Jamieson, Neil v Sabingo, Amindo Cesar

The appellant, an incola of the Witwatersrand Local Division, instituted action against the respondent, an out-and-out peregrinus, based on an alleged contract for the sale and installation of equipment at a hotel in Luanda, Angola. The contract was concluded by fax when the respondent’s acceptance was received in Johannesburg. The appellant obtained an ex parte order attaching the respondent’s right, title and interest in a judgment the respondent held against a South African company, to found or confirm jurisdiction. Before the attachment was executed, the respondent voluntarily submitted to the jurisdiction of the Witwatersrand Local Division through his attorneys. The court a quo discharged the rule nisi and set aside the attachment on the basis of this submission, prompting the appeal.

The appeal was dismissed with costs, including the costs of two counsel.

The case authoritatively confirms that voluntary submission to jurisdiction by a peregrine defendant renders attachment to confirm jurisdiction unnecessary, even where the submission is unilateral and made after an attachment order but before execution. It clarifies South African law on jurisdiction, effectiveness of judgments, and limits the necessity of attachment in cross-border litigation.