Life Hero

In a bid to counter more of your life’s villains, Legal Hero is proud to present a few new hero products.

Life Hero is a product range that falls within the long term insurance industry. In collaboration with Triarc - an authorized financial services provider also with Guardrisk (Guardrisk Life) - we now offer you the following benefits: 

1. Life Cover

2. Disability Cover (Core and Comprehensive) 

3. Dread Disease Cover (Core and Comprehensive)

4. Functional Impairment Cover (Core and Comprehensive) 

5. Income Protection Cover

1. LIFE COVER 

Unfortunately, death is inevitable. As a final courteous act, help us help you enable the loved ones you leave behind.

• 100% of the cover will be paid out if you are diagnosed with a terminal illness with a life expectancy of less than 12 months;
• Your policy may also be ceded as security for a loan;
• 20% of your cover - up to a max of R50 000 (Fifty Thousand Rand) - will be paid to your beneficiary within 48 hours to cover your funeral expenses or as instant cash.

2. DISABILITY COVER 

Life’s villain: 1 in 4 people will become disabled before retirement. 

• 100% of the benefit amount will be paid out as a lump sum to you in the event that you become permanently disabled.

3. DREAD DISEASE COVER

Life’s villain: Various types of cancers and diseases, including heart attacks, strokes, pancreatic failure, loss of vision, major skin burns, Hodgkin’s disease, etc. 

• 100% of the benefit amount will be paid out to you in the event that you become diagnosed with a dread disease;
• Cover helps pay the bills will you are recovering. Note that your medical aid will pay for the cost of treatment for the disease.

4. FUNCTIONAL IMPAIRMENT COVER

Life’s villain: Struggling with daily activities such as walking, washing, eating, etc. due to injury. 

• A percentage of your cover will be paid out to you, depending on the extent to which your ability to do normal daily activities has been impacted. 

5. INCOME PROTECTION COVER 

Life’s villain: Surviving without a salary. 

• Monthly pay-out to help you pay your bills and cover other living expenses while you are unable to earn an income 
• … as a result of a bodily injury or illness to the extent that you are unable to perform the main duties of your occupation on a total or a partial basis

Your cover amount required as well as the relevant premium is based on a needs analysis. Kindly contact your relevant Legal Hero broker or e-mail life@legalhero.co.za for more information.

Equal protection of the law?

The only problem is that the law is very expensive. People earning less than R5500 per month may have access to free Legal Aid. The rest may need to fork out hundreds of thousands for legal help. Unless you have legal cost insurance = payment of an affordable and fixed monthly premium that pays out and covers you in your future moment of need. 

Section 9 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 further reads, 

‘Everyone is equal before the law and has the right to equal protection and benefit of the law.’ 

The truth is that everyone is not always equal before the law if you cannot make use of the law (when you do not know how to enforce your rights, do not qualify for free legal aid and cannot afford the assistance of a private legal professional). 

Legal cost insurance is not a new concept and started out in the United Kingdom and Canada. Often referred to as ‘pre-paid legal services,’ protection is secured for future legal and litigation costs as per the terms and conditions of the relevant policy. Different to life insurance, legal cost insurance is a short-term insurance product. It is vigorously regulated by many acts with a few more developments on the horizon. Treating customers fairly is paramount. 

Legal cost insurance also has its own Ombud. The Office of the Ombudsman for Short-Term Insurance acts as a mediator/ arbitrator to assist consumers with complaints concerning service or a litigation rejection received in contrast with the terms and conditions of the policy. The service is free, however, only available once the complaint has been lodged with the legal cost insurance company first. If the complaint remains unresolved, same may be sent to the Ombud: P.O. BOX 32334, Braamfontein, 2017. Tel: (0860) 726 890 / (011) 726 8900 | Fax: (011) 726 5501. Email: info@osti.co.za.

Knowledge is power. 

Yours truly, Legal Hero 

www.legalhero.co.za

Muslim Marriage

“The new constitutional order is based on the recognition of our diversity and tolerance for other religious faiths.” - Daniels v Campbell and Others 2004 (5) SA 331 (CC) para 54.

Prior to our progressive and tolerant constitution, marriage was an option available only between a man and a woman in terms of the Marriage Act of 1961. Today same-sex couples may marry in terms of the Civil Union Act of 2006 and the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act of 1998 allows for African customary marriages.

South Africa has yet to enact legislation (law) that specifically caters for Muslim marriage.

Luckily there have been a few positive strides: 

• There are instances where our law does in fact recognize a Muslim marriage to a certain degree in order to offer protection. For example, only a ‘spouse’ can apply for maintenance from the deceased estate of their loved one after his/ her passing. To be considered a surviving ‘spouse’ in terms the Maintenance of Surviving Spouses Act, your marriage must, however, be legally recognized and therefore valid in South Africa. In the Constitutional Court case quoted above, the surviving wife (married in terms of Muslim law) was acknowledged as a ‘spouse' and in the court case of Hassan v Jacobs the surviving spouse of a polygamous Muslim marriage was also accepted as a surviving ‘spouse.' 

• The Muslim Marriages Bill is a draft law that was compiled back in 2003. This Bill has, however, been subject to much criticism. For example, it states that Muslim Marriages will automatically be OUT of community of property unless parties enter into an ante-nuptial agreement stating otherwise. In terms of South Africa’s other marriage laws mentioned above, a marriage will automatically be IN community of property. Being married IN community of property often offers protection to a spouse who gives up his/ her career and opportunities to stay at home and take care of the children. Should the couple divorce, parties married IN community of property will split everything fifty-fifty. 

• A few years ago Imams (Muslim clerics) were trained and appointed as authorized marriage officers, enabling a Muslim marriage to be solemnized by a registered Imam marriage officer in terms of the Marriage Act. Whilst the aforementioned is great news, many questions still remain unanswered pending the enactment of the Muslim Marriage Bill to deal specifically with many rights, responsibilities and consequences of a Muslim marriage. 

The point of having a specific act (law) such as the Marriage Act, Civil Union Act and the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act, is to offer case sensitive regulation and protection. 

Without a specific act, many questions that arise include the logistics and rights when it comes to the resolution of the marriage, for example. There are also a few other concerns regarding Islam law which have been cited as reasons why the enactment of the Bill is dragging its feet, including the man’s exclusive right to end the marriage unilaterally (talaq) and the custom that a woman may be wed by proxy.

“Everyone has the right to freedom of conscience, religion, thought, belief and opinion… This section does not prevent legislation recognizing… marriages concluded under any tradition, or a system of religious, personal or family law… Recognition… must be consistent with this section and the other provisions of the Constitution.” – Section 15(1), 15(a)(i) and 15(3)(b) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996

We wish you a wonderful and thought-provoking Heritage Month. South Africa's rich diversity of religious communities, cultures, languages and customs have a great deal to offer. As the preamble to our Constitution asks, may we all live ‘united in our diversity.’

www.legalhero.co.za