An elderly and sickly husband learned the hard way when he wanted to revoke the ‘donation’ of his half of the matrimonial home to his now estranged wife, based on the grounds of ‘ingratitude’ on her part, as he claimed she subsequently assaulted him and had an affair. A Pretoria News report says the husband – who claimed he had donated his portion of their home to his wife out of the goodness of his heart – changed his mind due to his wife’s conduct. The wife subsequently turned to the Gauteng High Court (Johannesburg) to obtain an order for the husband to sign the documents pertaining to the transfer of his portion to her and for the Pretoria Registrar of Deeds to transfer the property into her name.
Acting Judge van Eden commented that the reason for the donation does not appear from the founding affidavit of the husband or the deed of donation. But in his replying affidavit, he stated that in making the donation, he was ‘acting out of pure liberality’. ‘I thus accept that the donation was a pure donation,’ the judge said. The husband opposed this application on the basis that he had revoked the donation. Van Eden found – on the premise the husband failed to prove an entitlement to claim revocation of a pure donation based on gross ingratitude – the wife’s application should succeed. The husband was ordered to sign the papers so that the house can belong to his wife.
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