“Pacta sunt servanda”
“Pacta sunt servanda” is an important and fundamental legal principle internationally. It simply means “agreements must be kept”. There are limitations, and increasingly in South Africa our courts have referred to values of ubuntu, fairness and public policy when holding unacceptable contractual terms to be unenforceable. But it’s a principle worth bearing in mind at all times – agree to something freely and voluntarily, and as a rule you will be held to your agreement by law.