NEW COMMERCIAL COURT FOR BUSINESS DISPUTES
The Commercial Court has been revived in the Gauteng Division of the High Court of South Africa.
Although the court was established 15 years ago, it was never fully operational. The court aims at resolving company disputes faster and more efficiently and will consider any case that has a commercial transaction and/or relationship as its foundation. The claim made must, however, arise from or relate to the following:
- the export or import of goods;
- the carriage of goods by land, sea, air or pipeline;
- the exploitation of oil and gas reserves or other natural resources that do not involve Administrative Law;
- insurance and reinsurance;
- banking and financial services;
- the operation of markets and exchanges;
- the purchase and sale of commodities;
- medical scheme matters;
- commercial matters arising out of business rescue and insolvency cases;
- all commercial matters affecting companies arising out of the Companies Act 71 of 2008 and its interpretation;
- arbitration;
- delictual cases that take place in a commercial context for, e.g. unlawful competition cases;
- generally, appropriate contractual matters; and
- intellectual property cases.
Although the court is only available in Gauteng for now, it is hoped that similar courts will be established in other High Courts in the future to help alleviate the backlog experienced with many court rolls.
For professional legal advice, contact Goldberg & de Villiers Inc on 041 501 9800.
