Latest Legal Briefs
Friends And Family May Turn To Foes – Be Careful Who You Appoint As An Executor
There are only two things in life that are inevitable, death and taxes. Taxes are debatable however death will come knocking on each and every one of our doors at some point in our life. This article is about making wise and responsible decisions prior to your death to ensure that you appoint an...
Mauritius: Choice of remedies and pleading standards in fixed-term employment terminations
The Supreme Court of Mauritius has dismissed preliminary objections in a fixed-term employment dispute, providing important clarifications for both employers and employees. The facts
AI gone rogue: Are employers liable when workplace AI harms employees?
When Anthropic released its Claude 4 evaluation report, a particular finding sparked significant discussion among artificial intelligence (AI) safety researchers: during testing scenarios, Claude Opus 4 blackmailed a human overseer to avoid deactivation. In another study, a recovering...
Key considerations and compliance challenges as South Africa nears implementation of groundbreaking "Failure to Prevent Corrupt Activities Offence"
Arguably one of the most far-reaching recommendations of the State Capture Commission, the introduction of a failure to prevent corruption offence, is on the cusp of being introduced in South Africa. The Judicial Matters Amendment Bill (the “Bill”) which is due to be considered by the National...
Residential Tenant, Landlord Rights Under Lockdown
In the economic turmoil caused by Covid-19 lockdown, many people have not been able to pay their residential rent. Under government lockdown regulations – which try to ameliorate this problem – where do tenants and landlords stand legally? Two main scenarios emerge in the regulations passed by...
Eric Bonnet-Maes appointed Chief Executive Officer of LexisNexis (RELX Group) for Continental Europe, Middle East and Africa
Eric Bonnet-Maes joined LexisNexis France in 2007 as Sales and Operational Marketing Director before becoming Chief Operating Officer from 2014. Since 2018, he led LexisNexis' Asia region, steering the development of Greater China, Japan, South Korea, India and Southeast Asia from Hong Kong. "I...
Don’t Shake the Procedural Tightrope
Section 188 and Schedule 8 of the Labour Relations Act (LRA) were born from the constitutional right of accused employees to a fair chance to answer to the charges against them. The law entitles charged employees to sufficient opportunity to prepare for the disciplinary hearing, to testify on...
South Africa’s evolving mineral and petroleum industries
South Africa’s mineral and petroleum industries faced significant changes in 2024 in view of the establishment of the Government of National Unity and legislative developments in these industries. In May 2024, South Africa had its seventh general election the results of which paved the way for...
A practitioner’s roadmap to demarcation disputes: lessons from Neniko Agencies CC vs MIBCO
If it has wheels and a diesel growl, does it automatically belong in the “motor industry”? The dispute in the matter of Neniko Agencies CC vs MIBCO Highveld Region obo Mahlangu and 4 Others MPEM 7875-22 was more legal than factual. Neniko Agencies CC (“Neniko”) approached the CCMA on the grounds...
African Scholarship, Global Access: Sabinet African Journals and the Preservation of Research Heritage
Each September, South Africa observes Heritage Month, culminating on Heritage Day, 24 September 2025. It is a time to celebrate the country’s diverse traditions, histories, and knowledge systems. Heritage is often associated with monuments, rituals, or cultural expression, but it also exists in...
Understanding the Legal Landscape of Restraint of Trade in South Africa: Balancing Business Protection and Employee Rights
In the modern South African business environment, intellectual property, proprietary knowledge, and established client relationships are increasingly vital assets. As businesses invest significant resources into developing internal processes, cultivating customer goodwill, and refining...
Finding the “reasonable man” in law
The law sometimes references hypothetical persons, such as a “reasonable person” or the “average consumer,” as a measure of standard in law. These standard terms serve as a measure of whether a person has acted with the requisite care reasonably or typically expected of someone in their role /...
The MTBPS needs to focus on easing the cost of doing business
The Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, has committed himself to the task of pursuing his predecessors’ structural reform agenda and reducing red tape, the progress of which will be keenly noted in the Medium Term Budget Policy (MTBPS) on the 11th of November. Angelika Goliger, EY Africa’s...
A National Payments Utility – The Egyptian Case Study
The recent PASA International Payments Conference (PIPC), held in Johannesburg on 16 and 17 October, offered valuable insights and sparked anticipation for the future of payments in South Africa. One of the hot topics during the conference was the 50% acquisition by the South African Reserve Bank...
Defamation in Labour Law – Manqele V Baloyi Masango Inc Attorneys and Others (896/2023) [2025] Zampmbhc 75 (12 August 2025)
It is not unusual for employers to appoint a law firm to conduct investigations into allegations of misconduct which culminate in reports, the findings of which may form the basis of misconduct proceedings. We have observed a growing trend of employees referring defamation claims premised on the...
