(2) SA 489
(T) at 493E-G (
Bricktec
)
[33]
CSARS
v Tradex (Pty) Ltd and others
(Unreported
judgment)
(12949/2013)
dated 9 September 2014.
[34]
Ibid
(n
29) above.
[35]
Prevention
of Organised Crimes
Act
121 of 1998, as amended.
[36]
See
Giles
v California
128 S. Ct. 2678
(2008).
[37]
See
Devenpeck
v Alford
[2004] USSC 6060
;
543 U.S 146
(2004)
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