A British resident and her London-based employer were granted leave to amend a summons in which they wrongly cited the Two Oceans Aquarium as a closed corporation instead of a trust in filing for a damages suit in the Cape High Court.
Judge Belinda van Heerden granted the amendment on Thursday, but ordered the plaintiff and her employer to cover all costs of the amendment, including those incurred by the defendant in opposing the amendment, as it was an "indulgence" on the part of the plaintiffs.
Lynne Embling, 52, injured her leg after she slipped on a step at the aquarium. She claimed it was badly lit.
Embling's employer, TLC Products and Services of London, is also suing the aquarium for loss of income and profits for "the considerable period" that Embling was unable to do her job.
Embling alleged that her fall was as a result of negligence by the defendant.
But when a summons was issued on the aquarium's Cape Town premises it described the aquarium as a closed corporation instead of a trust.
Judge van Heerden said: "The defendant argued strenuously that at a very early stage, the first plaintiff knew the correct identity of the aquarium. In June 1996, the aquarium sent her a letter with the registration number of the trust on the letterhead."
A phone call had also been made to the aquarium to establish its legal status.
"I am, however, satisfied that the mistake made by the plaintiff was a bona fide one ... It was clear that the entity the plaintiff wanted to hold liable was the entity which owned, controlled and administered the Two Oceans Aquarium."
Judge van Heerden said that although the trust said it was not the defendant, it knew from the outset of the case that it was the true defendant.
John Saner represented the plaintiff, while the defendant was represented by Steve Goddard.