De Facto Investments 255 (Pty) Ltd v Nkala and Others; Mavundla and Others

The plaintiff, a commercial farming company, sought the eviction of two families (Nkala and Mavundla) from a farm in Bergville, KwaZulu-Natal. The families had lived on the farm for generations and previously provided labour to the former owner, Mr van der Merwe. When the farm was sold to the plaintiff in 2002, agreements were purportedly signed by the defendants to vacate the farm in exchange for R1,000 and building blocks. One family relocated, but the Nkala and Mavundla families remained. The plaintiff installed a large irrigation pivot which was obstructed by the families’ homesteads and sought eviction, alleging breach of agreement and misconduct. The defendants contended that they were either occupiers protected under ESTA or labour tenants under the Land Reform (Labour Tenants) Act (LTA), and that the agreements to vacate were invalid.

The eviction claim was dismissed. The court declared that the first and second defendants are labour tenants, with the result that they may only be evicted in terms of the Land Reform (Labour Tenants) Act.

The case reinforces the strong statutory protections afforded to long-term rural occupiers and labour tenants. It clarifies the application of ESTA’s requirements for lawful termination and eviction, and illustrates the evidentiary burden on landowners to prove that occupiers are farmworkers rather than labour tenants. The judgment underscores the historical and generational nature of labour tenancy in South Africa.