FACULTY OF Commerce,
Administration & Law
DEPARTMENT OF Private
Law
COURSE OUTLINE
Module Title
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LAW OF SUCCESSION
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Module Code
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LPLS 201
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Programme in which the module is offered
|
LLB DEGREE
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Year of offering
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SECOND YEAR
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SAQA Credits
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12 credits
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NQF level
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6
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Date: February2017
Dear Student
Welcome to the module Law of Succession (LPLS201)
which is a body
of rules which govern the transfer and distribution of assets of the deceased
to those beneficiaries entitled to receive. When a person dies everything that
remains of his assets after debts, other obligations and administrative costs
have been claimed passes by inheritance to people qualified to succeed him.
We would like
to invite you to use the lecturer as facilitator to develop your knowledge in
this subject to the maximum. In order to attain success in this subject, your
own contribution is important. It is important that you realise that it is
your responsibility to prepare for classes and to initiate class discussions.
If your attitude towards your study is correct, success will inevitably await
you in your future career but always remember that success will come with hours
and hours of very hard work.
The best of luck.
Warm
Regards,
NC NKOSI
Office no: 323
Extension 6191
nkosin@unizulu.ac.za
Contents
1. DEFINITION OF TERMS
COURSE OUTLINE/SCHEME
OF WORK/MODULE OUTLINE: Course/Module
outline/Schemes of work represent a contract between the lecturer and student
stipulating the requirements for each course: its aims, learning outcomes,
course requirements and assessment.
LEARNER/STUDY GUIDE: A learner/study guide helps in organising lecture
notes and textbook material so that students can increase their comprehension
and memory of large amounts of information. Specific outcomes on topics
covered, the summary of content, as well as revision questions are included.
TUTORIAL: A tutorial is an interactive method of transferring
knowledge in the learning process. A tutorial seeks to teach by example and
supply the information to complete a certain task.
PRACTICAL: A practical is a lesson in which theories and
procedures learned are applied to the actual making or doing of something.
FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT: The goal of formative assessment is develop and
monitor student learning to provide ongoing feedback that can be used by lecturers
to improve their teaching and by students to improve their learning.
SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT: The goal of summative assessment is to evaluate
student learning at the end of an instructional unit by comparing it against
some standard or benchmark.
2. GENERIC OUTCOMES
These
are critical cross-field outcomes that inform all teaching and learning as
stipulated by SAQA Regulations.
Each module should enable students to:
·
work effectively as
individuals and with others as members of a team;
·
organise and manage
themselves and their activities responsibly and effectively;
·
identify and solve
problems and make decisions using critical and creative thinking;
·
collect, analyse,
organise and critically evaluate information;
·
communicate
effectively using visual, symbolic and/or language skills in various modes;
·
use science and
technology effectively and critically showing responsibility towards the
environment and the health of others; and
·
Demonstrate an
understanding of the world as a set of related systems by recognising that
problem solving contexts do not exist in isolation.
SPECIFIC/MODULE
OUTCOMES: Learning outcomes are statements of what
students will learn in a lecture. Each lecture has its specific outcomes. The
statements are focused on student learning.
3.
MODULE PURPOSE
A student who completed this module will have knowledge of the
following and will be able to apply that knowledge:
- Law on intestate
succession
- Testamentary capacity
- Formalities in the
execution of wills
- Revocation and invalid
wills
- Capacity to inherit
- Content of wills
(including usufruct,
fideicommissum and trust)
- Capacity of inherit
- Substitution
- Massing of estate
- Accrual ius accrescendi
- Collation
- Pactum successorium and puctum de non succedendo
- Interpretation and
ratification of wills
- Administration of estates
4.
MODULE OUTCOMES
On completion of this module, students are expected to be able to:
1.
|
Consider and analyze the
main principles of the law of succession.
|
2.
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Critically
evaluate and analyze the legal consequences of death and the distribution of
the estate of the deceased.
|
3.
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Apply the
principles of the law relating to the distribution of a deceased's estate to
practical situations.
|
4.
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Explain and analyze the
concept of a trust and how one is created and terminated.
|
5. TOPICS
WITH SCHEDULING
WEEK NO:
|
TOPIC
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OTHER
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1
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The Law of intestate succession
|
|
2
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Testamentary
Capacity and Formalities in the execution and amendment Of Wills
|
|
3
|
Invalid wills and Revocation of wills,
capacity to inherit
|
|
4
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Contents of Wills (usufruct, fideicommissum)
|
|
5
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Joint/mutual Wills, Massing of estates
|
|
6
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The ius
Accrescendi
|
Assessment 1
|
HAPPY HOLIDAYS J
WEEK NO:
|
TOPIC
|
OTHER
|
1
|
Collation
|
|
2
|
The pactum
Successorium
|
|
3
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Interpretation and rectification of Wills
|
|
4
|
continue
|
|
5
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Administration of estates
|
Assessment 2
|
6
|
continue
|
|
7
|
Revision
|
6. CONSULTATION
TIMES
ARE SOON TO BE POSTED OUTSIDE MY OFFICE DOOR.
7. MODE
OF DELIVERY Lectures and Tutorials
Class attendance is of utmost importance in
this subject. The practical application of theory is constantly tutored through
a variety of class activities. Important announcements are made during the
class and important guidelines are provided on how to start and complete
homework and assignments.
8.
ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES
Students
shall be required to write two tests and one examination. Each test will be for
50 marks and will each count for 25% of the student’s overall mark. The exam
will be for 100 marks and will count for 50% of the student’s overall mark. The
mark that a student gets from the two tests will be divided against the
examination mark to bring up the final mark. The scope of the assessment will
include all work covered up to and including one day before the date of the
formal assessment, irrespective of whether the material has been lectured on or
not. A student who did not write a single test will not qualify to write the
examination. Use University approved assignment cover sheet
to submit your assignments
Welcome on board. If you attended all
your classes, participate during classes, consult if you do not understand,
write all your assessments, there will be no crash landing during your final
examination. However if you do not do any of the above prepare yourself for a
crash lending at the end of the semester.
9. PRESCRIBED STUDY MATERIAL
Prescribed Text book: Introduction to the Law of Succession by MJ
De Waal, Fourth Edition. Students need
not take copious notes at the lectures as all the relevant information is found
in the text. Reference to the relevant
chapters and sections will be made during the course of the lectures and in
this document.
Please
note that definitions and explanations in this guide are for illustration
purposes only, merely to facilitate a clearer understanding of the concepts and
is not meant as a substitute for the explanations provided for in the
prescribed texts.
Prescribed Legislation: Students are required to familiarize
themselves with the following pieces of legislation:
- Intestate
Succession Act 81 of 1987;
- Administration
of Estates Act 66 of 1965;
- Wills
Act 7 of 1953
10. ASSESSMENT CRITERIA
Learning outcomes
|
Assessment criteria
|
Assessment
tasks/methods
|
|
·
Apply the relevant legal principles to testate and
intestate succession
|
·
Identify and distinguish between the legal principles
applicable to factual situations
·
Apply statutory and common law principles in a given
context
|
·
Class discussion and questioning
·
Problem questions in examination and tests
·
assignment
|
|
·
Communicate the legal principles of the law of succession
as well as argue your own point of view
|
·
Demonstrate the ability to critically reflect on what has
been read and learned
·
Analyse, describe and explain the relevant legal
|
·
Class discussion and questioning
·
Problem questions in examination
|
|
Apply
numeracy skills to aspects of the course
|
Calculate
amounts awarded to heirs, executors remuneration, Masters fees and Estate
Duty with reference to a particular deceased estate
|
·
Class discussion and questioning
·
Draft a liquidation and distribution account as an
assignment
·
Problem questions in examination (this will come when you
do legal skills D)
|
|
Draft
legally valid wills and liquidation and distribution accounts using
technology (this will come when you do legal skills D)
|
Apply
the relevant statutory provisions in the drafting of wills and liquidation
and distribution accounts
·
Utilise basic word-processing technology
·
·
Work in a team
|
Draft
a will as an assignment
·
Draft a liquidation and distribution account as an
assignment
·
Draft aspects of wills and liquidation and distribution
accounts in the examination (this will come when you do legal skills D)
|
11. Examination
techniques
Most courses include an
end-of-semester examination as part of the assessment. The formal examination
requires you to demonstrate your learning to the lecturer. If you have followed
our suggestions about studying, you will be well on your way to success. Here
are a few additional points to help you with your exams.
Preparing for examinations
It is a good idea to begin
revising the semester’s materials at
least two or three weeks before the examination. That way, you have time to put
in a bit of extra effort on areas you are not quite certain of. Here are some
extra points to help you.
Revise your notes. Go over the notes you have made for yourself
during your study. Make sure that you see the relationship between the key
points that you have written down, and the related details.
Get together. If possible, get together with others studying
the same course. Discuss each point. Quiz each other.
Review ‘past examination papers’. You can use same as a ‘trial run’ to get an idea of working within a strict
time limit. Past examination papers may give you an idea of the kind of
questions that might be asked. But don’t place too
much emphasis on them as lecturer can ask different styles of questions.
Review assignments. Go over previous assignments. If you didn’t do well, look at the lecturer’s comments/feedback to find out where you went
wrong.
Get to bed in good time. Don’t stay up
revising all of the night before the exam. Get a good night’s sleep so that you are alert and at your best. And
don’t skimp on meals before the
exam. Mental exertion is just as dependent on a healthy body as is physical
exertion.
Confirm examination mode. Come prepared with all necessary equipment. In
your examination
Time planning. Just as you plan how you will use your weekly
study time, so too should you plan your time in the examination. Here are
some guidelines on how to use your time effectively in your examination.
- Try to leave yourself sufficient time at the end of the examination
to check over your work and make any last-minute corrections.
- If all questions have equal weight, plan to take about the same
amount of time with each one. If the questions have unequal weighting,
spend more time on those questions with many marks, and less time on the
ones with fewer marks.
- In multiple choice questions, don’t spend too much time
on questions you can’t answer easily or
quickly. Go ahead and answer the others first, leaving yourself sufficient
time to return to those that you are unsure of.
Hints on answering
questions. Here are few hints to help you in answering questions.
- Write legibly. Even with the best will in the world, a marker
cannot give you credit if your writing cannot be read.
- In answering essay questions, make certain that your essay is well
organised and grammatically correct. It will pay dividends to spend a few
minutes planning your essay before you begin writing.
- Make sure that you answer the question asked. Underline the key
words in the question, and underline the verb. This will help you to focus
on the essence of the question.
Be committed
Try to build your study
plan around fixed time commitments – the time that
you must give to your essential daily activities such as family, eating and
sleeping, recreation and leisure.
Be realistic
Try to be realistic in
planning your study time. You will probably have to give up some of the things
you do to make time for study. On the other hand, most people need recreation,
and find it easier to stick to a schedule if they specifically include time for
sport, leisure, or other relaxation.
Study every day
Study is easier if you
spread the work out, rather than trying to cram it all into one or two days.
Also, research has shown that you learn better and remember more if you spread
out your studying.
Your concentration span
Most people find that it is
difficult to concentrate for long periods. If you must study for a long period
of time, be sure to take a break every hour for a few minutes.
Your study timetable
Find out what time of day you
study best. Some people are most alert early in the morning, some in the
afternoon and others late at night. For example, if you are a ‘morning person’, try to
schedule an hour or two of study in the early morning before you go to work, or
before the rest of the family is out of bed.
Set realistic goals
But set goals! Before you
begin a study period, decide what it is you intend to accomplish. It may
be to summarise one chapter, to write two pages of an essay. And
give yourself a pat on the back when you have completed your assigned task.
Set good habits
Get in the habit of
beginning work as soon as you sit at your study table. Do not use part of your
study time for other things, such as straightening your room or alphabetising
your books.
Review your work
At the end of each study
period, review the work that you have done, and if necessary modify your study
plan. At the end of each week, plan your timetable for the week ahead.
Study Strategies
Studying refers to all that
you do in order to learn something. Here are some suggestions to help you study
effectively.
Be active
Be actively involved with the things that you are trying to learn.
For example, write key points in your own words. Try to relate your study to
your own experience, whether it be at home, or elsewhere.
Avoid compartmentalisation
Try to see the
relationships among different modules in a course, and different courses in
your program. The more you seek for and find connections among the things that
you study, the more sense they will make and the easier they will be to
remember.
Use memory aids
- List the major points in each module of a study book or chapter of
a textbook. These major points form the ‘framework’ of the course. If you understand the framework, you will find it
easier to remember the details.
- Some students write important points on cards and go through them
from time to time. Others write a detailed outline and pin it up on a wall
by their study table. Such visible reminders are a simple and efficient
way to help you memorise basic facts.
Form study groups
Form a study group with
other students. Ask for help or to get a fresh point of view. You will find
that trying to explain something to another person is one of the very best ways
to learn it yourself.
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ALWAYS DEESIRE TO LEARN
SOMETHING USEFULL -Sophocles
