Bhagwandeen v Walter Sisulu University (1848/2013) [2016] ZAECGHC 125 (3 November 2016)

Bhagwandeen v Walter Sisulu University (1848/2013) [2016] ZAECGHC 125 (3 November 2016)

Clause 2.2.4 of the retrenchment agreement did not constitute an express or tacit acknowledgment of liability by the defendant in respect of the relevant claims. The clause was interpreted as a conditional undertaking to pay only such claims as the plaintiff might in future establish to be legitimate and legal, not as an admission of existing liability. Consequently, it did not interrupt the running of prescription under section 14(1) of the Prescription Act. Furthermore, the clause did not amount to a renunciation of prescription, as it did not promise to pay claims that had already prescribed. Therefore, by the date of service of summons, claims 2, 3, 4, and 5 had become prescribed and...

Citation
[2016] ZAECGHC 125
Parties
Plaintiff: Vinodh Ramdeen Bhagwandeen; Defendant: Walter Sisulu University
Court
Eastern Cape High Court, Grahamstown
Jurisdiction
South Africa
Judgment Date
3 November 2016
Case Number
1848/2013
Procedural Posture
Civil Trial / Determination of Special Pleas of Prescription
Outcome
Claims 2, 3, 4, and 5 are dismissed with costs.
Judges
Pickering
Legal Topics
Prescription Act, Acknowledgment of Liability, Contractual Undertaking, Renunciation of Prescription
Civil Procedure Prescription Act Acknowledgment of Liability Contractual Undertaking Renunciation of Prescription

Case Brief

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Parties

Vinodh Ramdeen Bhagwandeen

Plaintiff

Walter Sisulu University

Defendant

Procedural Posture

Civil Trial / Determination of Special Pleas of Prescription

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether clause 2.2.4 of the retrenchment agreement constituted an express or tacit acknowledgment of liability sufficient to interrupt prescription under section 14(1) of the Prescription Act.
  2. 2 Whether clause 2.2.4 amounted to a renunciation of prescription by the defendant.
  3. 3 Whether claims 2, 3, 4, and 5 had become prescribed prior to the issuing of summons.

Ratio Decidendi

Clause 2.2.4 of the retrenchment agreement did not constitute an express or tacit acknowledgment of liability by the defendant in respect of the relevant claims. The clause was interpreted as a conditional undertaking to pay only such claims as the plaintiff might in future establish to be legitimate and legal, not as an admission of existing liability. Consequently, it did not interrupt the running of prescription under section 14(1) of the Prescription Act. Furthermore, the clause did not amount to a renunciation of prescription, as it did not promise to pay claims that had already prescribed. Therefore, by the date of service of summons, claims 2, 3, 4, and 5 had become prescribed and...

Court Disposition

Claims 2, 3, 4, and 5 are dismissed with costs.

Orders

  • Claims 2, 3, 4, and 5 are dismissed with costs.
  • Plaintiff is ordered to pay the costs of the determination of the separated issue relating to prescription.