PVL3701 Assignment 1 2025 Semester 2 (Exceptionally Crafted) Due August 2025

PVL3701
Assignment 1
Semester 2 2025
Due August 2025

, PVL3701

Assignment 1

Semester 2 2025

Due August 2025



Law of Property



Question 1: Can Evergreen Printing Use Rei Vindicatio to Reclaim the
Equipment?



Legal Framework: Rei Vindicatio

Yes. The rei vindicatio is a real remedy in South African property law available to an
owner seeking to recover possession of their property from another person who
possesses it without legal justification. The remedy applies irrespective of the good
faith or ignorance of the possessor.

To succeed in a rei vindicatio claim, Evergreen Printing must prove the following:

1. Ownership of the item

2. That the item is movable, existing, and identifiable

3. That USS Graphics exercised unlawful control at the time of the institution of
the action

1. Ownership

Ownership must be proven by legal title, not merely by past possession. In this case,
Evergreen can rely on the lease agreement with USS Graphics, which likely retains a
reservation of ownership clause. If this document specifies that the equipment
remained the property of Evergreen despite the lease, then legal title is clearly
established.