Tag: Master of the High Court

When it comes to life insurance, naming your minor child as a beneficiary may seem like the most natural decision. But this well-intentioned move can lead to unintended consequences and even financial risk. Most parents assume that naming their child as a beneficiary guarantees protection of their life assurance benefits. But legally, minors cannot receive policy payouts directly. That’s where things get complicated.

After years of threatening non-compliant trusts with penalties for late tax return submissions, South African Revenue Service's (SARS) leniency seems to be ending.

Losing a loved one is one of life’s most challenging experiences. On top of the emotional turmoil, discovering that the original will cannot be located can add stress and confusion. However, steps exist to ensure your loved one’s wishes are honoured, even with only a copy of the original will.

In a recent case of MM obo GM v the North West Province's Department of Health MEC, (782/2022) [2024] ZASCA 52, an appellant's claim for certain damages was struck from the roll by the Supreme Court of Appeal and her claim for personal damages was remitted to the trial court for determination.

Losing a loved one is hard. It’s even more difficult to deal with such a loss in the face of long and complicated estate administration processes. It can become emotionally and financially taxing. In South Africa, it is not uncommon for a deceased estate to take two to five years to finalise.

Purchasing a property from a deceased estate is no ordinary property transaction. While there might be a great opportunity to buy a home at an attractive price, it’s essential to understand the complexities involved, including the possibility of prolonged waiting periods.

Locally, as trust compliance becomes more complex and trusts become more costly to administer, their value is increasingly being questioned. However, a trust’s worth extends beyond its financial benefits, and as such, they are still very relevant tools to use in a well-crafted estate plan, especially for high-net-worth families. 

On 31 July 2023, National Treasury released their annual draft tax law amendments, for public comment. Although still at the draft stage, there are some pertinent proposed changes for which the supporting systems have already been implemented i.e., the “Beneficial Ownership Registers”.

According to recent research from the Master of the High Court of South Africa, it’s estimated that 15% of South Africans who die have a will in place, which means that five out of six don’t. If you die without a will, your estate will be intestate. This can be a long and drawn-out process, and the assets from your estate will not be in line with what you wanted.

Although cryptocurrencies are on an upward trajectory in South Africa, a cryptocurrency wallet is worthless without its key or password. That was the reality for a 24-year-old Bitcoin-holder in 2021, who, after mining 20 Bitcoin for more than ten years when the cryptocurrency was still only worth a few cents, lost his wallet key and access to around R14.18 million in Bitcoin.