Motlalepula Elizabeth Moeketsi v Regional Land Claims Commissioner, Gauteng and North West Provinces and Others

The plaintiff, acting on behalf of the Kwa-Dukathole Land Claims Community, lodged a land restitution claim under the Restitution of Land Rights Act 22 of 1994 for land allegedly lost due to racially discriminatory laws. The claim was lodged timeously before 31 December 1998. The plaintiff instituted action claiming monetary compensation of R42 360 plus interest, alleging that the Regional Land Claims Commissioner (RLCC) had compensated other claimant families on a similar basis. The defendants raised a special plea that the claim had prescribed under the Prescription Act 68 of 1969 due to delay in referring the matter to court. By agreement, the special plea was separated from the merits and determined first.

The special plea of prescription raised by the defendants was dismissed. The matter was to proceed to determination of the merits at a later stage.

The case is significant in South African land restitution jurisprudence for clarifying that restitution claims under the Restitution of Land Rights Act are not readily subject to extinctive prescription where the statutory restitution process has not been finalised. It underscores the constitutional dimension of land restitution and limits the application of the Prescription Act in this context.