What are the rights of tenants in a boarding house where the late landlady had life rights?

The long answer

Life rights are terminated by the death of the person – Mrs W – and the property reverts to the original owners. In this case, the children of the late employer. 

However, under the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act (PIE) of 1998, they cannot evict you without a court order.

And, even with a court order, the eviction cannot be carried out until the lockdown ends unless a court finds implementing the eviction immediately to be just and equitable. This is unlikely to be the case with you. Usually, a court will only find that immediate implementation of an eviction order is just and equitable if the tenants are harming the property. 

The children of the late employer must give you written notice of their intention to evict you and the date of the court hearing. You must go to court on that day and tell the court your story. The municipality is also required to be in court on that day to say whether they can make alternative accommodation available should the eviction order be granted. The court must take into account how the eviction will affect the tenants, including the elderly, women and children. The Constitutional Court has said that the PIE Act "expressly requires the court to infuse elements of grace and compassion into the formal structures of the law." 

If the eviction order is granted, it cannot be put into effect until the lockdown is over. 

You could ask advice from an organisation like Lawyers for Human Rights. These are their contact details in Durban:

• Email: info@lhr.org.za

• Tel: 031 301 0531

• Address: Room S104, Diakonia Centre, 20th Diakonia Avenue (formerly St. Andrews Street), Durban

Wishing you the best,
Athalie