Case Law[2024] ZAGPJHC 931South Africa
Meyersdal Nature Estate Home Owner's Association v Lawlor and Others (A2022/011659) [2024] ZAGPJHC 931 (11 September 2024)
High Court of South Africa (Gauteng Division, Johannesburg)
11 September 2024
Headnotes
it was not Mr Lawlor’s duty to erect the palisade fencing and that the fines were invalid and ought to be withdrawn.
Judgment
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## Meyersdal Nature Estate Home Owner's Association v Lawlor and Others (A2022/011659) [2024] ZAGPJHC 931 (11 September 2024)
Meyersdal Nature Estate Home Owner's Association v Lawlor and Others (A2022/011659) [2024] ZAGPJHC 931 (11 September 2024)
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sino date 11 September 2024
IN
THE HIGH COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA
GAUTENG DIVISION,
JOHANNESBURG
Case No.: A2022-011659
- REPORTABLE: NO
REPORTABLE: NO
- OF INTEREST TO OTHER
JUDGES: NO
OF INTEREST TO OTHER
JUDGES: NO
- REVISED: NODATE: 11 September 2024SIGNATURE:
REVISED: NO
DATE: 11 September 2024
SIGNATURE:
In
the matter between:
MEYERSDAL
NATURE ESTATE HOME
OWNER’S
ASSOCIATION
Appellant
and
MICHAEL
LAWLOR
First
Respondent
COMMUNITY
SCHEMES OMBUD
Second
Respondent
BANGILIZWE
MNINAWA
Third
Respondent
Date
heard: 13 June 2024
This judgment was
handed down electronically by circulation to the parties'
representatives by email, being uploaded to Caselines
and by release
to SAFLII. The date and time for hand-down is deemed to be 10:00 on
11
September 2024
.
JUDGMENT
Bhengu
AJ (Wanless J concurring)
Introduction
[1]
The Appellant is the Meyersdal Nature Estate Homeowners Association,
a
non-profit company which is responsible for controlling and
managing the Nature Estate. The First Respondent (“
Mr
Lawlor”
) is a registered owner of a residential property
situated in the Communal Nature Estate and he is a member of the
Appellant by
virtue of his ownership.
[2]
This is an appeal in terms of section 57(1) of the Community Schemes
Ombud
Service Act, 9 of 2011
(“the CSOS Act”).
The
Appellant is seeking an order setting aside the adjudication order
dated 23 April 2022 in which the Third Respondent
(“the
adjudicator”)
dismissed its claim for an amount of R360
000.00 in respect of penalty charges levied against Mr Lawlor for his
alleged failure
to erect a palisade fence around the nature boundary
area and his property. In dismissing the Appellant’s claim, the
adjudicator
held that it was not Mr Lawlor’s duty to erect the
palisade fencing and that the fines were invalid and ought to be
withdrawn.
[3]
The appeal
was brought by way of a notice of appeal as prescribed in
Stenersen
[1]
.
The parties agree that the appeal is the correct remedy. The Court is
also in agreement that the appeal is the correct procedure.
The
appeal is opposed by the First Respondent. The Second and Third
Respondents have filed a notice to abide by the court’s
decision.
Background
facts
[4]
The nature estate has free roaming wildlife and a nature reserve. Mr
Lawlor
purchased his property in August 2012 from a previous owner.
At the time when he bought the property, it was not fenced. In a
letter
dated 15 January 2014, the Appellant notified Mr Lawlor of the
requirement to erect a palisade fence and asked him to erect the
fence within seven days of the said letter. Mr Lawlor failed to erect
the palisade fence during the prescribed period. After engagements
between Mr Lawlor and the trustees of the Appellant, Mr Lawlor
eventually erected the fence in November 2019.
[5]
The Appellant issued summons in the Magistrates’ Court against
Mr
Lawlor claiming an amount of R360 000.00 in respect of arrear
penalty charges for the period from 1 January 2017 to 31 December
2019 calculated at a rate of R10,000.00 per month including
accumulated interest at a rate of 17% per annum.
[6]
The parties agreed to stay the action instituted against Mr Lawlor
and
to refer their dispute to the Community Schemes Ombud (“
the
Ombud”)
in terms of Section 38 of the CSOS Act. The issue
before the adjudicator was whether Mr Lawlor was in breach of the
Appellant’s
architectural guidelines and whether he was liable
to the Appellant for the arrear penalty charges in the amount of R360
000.00
which included interest.
[7]
On 23 April 2022, the adjudicator issued an order dismissing the
Appellant’s
claim against Mr Lawlor. The adjudication order
which is the subject of this appeal reads as follows:
“…
it is
not the respondent’s duty to erect the palisade fencing and as
such he cannot be held liable for penalties for the late
erection of
the fencing…the fines imposed by the appellants were invalid
and should be withdrawn.”
Condonation
Application
[8]
In terms of section 57(2) of the CSOS Act, an appeal against an order
must be lodged within 30 days after the date of delivery of the
order. It is common cause between the parties that the adjudication
order was made on 23 April 2022 and was communicated to the parties
via email on 3 May 2022. The notice of appeal was served upon
Mr
Lawlor on 5 August 2022, which is 2 months late. The Appellant filed
an application for condonation for its failure to note
the appeal on
time. The condonation application is opposed by Mr Lawlor.
[9]
In opposing
the condonation application, Mr Lawlor contended that the Court is
not empowered to condone non-compliance with the
time limit
prescribed in section 57(2) of the CSOS Act. Counsel for the
Respondent referred to the Full Bench decision of this
division in
Ncala v
Park Avenue Body Corporate
[2]
where it was held that the court does not have a general power to
condone non-compliance with statutory time periods and dismissed
the
condonation application in that matter. According to the Respondent’s
Counsel the court either has the power to grant
condonation or it
does not. If it does not have the power, then that is the end of the
Appellant’s case.
[10]
The
Appellant contended that this Court has discretion to condone the
late filing of an appeal. The Court was referred to the decisions
of
Baxter
[3]
,
Shakoane
[4]
and
Kobi
[5]
where the Court granted the Appellant condonation.
[11]
Having considered the two judgments in
Ncala
and
Shakoane
referred to by both parties the Court agrees with the reasoning in
Shakoane
that the facts of that matter are distinguishable
from those in
Ncala.
The circumstances surrounding the delay
in filing the appeal in
Shakoane
were adequately explained
coupled with the fact that there was no proof that the adjudication
order was received by Mr Shakoane.
[12]
Conversely, in
Ncala
, the Appellant had lodged his appeal 65
days late and only filed his application for condonation a year
later. He also failed to
provide reasons for his one-year delay in
launching the appeal. In condonation applications, no case is the
same as the other.
The court must consider the circumstances of each
case in the exercise of its discretion, which must be done
judiciously, having
considered all the facts and evidence before the
court.
[13]
In
Kobi
the Court aligned itself with the reasoning relating to the purpose
of the CSOS Act as stated by Binns-Ward J in
Coral
Island Body Corporate v Hoge
[6]
and concluded that:
“
upon a proper
contextual consideration of the provisions of s 57(2) of the CSOS
Act, the court does have the power, on good cause
shown, to condone
non-compliance with the 30-day time limit therein prescribed”
[7]
.
[14]
This Court also aligns itself with the above reasoning as a finding
otherwise would have
undesired consequences whereby a right to appeal
which is provided for in the legislation would be extinguished owing
to non-compliance
with the relevant timeframe even when there is a
just cause for non-compliance. The proposition by Mr Lawlor’s
Counsel, if
accepted, would be against the interest of justice as it
would infringe upon the right to access to justice and flies against
the
purpose of the CSOS Act.
[15]
This Court
further finds that considering the established test for condonation
which was restated by the Constitutional Court in
Steenkamp
v Edcon Limited
[8]
,
this Court has the power to grant condonation provided that the
Appellant meets the established test therefor. In
Steenkamp
,
the Court held: -
“
The principle
is firmly established in our law that where time limits are set,
whether statutory or in terms of the rules of court,
a court has an
inherent discretion to grant condonation where the interests of
justice demand it and where the reasons for non-compliance
with the
time limits have been explained to the satisfaction of the court”.
[16]
Having made
the above observations, it is apt to state that condonation is not
there for the mere asking by the defaulting party.
The Appellant must
make out a case for condonation. So, the question arises as to
whether the Appellant has succeeded in showing
good cause for the
granting of the indulgence by this Court. Holmes JA, in
Melane
v Santam Insurance Co. Ltd
[9]
stated the following regarding the test for good cause:
“
In deciding
whether sufficient cause has been shown, the basic principle is that
the court has a discretion to be exercised judicially
upon a
consideration of all the facts and, in essence, is a matter of
fairness to both sides. Among the facts usually relevant
are the
degree of lateness, the explanation therefor, the prospects of
success, and the importance of the case. Ordinarily these
facts are
inter-related; they are not individually decisive, for that would be
a piecemeal approach incompatible with a true discretion
...”.
Reasons
for the delay
[17]
Mr Van der Nest, on behalf of the Appellant, states in the founding
affidavit that he first
became aware of the adjudication order on 25
July 2022 when he received an email from Mr Lawlor’s attorney
of record querying
why the penalties in Mr Lawlor’s statement
of account had not been reversed in line with the adjudication order.
The following
extract appears from the founding affidavit: -
“…
After
perusing my emails on 25 July 2022, I came across the e-mail dated 3
May 2022, which e-mail, for some inexplicable reason
I missed. I, as
the manager of the appellant being a housing estate of more than 300
homeowners receive many emails per day. I
simply have no idea how I
could have missed this important e-mail. If this e-mail had come to
my attention, I would have immediately
acted thereon. The first time
that I became aware of the adjudication order was on 25 July 2022”.
[18]
In the condonation application the Appellant appears to believe that
the 30-day period
within which to launch an appeal started to run
from the date upon which the Appellant first became aware of the
adjudication order.
At paragraph 14 of the founding affidavit in the
application for condonation it is stated that:
“…
Subsequent
to the above, a notice of appeal was served and filed on 5 August
2022,
well within the time limits
(my
emphasis)
as prescribed in section 57(2) of CSOS Act, when the
adjudication order came to my attention.”
[19]
It is common cause that the adjudication order was delivered to both
parties on 3 May 2022,
via email. The Appellant’s reason for
the delay is that
“
for some inexplicable reason”,
he did not see the email and that if he had seen it, he would have
taken steps. Counsel for the Appellant ascribed this inexplicable
reason to human error. He asked the court to condone the
non-compliance on the basis that the Appellant was honest and did not
fabricate other fanciful reasons. It was further submitted that the
Appellant did not waste time and that it had launched the appeal
10
days after gaining knowledge of the adjudication order.
[20]
This Court is not persuaded by the explanation for the delay as
proffered by the Appellant.
I am in agreement with the Respondent
that such explanation does not qualify as a reasonable explanation to
justify non-compliance
with the prescribed time limit. Granting
condonation under circumstances where the applicant has no real
explanation for
the delay can result in undesired results where time
limits are simply ignored and there are no consequences. It is clear,
from
the ordinary interpretation of section 57(2) of the CSOS Act,
that the 30-day time limit commences from the
delivery
of the
adjudication order and
not
from the time when a party became
aware of the order. This is in line with the objective of the CSOS
Act which is to provide a
cost effective and speedy resolution of
disputes arising in relation to communal schemes. For this reason,
the Appellant’s
explanation for the delay does not pass the
requisite threshold in respect of an application for condonation.
Prospects
of success
[21]
Having
rejected the explanation for the delay, the court must still consider
whether there are any prospects of success in the appeal.
Exclusion
of the consideration of prospects of success in a condonation
application on the basis that an applicant has failed to
provide a
reasonable explanation for the delay, is not in the interests of
justice. The prospects of success cannot be evaluated
without
reference to the merits. In
Madinda
v Minister of Safety and Security
[10]
,
the Supreme Court of Appeal stated the following: -
“
Strong merits
may mitigate fault; no merits may render mitigation
pointless…Moreover, what can be achieved by putting the
court
to the task of exercising a discretion to condone if there is no
prospect of success? In addition, that the merits are shown
to be
strong or weak may colour an applicant’s explanation for
conduct which bears on the delay…As I interpret the
requirement of good cause for the delay, the prospects of success are
a relevant consideration
.”
The
Legal Framework
[22]
Section 57(1) of the CSOS Act provides that:
“
An applicant,
the association or any affected person who is dissatisfied by an
adjudicator’s order, may appeal to the High
Court, but only on
a question of law.”
[23]
The following grounds of appeal were raised by the Appellant: -
23.1
Conventional Penalties Act – that the adjudicator erred in law
by appropriating for himself
the power afforded by section 3 of the
Conventional Penalties Act to a court whilst the adjudicator was not
a court.
23.2
That the adjudicator erred by introducing an alleged failure by the
Appellant to apply the
audi alteram partem
rule and by
regarding the Appellant as subject to the Promotion of Administrative
Justice Act 3 of 2002
(“PAJA”)
. The Appellant
contended that the dispute between the parties was contractual and
therefore the adjudicator erred by referring
to the issues that were
not raised in the pleadings.
23.3
The adjudicator erred in not allowing oral submissions in that this
matter was not suitable to
determine the issues without oral
submissions from the parties.
Analysis
[24]
In
Stenersen
[11]
,
it was held that an appeal in terms of section 57(1) must be brought
by way of notice of appeal where the grounds of appeal are
set out
succinctly. The Court further held that:
“
An appeal in
terms of s 57 of the Act is a re-hearing on the merits, but limited
to the evidence or information on which the decision
under appeal was
given, and in which the only determination to be made by the court of
appeal is whether that decision was right
or wrong in respect of a
question of law”
[25]
A party
instituting appeal proceedings in terms of section 57(1) must satisfy
the court that the findings of the adjudicator were
incorrect in law.
Unterhalter J held, in
Turley
Manor Body Corporate v Pillay
[12]
that a section 57 appeal may not be brought to correct a mistake of
fact.
[26]
As to the powers of the appeal court in considering a section 57(1)
appeal, these are limited
to considering questions of law only. The
findings of fact made by the adjudicator cannot be re-considered on
appeal. The court
in
Stenersen
, regarding the limited scope of
an appeal in terms of section 57(1), held: -
“
In essence, by
limiting the scope of an appeal to questions of law only, the court
of appeal is only tasked with deciding whether
the conclusions of law
reached by the adjudicator were right or wrong. This determination
can only be made based on the facts in
existence at the time the
order was given, and as they appear from the record. This
demonstrates not only the need to finally resolve
disputes of fact at
adjudication level, but also the necessity of avoiding or limiting
the number of appeals brought to the High
Court, thereby alleviating
the burden of the High Court in dealing with matters of this nature.
This ensures that cases are dealt
with in an uncomplicated and
expeditious manner. To conclude otherwise would defeat the purpose of
what the CSOS Act seeks to achieve”
[13]
.
[27]
The issue for determination before this court is whether the finding
by the adjudicator
that it was not the Respondent’s duty to
erect the palisade fence and that the fines were invalid, was correct
in law. In
determining this issue this Court has to look at what
facts were found by the adjudicator to be proven and determine
whether on
those facts that were found to be proven, the adjudicator
reached the correct conclusion or findings, in law.
[28]
The
Appellant’s Counsel contended that the adjudicator was patently
wrong in his interpretation of the Environmental Management
Program
which led to his findings. He referred this court to the matters of
KPMG v
Securefin
and S v
Basson
[14]
where it was held that interpretation is a matter of law and not of
fact. Counsel further contended that the adjudicator’s
findings
are contrary to the common cause facts, alternatively
,
an admission made by the Respondent that it was in fact his
obligation to erect the palisade fence as evidenced by his erection
of the fence in 2019. The Appellant’s Counsel argued further
that once an admission of fact is made, it may not be disproved
whilst it appears on the record. Several authorities were referred to
in this regard.
[29]
The
Respondent’s counsel, relying upon the decisions of Conrad v
Key West Body Corporate
[15]
and Stenersen submitted to this Court that the present appeal
is
an appeal in a “
strict”
sense, involving a consideration of whether the adjudicator’s
decision was right or wrong based on the material before him.
He
contended that the Appellant’s right of appeal is limited to
questions of law only and that since the adjudicator’s
order
was premised on a factual finding they
are not susceptible to being overturned on appeal. The Respondent’s
counsel submitted further that the decision of the adjudicator
was
correct in that the Architectural Guidelines only provide
specifications as to how the palisade fence should look and does
not
state that the subsequent owner must erect that fence.
[30]
In
considering the Respondent’s contention that the adjudicator’s
findings are findings of fact and not susceptible
to being overturned
on appeal, this Court has considered the SCA decision of
National
Union of Mine Workers v East Rand Gold and Uranium Company
[16]
.
In this matter, Goldstone JA, dealt with the restricted jurisdiction
of the appeal court when determining appeals on questions
of law
only. The learned Judge highlighted the difficulty in determining
what is meant by a “
question
of fact”,
and
more particularly, whether this refers to any factual finding made by
the Court
a
quo
or
whether it refers to the whole judgment on a question of fact. The
SCA also considered the situation where the decision appealed
against
is comprised of both questions of fact and of law. In this regard,
the Court reasoned that: -
“
It would appear
that we are required to determine whether, on the facts found by the
Labour Appeal Court, it made the correct decision
and order. That is
a question of law. If it did then the appeal must fail. If it did
not, then this Court may amend or set aside
that decision or order or
make any other decision or order according to the requirements of the
law and fairness.
It will be convenient
therefore to determine the facts which were common cause or not in
issue before the Court a quo and then to
determine what relevant
findings of fact were made by that Court. It is upon the basis of all
those facts that the correctness
or otherwise of the decision and
order of the Court a quo must then be considered.”
[31]
Having regard to the decisions of
Stenersen
and
Turley
Manor
this Court is of the view that exclusion of questions of
fact in a section 57(2) appeal means that the Appellant cannot attack
the factual findings of the adjudicator on appeal. An appeal court,
in deciding whether the decision of the adjudicator was correct
or
incorrect, is limited to the record that was placed before the
adjudicator. In other words, the conclusions of the adjudicator
must
correlate with the facts that he or she found to have been proven.
This means that this Court therefore does have the requisite
jurisdiction to hear this appeal.
The
Adjudication order
[32]
The adjudicator, in his award, made it clear that he did not deal
with the quantum aspect
of the application and found that quantum can
only be dealt with after a decision on liability had been made. The
adjudication
order therefore related to liability only. In the
premises, this Court finds that the grounds of appeal relating to the
Conventional
Penalty Act and the application thereof are without
merit as no findings were made by the adjudicator in respect of
quantum.
[33]
This Court is also of the view that the Appellant’s ground of
appeal that the adjudicator
erred in not allowing oral submissions
does not qualify as a valid ground of appeal in terms of section
57(2) of the CSOS Act.
Whilst an allegation that an unfair procedure
was adopted by an adjudicator may render the proceedings reviewable
in terms of PAJA,
same does not provide a basis for an appeal in
terms of section 57(2) of the CSOS Act. In the premises, this Court
finds that this
ground of appeal has no merit.
Was
the decision of the adjudicator correct in law?
[34]
The Appellant’s Counsel contended that the adjudicator’s
findings are wrong
in that they are contrary to the common cause
facts,
alternatively,
an admission made by the Respondent that
it was his obligation to erect the fence. This Court does not agree
with this contention.
Whist it is common cause that Mr Lawlor erected
the palisade fence in 2019 he was consistent in denying that he was
the one liable
to do so. The following appears in Mr Lawlor’s
submissions made to the adjudicator: -
“
I deny that I
am in contravention of the Applicant’s constitution and/or any
of the associated rules…The duty to erect
the palisade fence
was imposed upon VAHL Investments 1008 (Pty) LTD…”.
[35]
Mr Lawlor further stated that he only erected the fence after a
meeting with the Trustees
after they explained to him that the
Gauteng Department of Environmental Affairs was threatening to take
wildlife away from the
estate. It appears to this Court that Mr
Lawlor reached a compromise with the trustees which cannot be
misconstrued as an admission
in light of,
inter alia
, the
submissions made before the adjudicator. Further, it does not appear
from the record that this issue of the alleged admission
was raised
before the adjudicator. The Court therefore cannot fault the finding
of the adjudicator on the basis of this argument.
[36]
From a reading the adjudication order, it is clear that the
adjudicator’s findings
were informed by what is termed the
“
record decision”
dated 13 September 2004 issued
by the Gauteng Provincial Department of Agriculture, Conservation and
Environmental Authorization
which contained the terms of the
conditional authorization for the project (Meyersdal Nature Estate)
with reference number GAU
G002/04-05-413 and which reads as follows.
“
4. 1. Specific
Conditions – 4.1.4 a palisade fence must be erected in the area
West and South as prescribed in the investigation
into the
feasibility of the proposed Meyersdal Nature Area, dated June
2011”.
[17]
[37]
The adjudicator, in subparagraph 6.22 of the award, states that the
requirement for the
erection of the palisade fencing originated from
the planning stages of the Estate and the condition
was
a legal obligation imposed on the developer. It was further held that
the legal obligation now rests with the Appellant. Also,
the
adjudicator held that there was no provision in the homeowners’
associations rules, guidelines, nor constitution, that
requires the
owners to erect palisade fencing.
[38]
The
adjudicator also referred to subparagraph 4.1.33 of the approval
document that provided as follows: - “
VAHI
Investments 1008 Pty Ltd (“
the
Developer”)
will
be held responsible for the compliance to the above unless agreed
upon
differently with the department
”
[18]
.
Further,
the adjudicator stated that “
It
is therefore very clear to the adjudicator that the duty to erect the
palisade fencing has always been that of the developer.
There is no
agreement provided to suggest the contrary.”
[39]
It is not in dispute that the condition to erect the palisade fence
was imposed on the
developer. The case for the Appellant seemed to be
that the responsibility to erect the fence was transferred to the
owners in
the communal scheme in terms of section 30.2 of the
Meyersdal Nature Estate Architectural and Aesthetic Guidelines
Version 2 –
October 2006 which contains the requirement for the
erection of the palisade fence. The adjudicator found that there is
no agreement
evidencing such transfer of responsibility.
[40]
The Appellant failed to refer the adjudicator to any agreement or
resolution stipulating
that the duty to erect a palisade fence was
transferred to the owners. The Appellant only referred to a trustees’
resolution
dated 26 January 2017 which stated the following:
“…
Resolved
that the schedule of fines to be supplemented to include the
following: that any member in contravention of clause. 30.2
of the
Architectural Guidelines by failing to have erected a boundary fence
will be fined in an amount of R10 000.00 per month
commencing on 1
January 2017.”
[41]
It does not appear,
ex facie
the resolution, that it was meant
to transfer the obligations from the developer to the owners. This is
in light of,
inter alia,
the proviso in the conditions of
approval that stated that the developer is responsible for compliance
with the conditions unless
agreed otherwise with the Department. No
such agreement was placed before the adjudicator.
Reference to
audi
alteram partem
principle and PAJA
[42]
In subparagraph 6.26 of the adjudication order,
the adjudicator stated the following: -
“
Even
if the applicant was within their
(sic
)
rights in fining the respondent,
which
they are not, the proper procedure should have been followed
.
The respondent should have been afforded the common law right to be
heard at a proper trustee meeting prior to the fining”.
[43]
The Appellant contended that the adjudicator wrongly applied the
provisions of the Promotion
of Administrative Justice Act 3 of 2000
(PAJA) and the principle of
audi alteram partem
instead of the
parties’ contractual obligations in terms of the contract.
Counsel for the Applicant argued that the adjudicator
ought not to
have applied legal obligations which fell outside the contract and
the pleaded case of the parties. In this regard,
this Court takes
note that the CSOS process is an inquisitorial process which is
different from civil court proceedings. Section
51(1) of the CSOS Act
grants the adjudicator wide investigative powers. The adjudicator is
not limited by the papers submitted
on behalf of the parties and is
empowered to go beyond the pleadings when investigating the claim
before her or him. This includes,
inter alia
, calling for
further documentation and conducting inspections which the
adjudicator may deem necessary.
[44]
This Court
is of the view that even though the adjudicator referred to these
principles, the submission by the Respondent’s
Counsel is
correct that ultimately nothing turned thereon. This is due to the
fact that the finding that the Appellant was responsible
to erect the
fence was not based on these principles but on the conditions for
approval of the project as aforementioned. In any
event, the
procedure to be followed before a penalty could be imposed is
stipulated in Rule 23.1 of the Meyersdal Nature Community
Estate
Participation Rules
[19]
. There
is no indication on the papers that served before the adjudicator
that these rules were complied with before imposing the
penalty. In
the premises, this Court is therefore of the view that even if the
adjudicator was wrong in his finding that it was
the obligation of
the Appellant to erect the fence, the Appellant failed to adduce
evidence that the procedure stipulated in the
rules for imposing
penalties was complied with.
Conclusion
[45]
Having dealt with the merits of the appeal, this Court is of the view
that the Appellant
had no prospects of success in the appeal. This
requirement, insofar as it relates to the application for
condonation, has not
been satisfied. In the premises, having regard
thereto and the fact that the Appellant has failed to prove any of
the other relevant
factors in respect of an application for
condonation (as dealt with earlier in this judgment), the said
application must be dismissed.
Even if we are wrong in refusing
condonation the Appellant has failed to satisfy this Court that,
considering the proven facts
as found by the adjudicator, that he
erred in law. We therefore find that there are no grounds to set
aside the order of the adjudicator
in terms of section 57 of the CSOS
Act.
Costs
[46]
It is trite that, unless unusual circumstances exist, costs should
normally follow the
result. No such circumstances have been brought
to the attention of this Court. It is also trite that the issue of
costs falls
within the general discretion of the court, including the
scale thereof. The Respondent asked for an order of punitive costs in
terms on the notice served upon the Appellant. This Court finds that
there are no real grounds for such an order and that the Appellant
should pay the costs of the appeal on the ordinary scale.
[47]
In the result, this Court makes the following order:
1.
The Appellant’s application for condonation is dismissed.
2.
The Appellant is ordered to pay the costs of the First Respondent
on
a party and party scale.
JL
BHENGU
ACTING
JUDGE OF THE HIGH COURT
GAUTENG
DIVISION, JOHANNESBURG
For
the Appellant:
Adv
LW De Koning SC
Mills
& Groenewald Attorneys c/o Couzyns Inc
For
the First Respondent:
Adv
BD Hitchings
Senekal
Simmonds Inc
[1]
Stenersen and Tulleken Administration CC v Linton Park Body
Corporate and Another (A3034/2018) [2019] ZAGPJHC 387;
2020 (1) SA
651
(GJ) para 38.
[2]
Ncala v Park Avenue Body Corporate (A3029/2019) [2023] ZAGPJHC 390
[3]
Baxter v Ocean Body Corporate,
2023 (2) SA 205
(WCC) at 209 A-B
[4]
Shakoane v Community Schemes Ombud Service and Others (A23/2023)
[2023] ZAGPPHC 1825
[5]
Kobi v The Trustees for the time being, De La Rey Body Corporate,
2024 (1) SA 174
(FB) at 177 C – 178 F)
[6]
Coral Island Body Corporate v Hoge (22991/2017)
[2019] ZAWCHC 58
;
2019 (5) SA 158
(WCC) (23 May 2019) para 10
[7]
Kobi v Trustees For The Time Being Of The De La Rey Body Corporate
and Others (A68/2022)
[2023] ZAFSHC 128
;
2024 (1) SA 174
(FB) Para 8
[8]
Steenkamp v Edcon Limited
[2019] ZACC 17
para 26
[9]
Melane v Santam Insurance Company Limited
1962 (4) SA 531
(AD) at
532 C - F
[10]
In Madinda v Minister of Safety and Security
[2008] ZASCA 34
;
[2008] 3 All SA 143
(SCA) para 12
[11]
Stenersen para 43
[12]
Turley Manor Body Corporate v Pillay and Others (10662/18) [2020]
ZAGPJHC 190 para 14.
[13]
Stenersen
para 35
[14]
KPMG v Securefin Ltd,
2009 (4) SA 399
(SCA) at 409 G – H; S v
Basson
[2004] ZACC 13
;
2005 (1) SA 171
(CC) at 194 E - F
[15]
Conrad v Key West Body Corporate (55262/2021) [2022] ZAGPPHC 508 (28
June 2022) para 12
[16]
National Union of Mine Workers v East Rand Gold and Uranium Company
Ltd. (57/90)
[1991] ZASCA 168
;
1992 (1) SA 700
(AD);
[1992] 4 All SA
78
(AD) para 6 - 7
[17]
Para
6.21 Adjudication order – CaseLines page 02-227
[18]
Para
4.1.33 Record Decision – CaseLines page 02-123
[19]
Meyersdal Nature Estate Community Participation Rules, Version 2 of
October 2008 CaseLines page 02-55
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