''Golden Harvest (Pty) Ltd v Zen-Don CC'' is an important case in
South African law, heard in the
Orange Free State Provincial Division
The Free State Division of the High Court of South Africa (previously named the Orange Free State Provincial Division and the Free State High Court, and commonly known as the Bloemfontein High Court) is a superior court of law with general jurisd ...
by Choudree AJ on March 15, 2001, with judgment handed down on August 21. AJR van Rhyn appeared for the applicant; PU Fischer appeared for the
respondent
{{unreferenced, date=February 2012
A respondent is a person who is called upon to issue a response to a communication made by another. The term is used in legal contexts, in survey methodology, and in psychological conditioning.
Legal usage
In ...
.
Facts
By reason of a ''
bona fide
In human interactions, good faith ( la, bona fides) is a sincere intention to be fair, open, and honest, regardless of the outcome of the interaction. Some Latin phrases have lost their literal meaning over centuries, but that is not the case ...
'' mistake made by its legal representatives, the
plaintiff
A plaintiff ( Π in legal shorthand) is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an ''action'') before a court. By doing so, the plaintiff seeks a legal remedy. If this search is successful, the court will issue judgment in favor of the p ...
was cited in its particulars of claim as "Golden Harvest (Pty) Ltd." It subsequently appeared, however, that the plaintiff was in fact a company, Norris Fresh Produce (Pty) Ltd, which traded as "Golden Harvest." The plaintiff thereupon applied for an amendment in which it sought to substitute for its name as cited the following citation: "Golden Harvest, a business of which the sole proprietor is Norris Fresh Produce (Pty) Ltd."
This amendment was resisted on the following basis:
# The plaintiff was seeking to introduce a new party to the proceedings by way of an amendment.
# Because the plaintiff as cited was a non-existent entity, the summons was a
nullity.
Judgment
The court held that no attempt was being made to substitute one
legal entity for another. There was no question of separate legal entities, but clearly an incorrect description of the original plaintiff, which mistake could be cured by the proposed amendment to the description of the plaintiff. The incorrect description had not rendered the summons invalid, and the proposed amendment would not involve the substitution of one persona for another. The amendment had to be granted accordingly.
[661F-G, 662A-B.]
See also
*
South African law of partnerships and trusts
South African company law is that body of rules which regulates corporations formed under the Companies Act. A company is a business organisation which earns income by the production or sale of goods or services. This entry also covers rules by ...
References
Cases
* ''Golden Harvest (Pty) Ltd v Zen-Don CC'' 2002 (2)
SA 653 (O).
Notes
{{Reflist
2001 in South African case law
South African partnerships and trusts case law
Free State Division cases