Marriage, Property and the surviving spouse
Marriage, Property and the Surviving Spouse: Why Proper Estate Planning Matters in Eswatini Article by Kenneth Motsa Marriage is more than a personal relationship. It is also a legal relationship with consequences for property, succession, pensions and the rights of the surviving spouse. For many couples, questions about property and inheritance are postponed until […]
CAN AN EMPLOYER SUBSTITUTE A CHAIRPERSON’S RULING?
CAN AN EMPLOYER SUBSTITUTE A CHAIRPERSON’S RULING? Introduction The perennial debate as to whether an employer is entitled to disregard the outcome of its own internal disciplinary process and substitute it with its own decision has once again occupied the courts in the Republic of South Africa. The recent decision in Nkuna v […]
Land Ownership Restrictions for Non-Swazis in Eswatini – The Legal Position
LAND OWNERSHIP RESTRICTIONS FOR NON-SWAZIS IN ESWATINI – THE LEGAL POSITION Foreign investment continues to play an important role in Eswatini’s economic development. However, the acquisition and ownership of land by non-Swazi individuals and entities remains subject to a carefully regulated legal framework designed to protect national interests and prevent speculative landholding. Eswatini’s legal framework […]
UPDATE ON ESWATINI’S MERGER CONTROL REGIME
UPDATE ON ESWATINI’S MERGER CONTROL REGIME What businesses, investors and transaction advisors need to know KEY TAKEAWAY | Eswatini’s merger-control regime remains active under the Competition Act, 2007 and the Competition Commission Regulations, 2010. The critical question is not simply the size of a transaction, but whether it falls within the statutory definition of a […]
The Limits of Legitimate Expectation in Employment Contracts.
THE LIMITS OF LEGITIMATE EXPECTATION IN EMPLOYMENT CONTRACTS Introduction The Industrial Court of Eswatini recently delivered a pivotal judgment in the matter of Mfanimpela Hlatshwako v ICAP Eswatini (136/2021) [2026] SZIC 53 (7 July 2026) providing much-needed clarity on the legal consequences of the expiry of fixed-term employment contracts and, in particular, the limits of […]
Medical Certificates Are Not a Licence To Avoid Hearings
Medical Certificates Are Not a License To Avoid Hearings Date published: 13-07-2026 The recent spectacle of witnesses before the Madlanga Commission of Enquiry in South Africa repeatedly producing medical certificates to avoid giving evidence before the Commission has highlighted a problem that employers in Eswatini have faced for many years. Justice Madlanga’s observation that […]
Silence the Slander – Supreme Court Confirms Interdicts & Apologies in Defamation Cases. Date Published: 03-03-2026
Silence the Slander – Supreme Court Confirms Interdicts & Apologies in Defamation Cases Date published: 03-03-2026 In a landmark judgment that will set the judicial landscape in Eswatini delivered on the 3rd March 2026 by the Apex Court of Eswatini has endorsed a High Court judgment, that a complainant in a defamation matter can […]
Navigating the Dissolution of Double Marriages in Eswatini
NAVIGATING THE DISSOLUTION OF DOUBLE MARRIAGES IN ESWATINI In the Kingdom of Eswatini, love—and the law—can take two very different forms. Thanks to the country’s unique dual legal system, couples may find themselves married not once, but twice—once under Swati law and custom, and again under Roman-Dutch common law. While each marriage is legally valid, […]
NO CESSION, NO CASE – INSURER RIGHT OF SUBROGATION REFINED
NO CESSION, NO CASE – INSURER RIGHT OF SUBROGATION REFINED Introduction The High Court of Eswatini has recently delivered a pivotal judgment that refines the limits of an insurer’s right of subrogation and reiterates the fundamental principle that only parties with proper standing may institute legal proceedings in their own names. In the matter of […]
BACK IN THE HOTSEAT
BACK IN THE HOTSEAT In any workplace, dealing with misconduct is part of the territory. But what happens if an employee is disciplined—and then later called in again for the same offence? Is that fair? Is it legal? This is where the concept of double jeopardy comes in. Though the term is usually heard in […]