Risk Management and Compliance Programme for legal practitionersIn terms of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act 38 of 2001 (FICA), a legal practitioner who practices as defined in s 1 of the Attorneys Act 53 of 1979 (the Attorneys Act) are accountable institutions.
The erstwhile law societies, as contemplated in s 56 of the Attorneys Act are listed as the supervisory bodies for attorneys in terms of sch 2 of FICA. In a communication dated 8 January 2020, the Legal Practice Council (LPC), among other, indicated that:
‘The Financial Intelligence Centre (the Centre) advised the Legal Practice Council [(LPC)], as the successor to the Law Societies, that the Minister of Finance had decided, prior to the LPC coming into being on 1 November 2018, to remove the Law Societies from Schedule 2 to FICA and that the Centre would take over that supervisory function.
The amendment to Schedule 2 has been delayed, but the Centre asked the Council to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding [(MOU)] in terms of which the Council delegates its powers to the Centre until such time as the amendment takes place.
The Council agreed to enter into such an MOU, and this was signed by the LPC on 5 November 2019, on which date it took effect.
Attorneys should therefore note that the Centre is now the entity that supervises compliance by attorneys with FICA.’
While amendments to FICA are still pending, the Law Society of South Africa (LSSA) reminds attorneys that:
– register as accountable institutions with the FIC. For more information on how to register, see: www.fic.gov.za.
– notify the FIC in writing within 90 days of any changes to the particulars furnished to the FIC.
The LSSA has prepared guidelines for attorneys and firms to help them prepare their unique Risk and Management Compliance Programmes, which can be accessed on the LSSA’s website at www.LSSA.org.za.
Please note that the Law Society of South Africa’s annual general meeting and conference will take place on 23 March 2022. The AGM will be held at Emperors Palace in Kempton Park, Johannesburg and will immediately be followed by the Southern African Development Community Lawyers Association annual conference and general meeting, which is scheduled for 24 to 25 March 2022 at Birchwood Hotel in Kempton Park, Johannesburg. More information will be communicated in due course.
The Law Society of South Africa (LSSA) will set up a meeting with the new LPC Council. Legal practitioners are requested to advise the LSSA on any important issues that they want the LSSA to raise. E-mails can be sent to nomfundom@LSSA.org.za.
The Law Society of South Africa (LSSA) urges legal practitioners to participate in the election of the new Legal Practice Council (LPC) provincial councils.
At the beginning of the year, the LPC called for nominations of practising attorneys and advocates for the elections to the LPC Provincial Councils. Attorneys could only be nominated and seconded by attorneys, and advocates could only be nominated and seconded by advocates.
Six attorneys and four advocates need to be elected in eight of the nine provincial councils, with the Gauteng Provincial Council needing eight attorneys and four advocates.
Nominations opened on 18 January 2022 and closed on 31 January. Elections started on 22 February and will end on 7 March. The results will be announced on 11 March 2022.
To read GN761 GG45770/17-1-2022 from the Government Gazette, please visit www.gov.za.
The Law Society of South Africa (LSSA) would like to remind practitioners that the registration for the first session for the 2021 examinations is now closed.
The dates for the first session of 2022 exams are as follows:
Attorneys Admission Examination
Conveyancing Examination
As of 2021, the exam is written over two days, with Paper 1 on theory and Paper 2 on practice.
Notarial Practice Examination
The registration for the second session will open on 6 June 2022 and close on 8 July 2022.
Advocates Admission Examination
The registration for the second session will open on 6 June 2022 and close on 8 July 2022.
Visit www.lpc.org.za for more information and download the notice at www.lpc.org.za.
The Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) have circulated a practice note, which took effect on 1 January 2022. It deals with the requirements for the reinstatement of companies and close corporations. Visit www.cipc.co.za to read the practice note.
At the end of 2021, Deputy Judge President, Roland Sutherland issued a circular to announce, among other things, that the number of judges in the unopposed motion court would be doubled in term 1 of 2022, which would reduce the lead time to a hearing. At the beginning of January, Judge Sutherland issued a notice to all litigation attorneys in Gauteng to let them know that the required number of judges cannot be made available.
Judge Sutherland also states that some practitioners took up the invitation to accelerate the hearing date of their matters and these revised dates have now had to be withdrawn. Judge Sutherlands concluded the notice by saying that although they will not be able to introduce any innovations before the second term of 2022, consultations with the leadership of the legal profession will be conducted regarding the organisation of the unopposed motion court, and other courts, which will include the prospects of acting appointments to expand the judicial capacity of the court.
Visit www.LSSA.org.za to read the notice.
Practitioners are reminded that the LPC has published Rules in terms of s 6 of the Contingency Fees Act 66 of 1997. These rules can be found in GN525 GG42739/4-10-2019 at www.gov.za.
Nomfundo Jele, Acting Communications Manager, Law Society of South Africa, nomfundom@lssa.org.za
This article was first published in De Rebus in 2022 (March) DR 5.
