Pienaar and Another v Strauss and Another (3930/2016) [2017] ZAECPEHC 24 (28 March 2017)

Pienaar and Another v Strauss and Another (3930/2016) [2017] ZAECPEHC 24 (28 March 2017)

The court found that it was common cause between the parties that no marriage took place in Port Elizabeth and that the certificate and registration in the Department of Home Affairs records were false and fraudulent. The first respondent failed to provide any acceptable reason for not answering the merits and had no right to a postponement. The relief sought by the applicants was limited to expunging the false record in South Africa and did not concern the validity of any ceremony in England. The court held that there was no prejudice to the first respondent in expunging the false record, as it would not affect the English proceedings. The court relied on established principles that...

Citation
[2017] ZAECPEHC 24
Parties
Applicant: Theunis Johannes Pienaar; Applicant: Andries Daniël Faber Pienaar; Respondent: Laetitia Strauss; Respondent: The Provincial Manager, Department of Home Affairs, Port Elizabeth Local Office
Court
Eastern Cape High Court, Port Elizabeth
Jurisdiction
South Africa
Judgment Date
28 March 2017
Case Number
3930/2016
Procedural Posture
Civil Application / Judgment on Main Application and Counter Application
Outcome
Application granted; counter-application dismissed.
Judges
Plasket
Legal Topics
Marriage Validity, Expungement of Records, Jurisdiction, Stay of Proceedings
Family and Children Civil Procedure Marriage Validity Expungement of Records Jurisdiction Stay of Proceedings

Case Brief

Summary, issues, holding and outcome

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Parties

Theunis Johannes Pienaar

Applicant

Andries Daniël Faber Pienaar

Applicant

Laetitia Strauss

Respondent

The Provincial Manager, Department of Home Affairs, Port Elizabeth Local Office

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Civil Application / Judgment on Main Application and Counter Application

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the marriage registered in Port Elizabeth between the second applicant and the first respondent is null and void.
  2. 2 Whether the entry in the Department of Home Affairs records should be expunged.
  3. 3 Whether proceedings should be stayed pending the outcome of English court proceedings regarding the validity of the marriage ceremony in England.

Ratio Decidendi

The court found that it was common cause between the parties that no marriage took place in Port Elizabeth and that the certificate and registration in the Department of Home Affairs records were false and fraudulent. The first respondent failed to provide any acceptable reason for not answering the merits and had no right to a postponement. The relief sought by the applicants was limited to expunging the false record in South Africa and did not concern the validity of any ceremony in England. The court held that there was no prejudice to the first respondent in expunging the false record, as it would not affect the English proceedings. The court relied on established principles that...

Court Disposition

Application granted; counter-application dismissed.

Orders

  • The entry in the records of the second respondent recording a marriage between the second applicant and the first respondent in Port Elizabeth on 8 June 1996 is expunged.
  • The second respondent is directed to take all necessary steps to give effect to the expungement.