Good News Story

Good news story: The Stellenbosch University Law Clinic successfully appealed against an eviction order granted against a family of eight

The Valentine family approached the Stellenbosch University Law Clinic (“the Clinic”) during the beginning of 2017 for assistance with an eviction application brought against them. Candidate attorney Danielle Louw assisted the family with opposing the eviction application. The Valentines, who reside on a property in Worcester, are a family of eight, which consists of four adults and four minor children. Mr Valentine is unemployed, but occasionally works as a gardener, while Ms Vorster, his life partner, works as a domestic worker. The Valentine family receives a very small income and has been registered on the local municipality’s waiting list for housing since 1996. As such, the family is dependent on their local municipality, to provide them with alternative housing, should they evicted and be left homeless.

Louw prepared opposing papers, represented the Valentines in court and attended engagements with the Breede Valley Municipality, in an attempt to secure alternative accommodation for the family. In an affidavit deposed to by the Municipal Manager, the Municipality requested that, should the court order an eviction, such order should be suspended until the municipality is in a position to assist the family with a rental unit or a unit in their massive housing project, namely the TransHex Project, in June 2018.

Arguments were heard in the Magistrate’s Court, where Louw argued, inter alia, that, in light of a recent Constitutional court decision, an eviction order against the Valentines, in circumstances where a real risk of homelessness is imminent, cannot be just and equitable and will thus not comply with the provisions of the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land, Act 19 of 1998. The Court, however, granted an order evicting the family, in which order they were provided time until 2 January 2018 to vacate the property.

Aggrieved by this decision, Louw, after consulting with her former principal, concluded that the decision to evict was not just and equitable, and with the pro bono assistance of Advocate Fiona Gordon-Turner, lodged an appeal at the Western Cape Division of the High Court. Arguments were heard in the High Court on 1 June 2018.

Gordon-Turner argued that the Magistrate’s Court erred by concluding that it was just and equitable to grant an eviction order. The High Court agreed, and held that the Magistrate’s Court “committed a material misdirection when it came to the conclusion that it was just and equitable to grant an eviction order when it was clear that there was a real risk that an eviction order would render the [Valentines] homeless.” The High Court accordingly held that the appeal should succeed and set aside the order of the Magistrate’s Court.

The Valentine family did therefore not have to vacate their home and are currently still residing in their home in Worcester.