Deeds Registries Act, 1937 (Act No. 47 of 1937)

Chapter VIII : Miscellaneous

102. Definitions

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(1)In this Act unless inconsistent with the context—

 

"conveyancer"

means, in respect of any deeds registry, a person practising as such in the Republic, and includes a person admitted as an attorney in terms of the relevant Transkeian legislation and physically practising as such within the area of the former Republic of Transkei on or before the date of commencement of Proclamation No. R. 9 of 1997;

[Definition substituted by section 22 of Act 14 of 1993 and Proclamation No. R. 9 of 1997]

 

"court" or "the court"

means the High Court having jurisdiction, and includes any judge thereof;

[Definition substituted by section 10 of Act No. 93 of 1998]

 

"deeds registry"

means—

(a)when used in relation to immovable property, the deeds registry which serves the area in which that property is situate;
(b)when used in relation to any deed or other document, any deeds registry in the Republic wherein that deed or other document is registered or registrable;
(c)when used in relation to a registrar, the deeds registry of which he is in charge,

but does not include the mining titles office referred to in section three of the Registration of Deeds and Titles Act, 1909 (Act No. 25 of 1909) of the Transvaal;

 

"diagram"

means a diagram which has been signed by a person recognised by law as a land surveyor, and which has been approved or certified by a surveyor-general or other officer empowered under any law so to approve or certify a diagram and includes a diagram or a copy thereof prepared in a surveyor-general's office and approved or certified as aforesaid, or a diagram which has at any time prior to the commencement of this Act been accepted for registration in a deeds registry or surveyor-general's office;

 

"erf"

means every piece of land registered as an erf, lot, plot or stand in a deeds registry, and includes every defined portion, not intended to be a public place, of a piece of land laid out as a township, whether or not it has been formally recognised, approved or proclaimed as such;

 

"executor"

includes any representative recognised by law of a deceased owner;

[Definition inserted by section 9 of Act No. 11 of 1996]

 

"general plan"

means a plan which represents the relative positions and dimensions of two or more pieces of land and has been signed by a person recognised by law as a land surveyor, and which has been approved, provisionally approved or certified as a general plan by a surveyor-general or other officer empowered under any law so to approve, provisionally approve or certify a general plan, and includes a general plan or copy thereof prepared in a surveyor-general's office and approved, provisionally approved or certified as aforesaid, or a general plan which has at any time, prior to the commencement of this Act, been accepted for registration in a deeds registry or surveyor-general's office;

[Definition substituted by section 32 of Act No. 113 of 1991]

 

"Government"

[Definition deleted by section 22(b) of Act No. 14 of 1993]

 

"immovable property"

includes—

(a)[Paragraph(a) deleted by section 53 of Act No. 24 of 2003]
(b)any registered lease of land which, when entered into, was for a period of not less than ten years or for the natural life of the lessee or any other person mentioned in the lease, or which is renewable from time to time at the will of the lessee indefinitely or for periods which together with the first period amount in all to not less than ten years;
(c)a registered right of lease hold; and
(d)a registered right of initial ownership contemplated in section 62 of the Development Facilitation Act, 1995;

 

"land"

includes a share in land

[Definition substituted by section 22(a) of Act No. 27 of 1982]

 

"Master"

means the Master or Assistant Master of any provincial or local division of the Supreme Court and when used in relation to any particular matter means the Master or Assistant Master who has jurisdiction in respect thereof;

 

"Minister"

means the Minister of Land Affairs;

[Definition substituted by section 10 of Act No. 11 of 1996]

 

"mortgage bond"

means a bond attested by the registrar specially hypothecating immovable property;

 

"notarial bond"

means a bond attested by a notary public hypothecating movable property generally or specially;

 

"notarial deed"

means a deed attested by a notary public, and does not include a document a signature to which is merely authenticated by a notary public, or a copy of a document which has been certified as correct by a notary public;

 

"notary public"

means, in relation to any deed or other document creating or conveying real rights of land, a person practising as such in the Republic, and in relation to any document executed outside the Republic, a person practising as such in the place where the document is executed;

[Definition substituted by Proclamation No. R.9 of 1997]

 

"owner"

means, in relation to—

(a)immovable property, subject to paragraph (b), the person registered as the owner or holder thereof and includes the trustee in an insolvent estate, a liquidator or trustee elected or appointed under the Agricultural Credit Act, 1966 (Act No. 28 of 1966), the liquidator of a company or a close corporation which is an owner and the executor of any owner who has died or the representative recognised by law of any owner who is a minor or of unsound mind or is otherwise under disability, provided such trustee, liquidator, executor or legal representative is acting within the authority conferred on him or her by law;

[Paragraph (a) substituted by section 9 of Act No. 11 of 1996]

(b)immovable property, real rights in immovable property and notarial bonds—
(i)which are registered in the name of both spouses in a marriage in community of property, either one or both of the spouses;
(ii)which are registered in the name of only one spouse and which forms part of the joint estate of both spouses in a marriage in community of property, either one or both of the spouses;
(iii)which are registered under section 17(1) in the name of both spouses in a marriage in community of property to which the provisions of Chapter III of the Matrimonial Property Act, 1984 (Act No. 88 of 1984), are not applicable, the husband;
(iv)which are registered in the name of only one spouse and which form part of the joint estate of both spouses in a marriage in community of property to which the provisions of Chapter III of the Matrimonial Property Act, 1984, are not applicable, the husband;

[Paragraph (b) substituted by section 9 of Act No. 11 of 1996]

(c)[Paragraph (c) deleted by section 9(d) of Act No. 11 of 1996]

[Definition substituted by section 4 of Act No. 75 of 1987]

 

"person"

for the purpose of the registration of immovable trust property only, includes a trust;

[Definition inserted by section 2 of Act No. 9 of 2003]

 

"prescribed"

means prescribed by this Act or any regulation;

 

"prospecting contract"

[Definition deleted by section 53 of Act No. 24 of 2003]

 

"province"

[Definition deleted by section 22(e) of Act No. 14 of 1993]

 

"provincial administration"

[Definition deleted by section 22(e) of Act No. 14 of 1993]

 

"real right"

includes any right which becomes a real right upon registration;

 

"registered"

means registered in a deeds registry;

 

"registrar"

means a registrar of deeds appointed under this Act, and, when used in relation to any deeds registry, means the registrar in charge of that deeds registry; and when used in relation to a document means the registrar in charge of the deeds registry wherein that document is registered or registrable or intended to be used or filed;

 

"registry duplicate"

means the counterpart or copy of a deed consisting of more than one copy which is filed or intended to be filed of record in a deeds registry;

 

"regulation"

means a regulation made under section ten;

 

"Republic"

[Definition deleted by section 22 of Act No. 14 of 1993]

 

"right of leasehold"

means a right of leasehold as defined in section 1 of the Black Communities Development Act, 1984, excluding a right in respect of a sectional leasehold unit referred to in that definition;

[Definition inserted by section 9 of Act No. 62 of 1984]

 

"share"

in relation to land, means undivided share;

[Definition substituted by section 53 of Act No. 24 of 2003]

 

"settlement"

means a group of pieces of land or of subdivisions of a piece of land which are used or intended for use mainly for farming or horticulture, and includes a combination of such groups which is suitable for registration in one register;

 

"State"

[Definition deleted by section 22(g) of Act No. 14 of 1993]

 

"Territory"

[Definition deleted by section 22(g) of Act No. 14 of 1993]

 

"the commencement of this Act"

[Definition deleted by section 22(g) of Act No. 14 of 1993]

 

"this Act"

includes the regulations made under section ten;

 

"township"

includes—

(a)a group of pieces of land, or of subdivisions of a piece of land, which are combined with public places and are used mainly for residential, industrial or similar purposes, or are intended to be so used;
(b)any combination of such groups which is suitable for registration in one register;
(c)any area of land registered or recognised at the commencement of this Act in a deeds registry as a township if a general plan thereof is filed in that deeds registry or in the office of the surveyor-general concerned; and
(d)any township established, approved, proclaimed or otherwise recognised as such under any law.

 

(2)[Section 102(2) deleted by section 22(h) of Act No. 14 of 1993]