Mercantile Law Tutorial 1
Question 1.1
False. Rules of law is enforced by state institutions such as the government, but rules of
religion are enforced by each religion and the communities in the religion. (“ML 193 Notes
Study Unit 1 Part 2 at page 2”)
Question 1.2
False. South Africa has different sources of law, such as legislation, common law, court
decisions, custom and international law. Thus, the constitution isn’t the only source of law in
South Africa. (“[Link]
Question 1.3
True. Custom law is generally an unwritten law. It is the way of which people live their daily
life because they consider is as law.
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Question 1.4
False. The right to claim payment after the car has been delivered would be considered a
personal right, not a real right.
Question 1.5
True. Public law consists out of the following- administrative law, constitutional law,
international law, procedural law, and lastly criminal law. Thus, criminal law falls under a
branch of public law. (“ML 193 Notes Study Unit 1 Part 6 at page 7”)
Question 2
Sisonke wanting to claim money from Themba, to avoid further damaging of Themba’s
property would be an example of neogtiorum gestio, which can be defined as “the voluntary
management of another person’s affairs” (“ML 193 Notes Study Unit 1 Part 6 at page 3”).
Themba was unreachable, thus it is considered an emergency situation where Sisonke had
to take action to prevent further damaging of Themba’s property. Sisonke did what was
urgently necessary to avoid further damaging of property. Thus, Sisonke has a legal claim to
be reimbursed for hiring the plumber to make repairs to Themba’s water system and prevent
further flooding and damaging of the surrounding property.
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Question 3
In order for a custom to become a law certain requirements should be met. Thus, according
to the case of Brede van Jacobs certain requirements should be met before a custom can be
considered as a valid law. The requirements are the following. The custom should have been
in use for a long period of time. The custom should be reasonable and fair. The custom’s
content and meaning should be clear and certain. The custom should be recognized
generally and obscured by the community or society.
(“[Link] (“ML 193 Notes Study Unit 1 part 4 at
page 11”). The custom also needs to contribute in a positive matter, by improving the overall
well-being of people and the members of the community. Thus, it is possible for Jonathan to
make their community’s custom a law, if the above requirements are met.
Question 4
This matter should be taken to the small claims court. The small claims court handles
matters or conflicts, where a small sum of money is involved. It is also a budget friendly
option because you don’t have to hire a lawyer to handle your case, but you can instead
represent yourself. Thus, it is a quick and more affordable way to get back money that
someone still owes you. Brittany owes Abigail R1000, thus is falls under the price range the
small claims court deals with, making it an appropriate and affordable option for their
dispute. (“[Link]
Question 5.1
Melissa and Jackson are legal subjects.
Question 5.2
The concert organisers have infringed upon Melissa’s rights. They discriminated against her
when denying her access to the concert because of her gender. They infringed against her
right of freedom from discrimination. They also infringed upon her right to equality. They
treated Melissa and Jackson differently because Jackson is a man and Melissa a woman,
Thus, they didn’t treat them equally, but instead made a decision based on their gender, after
they had already bought tickets.
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