Widow's rights upheld by Supreme Court, stepdaughter denied inheritance.
A widow has successfully defended her right to claim maintenance from her late husband's estate, with the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) ruling that her claim lawfully exhausted the estate and left nothing for her stepdaughter, who had challenged the payment for years.
The SCA dismissed an appeal by Jocelyn de Bruyn, the adult daughter of the late Johannes Jacob Prinsloo, confirming that the deceased's surviving spouse, Martha Johanna Prinsloo, was entitled to maintenance.
The court found that the widow had proved she was unable to adequately support herself and that her maintenance claim was both reasonable and supported by evidence. As a result, the estate had no assets left to distribute to beneficiaries, including De Bruyn.
The dispute centred on the estate of Johannes Jacob Prinsloo, who died in January 2015.
