The main claimants in SA’s BIGGEST land claim, Tenbosch, have been ordered to pay the legal costs of nine legal teams, as well as the financial losses the Land Claims Court incurred to hear the trial in Malelane, Mpumalanga.
This, after they held up procedures with two applications for the judge to recuse himself and subsequently aborted both applications. The claim, which involves 186 000ha between Malelane and Komatipoort, was gazetted in 1999 and has been held up in the Land Claims Court since 19 May 2006.
The main claimants are four communities, Hhoyi, Lugedlane, Siboshwa and Mbambiso. Three additional competing claimant communities joined the case later. “On three occasions in 2007 and 2008, the matter was set down for hearing, but had to be postponed because the main claimants weren’t ready to proceed,” said Bertus van der Merwe of Cox and Partners Attorneys, who represent the respondents to the claim. “All parties, except for the main claimants, were again ready to proceed with the trial on 2 June this year.
The main claimants, at a very late stage, launched an application for the recusal of the judge and then terminated the services of their previous lawyers.” A ccording to a source close to the case who wished to remain anonymous, the trial, which was scheduled to run from 2 to 10 June in was then changed to hear the application for the recusal of the judge in the Randburg Land Claims Court.
“The Friday before the trial, the main claimants’ attorney, Renqe Kunene, convinced the claimants to go ahead with the recusal,” said the source. “They subsequently fired Kunene and for two court days (2 and 3 June) failed to bring the application to the court. Bringing the affidavit at such a late stage suggests that they were again not ready, but just wasted the court’s time.”
The main claimants then lodged another application for the judge’s recusal on 3 June. “The court had to grant the applicants the opportunity to bring whatever application they wanted properly,” said Van der Merwe. “When on 4 June the main claimants had to proceed with the arguing of their second application for the recusal of the judge – the first having been abandoned – they then informed the court they no longer wished to proceed with either of the applications.” Van der Merwe said after so much wasted time it was no longer possible to proceed with the main trial. “The claimants then tendered all the wasted legal costs of the various legal teams who opposed their application, including the wasted costs of the seven-day trial which did not commence,” he said.
“No less than nine legal teams participated, comprised of about 22 legal practitioners and various practices.” While the costs have not yet been determined, attorneys agree that it will be hundreds of thousands of rand. “It’s very unusual for land claimants to have to foot the bill,” said Agri SA’s land affairs director Theo de Jager. “But it’s good to see the Land Claims Court taking such a strong stance.” The trial will commence on 25 August 2008. – David Steynberg
