The appellants, Phillip and Thandiwe Motsima, originally owned a residential property in Bloemfontein. Due to financial distress and inability to service a mortgage bond, they sold the property in 2017 to the C&D Investment Trust and leased it back with an option to repurchase. Unable to exercise the option, they later entered into an oral arrangement with the Kopas, who purchased the property from the trust in 2018. The relationship between the parties deteriorated, and the Kopas eventually sold the property to the Van der Merwe Family Trust, which in turn sold it to a bona fide third party. The appellants instituted action in 2019 seeking to have the initial sales declared simulated, unlawful, and void. The High Court dismissed the action. Although leave to appeal was granted, the appellants failed to prosecute the appeal timeously, causing it to lapse. Their subsequent application for condonation and reinstatement of the appeal was dismissed by the Full Court, prompting the present appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeal.