law of succession Study+Unit+1+Q+ +A PDF

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Study Unit 1 – Questions and Answers Would I have a claim against the deceased's estate as a creditor if he was negligent on the road in some way and died, and during that act he injured me? Would the executor be liable to pay for my rehabilitation, hospital bills etc. from the deceased's estate? If...

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Study Unit 1 – Questions and Answers 1. Would I have a claim against the deceased's estate as a creditor if he was negligent on the road in some way and died, and during that act he injured me? Would the executor be liable to pay for my rehabilitation, hospital bills etc. from the deceased's estate? If you have a valid claim against the deceased, it means you also have a claim against their estate in an instance of death. This means you may have a valid claim against their estate for the said damages or expenses. I say you may, because the executor has a right to dispute your claim 2. Could you kindly advise whether we should study and memorize the sections contained within the various statutes? Would there potentially be MCQ's in future which would require us to select the correct section from the three main pieces of legislation provided? eg. S2D(1)(a) of the Wills Act provides this S2D(1)(a) of the Wills Act provides that S2D(1) (a) of the Wills Act provides options a and b etc...? You only required to know the sections we deal with in class. And yes, you likely to be asked on the exact provision in multiple-choice questions. 3. According to succession, estate is the accumulation of both the deceased assets and liabilities but during the transfer or division of the estate only assets and not liabilities are transferred why is that? It is because the law of succession is only concerned with the transfer of assets and not liabilities. Importantly, note that liabilities such as the payment of a sum of money, give rise to a personal right, in that it can only be enforced against the specific person who owes you, and not anyone else. So, you cannot expect A’s beneficiaries to pay A’s debts, but A must pay his own debts, and this is why the executor will settle them first, prior to giving out what is left in the estate. Refer to the section dealing with the administration of the estate to see what happens to the liabilities.

4. As per the regulation that says the creditors of an estate has 30 days to make a claim against the deceased estate once it has been advertised in a local newspaper. My question is, would a creditor have recourse if the creditor were to make a claim after the thirty days? If creditor makes valid claim after the 30 days, the creditor does not automatically lose their right to a claim. If, however, the executor has made a distribution under an account before the creditor has lodged his or her claim, the creditor will not be able to recover anything from any other creditors who have been paid out on a valid claim by the executor. If there no other assets to distribute, sadly, the creditor may claim against the beneficiaries on the basis that they have received more than they ought to from the estate. See section 31 of the Administrations of Estate Act. 5. Similarly, once the L&D account has been submitted to the high court and is awaiting any claims against the account in the 21-day period. What would happen if a creditor were to approach the court about making a claim after the 21-day window, would the creditor have any recourse? Refer to answer for (4) above. Note that in this case, the creditor may incur costs for the reframing of the distribution account. 6. My final question pertains to the will example of Pieter le Roux, in which he leaves his house to his cousin Johan. I understand that Johan will not automatically become the legal owner and just obtains a right to the house. However, my question is what would happen if the house in question was being rented out to a third party and over the period that the estate is being executed, there is rent being paid, therefore would that sum of money(rent) automatically become Johan's or would it be possible for the heir of the remaining estate to make a claim to the money as it would be linked to the deceased's estate still? The rent is part of the deceased’s estate. Johan doesn’t own the house at Pieter’s death, he only has a right of claim. This means he cannot then claim for any rent derived any time before he actually can enforce his right. Once the estate is administered, Johan will get what is left in the estate. At that stage, it might not even be the actual house.

7. In terms of customary law when it comes to the law of succession, only South Africa’s black population groups are mentioned, could sharia law also be taken into account for the Muslim community of South Africa or is it purely based on indigenous customs? Please refer to Unit 2 for this answer. However, there are successful claims involving individuals in the Muslim community. Lecture Questions - 18/03/2021 1. What happens when the liabilities exceed the assets, who then will be liable to pay of the debts? Please see section 34 of the Administration of Estate Act. Note the principles relating to the Law of Insolvency may apply here. 2. Who decides on what must be sold in order to cover for the liabilities in such instances? The executor, with the required consent of the beneficiaries and/ or the Master – refer to section 42 & 47 of the Administration of Estate Act. 3. One of the students asked that what if Karen listed her brother as a successor in her will and he dies before her and he has a family, can they institute a claim against the will. Now please correct me if I am wrong, but according to study unit 1, it clearly states that if the successor dies before the deceased then succession in favour of that successor cannot occur, meaning that, that benefit initially falls away. Because it also states that the beneficiary must be competent to receive the benefit, but considering that he died, he is not competent to receive that benefit. Is it not that his family can only claim what is set out in his will, because he is not competent to receive the benefit of his sister’s will? The first part is very much correct. One is only entitled to a claim if they “out live” the estate owner. So, as per you query, there will be no further entitlement by the brother’s children. As far as the issue of competence is concerned, we will deal with that issue under study unit 8. Your current understanding of what this requirement entails is impaired. Here we refer to people who are entitled to benefit, but are considered unworthy to receive the benefit.

4. In relation to the example of Karen whereby she only had the amount of cash after selling of R350k. meaning the estate would have to furnish a further R150k to settle debt. My question is would it be possible for the father who is the co-owner of the house to perhaps get an equity/mortgage on his share of the property to the amount of R150k which he could then give to the executor of the estate in order to settle the estate debt at the same time as keeping the house that was and investment for both wife and husband as it grew in value by R1m. therefore allowing the father and minor son to keep their family home, with the father paying off his mortgage. If you referring to a “buy out”, a beneficiary to the estate can choose to purchase the property from the estate. This can entail a “buy-out’ of other beneficiaries who are to also to inherit a portion of the estate. Study Unit 1 – Answers to examples 1. In this example, Ricardo Thomas is a legatee, and the house is Ricardo’s legacy 2. In this example, Molly Adams is Alfred’s heir, and her inheritance comprises all of Alfred’s assets excluding the house and the yacht

3. If Khotso died in 2018 and Thandi died in 2021, Khotso predeceased Thandi and will not receive the Toyota 4. Khotso cannot receive the Toyota because Khotso and Thandi died simultaneously (they were commorientes) and Khotso did therefore not survive (out-live) Thandi...