Govan Mbeki Local Municipality and Another v Glencore Operations South Africa (Pty) Ltd and Others (334/2021;338/2021) [2022] ZASCA 93; [2022] 3 All SA 675 (SCA); 2022 (6) SA 106 (SCA) (17 June 2022)

Parties

Procedural Posture

Civil Appeal / Appeal From the Mpumalanga Division of the High Court, Middelburg

Legal Issues

1. 1 Whether the impugned municipal by-laws regulating the transfer of property fall within the legislative competence of municipalities under s 156 of the Constitution.
2. 2 Whether the by-laws amount to an arbitrary deprivation of property in terms of s 25(1) of the Constitution.
3. 3 Whether the by-laws conflict with national legislation, specifically the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act and the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act.

Ratio Decidendi

The Supreme Court of Appeal held that the impugned municipal by-laws, which imposed an embargo on the registration of transfer of immovable property unless certain municipal requirements were met, exceeded the legislative competence of municipalities under s 156 of the Constitution. The by-laws regulated the transfer and registration of property, a function reserved for national government and governed by the Deeds Registries Act and national legislation. The court found that the by-laws were not authorised by the SPLUMA or the Systems Act, and that they conflicted with s 118 of the Systems Act by imposing additional liabilities on sellers. The by-laws also amounted to an arbitrary...

Court Disposition

Appeals dismissed with costs; cross-appeal upheld with costs; suspension of declaration of invalidity set aside.

Orders

• The appeal in case no 334/2021 (Govan Mbeki Local Municipality) is dismissed with costs, including the costs of two counsel.
• The cross-appeal in case no 334/2021 is upheld with costs, including the costs of two counsel.