As the City of Johannesburg struggles to remain financially afloat, it has resorted to extortionate methods to collect municipal revenue from property owners at all costs says Gary Boruchowitz, founder of Boruchowitz Attorneys, a law firm that specialises in municipal disputes.
“We have seen a major uptick in unlawful revenue collection drives by the City of Johannesburg and its agents, City Power and Joburg Water. Without lawful notice to property owners, City Power and Joburg Water contractors are arriving at properties to disconnect municipal services in relation to municipal accounts that are patently inaccurate,” he says.
Failure to deliver such notice results in an unlawful disconnection for which the property owner is entitled to proceed to urgent court to obtain a court order compelling the municipality to reconnect services.
Furthermore, he says that the City is disconnecting properties which have accounts in dispute where the property owner has logged a query or served letters of demand on the Council.
“In terms of Section 102 of the Municipal Systems Act it is unlawful for the City to disconnect services when there is a dispute on the account.”
“In our experience the City very rarely issues summons for outstanding charges allegedly owed to the Council. It is much more cost effective to disconnect meters and extort money this way from customers. The City are fully cognizant of the best ways to collect revenue and they are intentionally acting unlawfully.”
But Boruchowitz says that his firm is standing up to this unlawful action, having run hundreds of urgent applications for their clients and obtaining court orders for the urgent and immediate reconnection of services.
If you are facing a similar predicament, schedule a consultation with Boruchowitz Attorneys by emailing Gary Boruchowitz or call 079 339 7369.
Read more from Boruchowitz Attorneys:
Why litigating against municipalities makes financial sense for property owners
About Boruchowitz Attorneys:
Boruchowitz Attorneys is a boutique law firm founded by Gary Boruchowitz in July 2022. An admitted attorney, Gary spent a decade at Schindlers Attorneys working in the Municipal and Property Law departments. He has experience in all types of municipal and property related matters, representing a range of clients including commercial business parks, commercial and residential landlords, body corporates and individuals, having acted extensively in High Court litigation against the City of Johannesburg and other municipalities in SA.
