/ 18 January 2011

Wendy Machanik case postponed

The case between the Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB) and Wendy Machanik has been postponed to Wednesday, the EAAB’s lawyer said on Tuesday.

“It has been postponed to Wednesday and may be postponed to Friday,” said Gavin Schär, a director at legal firm Knowles Husain Lindsay, acting for the EAAB.

Wendy Machanik Properties (WMP) was provisionally ordered to not trade as an estate agent by the South Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg, sitting in Pretoria, last Thursday.

“The effect of the interim order [which relates only to WMP] is that WMP will not, in any way, operate as an estate agent until the final determination of the matter,” Schär said last week. “Ms Machanik’s attorneys, on her behalf, also gave an undertaking that she will not operate as an estate agent on the same terms [i.e. until the final determination of the matter].”

The order followed an urgent application by the EAAB arguing that Machanik in her personal capacity and WMP did not have the necessary fidelity fund certificate for 2011 to operate.

Cyril Ziman, advocate for Wendy Machanik and WMP, said the EAAB was arguing it had not received audit reports from the close corporation (CC) operating WMP, nor from Wendy Machanik, and was therefore not obliged to issue them with fidelity fund certificates.

“Wendy Machanik says because she has not been conducting business for her own account she’s not obliged [to submit audit reports],” he said.

“The CC is obliged and hasn’t,” he said.

The parties were due to present their arguments in court in Johannesburg on Wednesday. — Sapa