Van Aardt v Van Aardt (342/05) [2006] ZAECHC 37; 2007 (1) SA 53 (E) (10 August 2006)

Van Aardt v Van Aardt (342/05) [2006] ZAECHC 37; 2007 (1) SA 53 (E) (10 August 2006)

The court found that the agreement for the sale of land to the respondent or his descendants was a prohibited pactum successorium. The contract made the identity of the purchaser contingent upon the nominated purchaser surviving the seller, resulting in uncertainty and postponement of vesting until the seller's death. Rights could not vest in undetermined members of a class, and the contract constituted an irrevocable post mortem disposition of the right to acquire the property, thus limiting testamentary freedom. The argument that the agreement lapsed due to dissolution of the partnership was rejected, as no implied or tacit term to that effect was proven. The appeal was allowed, and the...

Citation
[2006] ZAECHC 37
Parties
Appellant: Jacobus van Aardt; Respondent: Stephanus Cornelius van Aardt
Court
High Courts - Eastern Cape
Jurisdiction
South Africa
Judgment Date
10 August 2006
Case Number
342/05
Procedural Posture
Civil Appeal / Full Bench Appeal
Outcome
Appeal allowed; application dismissed with costs.
Judges
Jones, Pickering, Malopa
Legal Topics
Pactum Successorium, Sale of Land, Uncertainty of Purchaser Identity, Testamentary Freedom, Contract Interpretation
Land and Property Civil Procedure Pactum Successorium Sale of Land Uncertainty of Purchaser Identity Testamentary Freedom Contract Interpretation

Case Brief

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Parties

Jacobus van Aardt

Appellant

Stephanus Cornelius van Aardt

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Civil Appeal / Full Bench Appeal

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the agreement for the sale of land to the respondent or his descendants constitutes a prohibited pactum successorium.
  2. 2 Whether the identity of the purchaser is sufficiently certain to render the contract enforceable.
  3. 3 Whether the dissolution of the partnership between the parties caused the agreement to lapse.

Ratio Decidendi

The court found that the agreement for the sale of land to the respondent or his descendants was a prohibited pactum successorium. The contract made the identity of the purchaser contingent upon the nominated purchaser surviving the seller, resulting in uncertainty and postponement of vesting until the seller's death. Rights could not vest in undetermined members of a class, and the contract constituted an irrevocable post mortem disposition of the right to acquire the property, thus limiting testamentary freedom. The argument that the agreement lapsed due to dissolution of the partnership was rejected, as no implied or tacit term to that effect was proven. The appeal was allowed, and the...

Court Disposition

Appeal allowed; application dismissed with costs.

Orders

  • The appeal is allowed with costs.
  • The order of the court a quo is altered to an order that the application is dismissed with costs.