The Law Society of South Africa (LSSA) held its Annual Conference and AGM, on 28 and 29 March 2025, in East London. The AGM was attended by members of the legal profession from various parts of the country, as well as neighbouring countries, including the President of the Law Society of Lesotho, Lintle Tuke and advocate Rethabile Setlojoane. Delegates from the Legal Practitioners Fidelity Fund in Namibia, were also in attendance, Fund Secretary, Adriana Saindi; as well as Board of Control members Taimi Iileka-Amupanda, Ileni Gebhardt and Pius Iikwambi.
The two-day conference was held under the theme ‘Sustainability, efficiency and innovation in legal practice.’ The newly elected President of the LSSA, Nkosana Mvundlela said that the leadership of the LSSA needs to build a resilient legal profession. He pointed out that building a resilient profession should be a united effort as the new office bearers take their new roles and implement the kind of decision that members of the legal profession have sent them to implement.
The newly elected President of Law Society of South Africa, Nkosana Mvundlela addressing attendees at the Law Society of South Africa Annual Conference and AGM in East London.
Mr Mvundlela also used the opportunity to thank his constituency, the Black Lawyers Association for trusting him, to steer the LSSA ship, as its member, as well as the organisations president. ‘We serve at the pleasure of members we do not lead ourselves. I was saying to a young person today that when you lead people you must lead from behind, where you are able to walk with them and experience the same pains that they go through,’ Mr Mvundlela said.
Mr Mvundlela pointed out that as the LSSA improves on work that the organisation has already done, it must be able to engage constructively with stakeholders such as the Legal Practice Council (LPC) and the Legal Practitioners Fidelity Fund (LPFF). He added that the LSSA must be able to fast track issues that they want the Department of Justice to do, in order to see the functionality of the Legal Practice Act 28 of 2014 (LPA) and deal with transformation without fear or favour. ‘As we do so we are going to step on some people’s toes. We are going to be the disruptors that we want to see. We are going to disrupt what is called normal. And to do so we need a united legal profession. We are not going to find ourselves fragmented in any way. We must resist the temptation to be divided by small issues. Every other issue must have some horizon with the edge of each cloud in order for us to achieve an outcome that we will all be proud of,’ he said.
Chairperson of the Legal Practice Council, Pule Seleka SC spoke at the Law Society of South Africa’ Annual Conference and AGM in East London.
Guest speakers included the LPC, Chairperson Pule Seleka SC, who said that he would like to dispel the notion that the LPC is against legal practitioners. He said the LPC comprises of legal practitioners and is for legal practitioners. Moreover, legal practitioners decide who they want to lead them at the LPC, by taking part in the LPC elections. Mr Seleka pointed out that the LPC’s stakeholder engagement is to foster good working relationships with stakeholders, including the LSSA. He added that the LSSA is one of the major stakeholders in the legal profession and the LPC was honoured to be a part of the AGM.
Mr Seleke said that the LPC is aware of the work cut out for them to regulate the legal profession. He admitted that it was not an easy task. In outlining the role of the LPC in the profession and its operational functions, Mr Seleke also touched on an important issue of new entries to the legal profession. He said that there is a question with regard to the four-year LLB qualification that university students’ study and whether it equips candidate legal practitioners enough for entry into the profession. He pointed out that academics said that the LLB was not meant to prepare candidates. He added that furthermore, there are complaints that newly admitted legal practitioners are not equipped for the legal profession.
Mr Seleke noted that as a stakeholder it is the responsibility of the LPC to engage institutions of higher learning. ‘We are certainly going to engage them in this particular aspect. We may consider programmes that are offered in the law clinics associated with universities and how to improve that in order to prepare aspirant lawyers for the profession. In the meantime, we trust that you as legal practitioners in your law firms, providing training to candidates, will still go a long way in helping to address this challenge,’ Mr Seleke said. Mr Seleke pointed out that one of the LSSA’s expressed objectives is to: ‘Empower attorneys to provide excellent legal services to the community in an ethical, professional; or considerate and competent manner.’
Legal Services Ombud, Judge Siraj Desai said that there is a serious crisis of credibility in the legal profession.
The Legal Services Ombud, Judge Siraj Desai pointed out that there is a serious crisis of credibility in the legal profession. He said that he frequently engages legal practitioners in provincial LPC structures, and the common problem is that of claimants in Road Accident Fund (RAF) matters. He gave an example that in a R 4 million claim, the claimant is often left with R 1 million. He added that it is highly impossible that the legal practitioner gets more. He said that there is something wrong with the way RAF matters are handled.
Judge Desai said he is aware that RAF is bread and butter for small scale legal practitioners. He added that the billing on RAF matters is one thing, however, the touting is another. ‘The result is we have a lopsided RAF, that is supposed to act on behalf of victims, instead it enriches legal practitioners. Judge Desai said that one cannot wipe away the problems but must grapple with the problem. ‘We must look at the fees that are being charged by the attorneys,’ Judge Desai added. He, however, pointed out that not all legal practitioners are corporative who are doing RAF. He added that those legal practitioners are endangering the RAF.
General Manager of the Legal Practitioners Indemnity Insurance Fund NPC, Thomas Harban said the legal profession must go back to basics with training.
Legal Practitioners Indemnity Insurance Fund NPC (LPIIF) General Manager, Thomas Harban, pointed out that he agrees with the chair of the LPC with regard to the training of legal practitioners. He added that the legal profession must go back to basics with regard to training and get it right. Mr Harban gave the example of the Practice Management Training (PMT), he said that the first question talks about theft and that there is a judgment of the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) that is provided relating to four claims. He added that the answer is in the judgment, however, legal practitioners cannot find it.
Mr Harban said that when one is unable to find the law when it is given to them and unable to properly cite a case it is a problem. He touched on some of the services the LPIIF offers and spoke about the prescription alert services and free diary system. He also spent time engaging newly admitted legal practitioners on the existence of the prescription alert system, as well as published material such as the Risk Alert and De Rebus. He added that the LPIIF also does PMT and litigation for the benefit of the legal profession, among other things.
Mr Harban also shared some of the insurance focus areas for 2025, which includes the insurance’s continued support of its internal efficiency; enhancing the long-term sustainability of the company; the continued support of the LPFF in addressing its own sustainability challenges, as well as addressing the emergence of new risks particularly that of artificial intelligence (AI).
Chief Executive Officer of Legal Practitioners Fidelity Fund, Motlatsi Molefe noted that the gross assets of the Fund now stand on over R 9 billion and the nett assets value of just over R 8 billion.
Chief Executive Officer of the LPFF, Motlatsi Molefe, spoke about sustainability and working together with the stakeholders in the legal profession. He said that legal practitioners ought to read the LPA and to know it, in order to understand why at certain instances, the Fund pushes back on issues of funding. ‘It is purely because unlike the old Attorneys’ Act, the new Act actually makes provision for us when we do our sustainability assessment to be no different than a classical insurer,’ Mr Molefe added. He pointed out that s 73 requires the LPFF to provide the Minister of Justice annually with a report that shows that the LPFF is growing at a rate that is higher than its liabilities in terms of their base assets.
Mr Molefe said that when he started at the Fund the total of the nett assets amounted to R 2 billion. He added that today when he looks at the Fund, he looks at it with pride. He pointed out that the gross assets of the Fund now stand on over R 9 billion and the nett assets value of just over R 8 billion. Mr Molefe said this was achieved through corporative work with the legal profession. He added that in the past two years the Fund travelled around the country engaging with legal practitioners and directing them to the use of s 86(3) of the Legal Practice Act 28 of 2014 (LPA) as a tool of investment to maximise revenue for the Fund.
Mr Molefe added: ‘I can report to you that in those two years we did the running around, we collect an excess of a billion rand in a year, collected from trusts and primarily driven by the move from the usage of your s 86(4) to s 86(3) for investment in the short term. What is important about that is that you are helping us to keep a Fund that it requires to be sustainable. To be continually and perpetually in existence, hopefully, in order to support the legal profession in many ways and in the activities that it has to carry out.’
Director at Brink Thomas Inc and a member of the Legal Sector Charter Council, Ray Brink spoke briefly about issues that the Legal Sector Code aims to address.
Director at Brink Thomas Inc and a member of the Legal Sector Charter Council, Ray Brink, presented on the Legal Sector Code at the AGM. He spoke about, among other things, the main challenges faced by black legal practitioners that the LSC was to address including, inadequate access to the fair flow of work; discrimination in the private sector on procurement related issues; poor inconsistent briefings from state organs; unequal access to senior management roles in racially mixed law firms and lack of skills relating to limited access and exposure to lucrative legal work.
Mr Brink pointed out that the evidence of inequality was demonstrated in 2014 by research done by the Centre for Applied Legal Studies, which found that corporate law firms were dominated by white males, namely 80% of chief executives, and 72% of managing partners were white males. He added that in 2021 LexisNexis research showed that in racially mixed firms, white practitioner ownership was 75% and black practitioner ownership amounted to 25%. He also mentioned the LPC’s 2024 research that spoke to demographics on the number of white versus black legal practitioners at mixed racial firms.
Mr Brink said that the LSC makes provision for a council, which among other things, whose purpose is to –
AFT National Chairperson and member of the Legal Sector Charter Council, Myron Dewrance SC spoke on the Legal Sector Code at the Law Society of South Africa 2025 Annual General Meeting.
AFT National Chairperson and member of the Legal Sector Charter Council, Myron Dewrance SC added that the Legal Sector Transformation Fund (LSTF) has been established. He said that at the Johannesburg Bar there is a transformation fund that is used effectively, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, with regard to the financial assistance of juniors. He pointed out that the fund was established as a result of the RAF double payments. He said that legal practitioners who were found guilty paid the money, however, the SCA said that the Johannesburg Bar did not have the rights to those funds and the Bar put the money in the transformation fund. He pointed out that unfortunately the fund became depleted and that it would become a pipe dream if the fund does not receive a top up.
Mr Dewrance said the LSTF will first be used to defray the cost of operations, limited to 5% of the Charter Council and the remainder would go to investment. The purpose of the fund is to provide financial assistance to black practitioners, however, he pointed out that financial assistance is not defined in the charter, but it should mean that when black legal practitioners are facing financial difficulties the fund should step in. Mr Dewrance added that if one looks at the debate surrounding the stipend issues at the General Council of the Bar (GCB) for instance. The debate is whether the fund should be applied for the less privileged members of the legal community and exclude the privileged members of the legal community.
Mr Dewrance pointed out that one of the challenges that was found was that the LPC never really engaged the legal profession on some matters. ‘There were notices issued, decisions made, and the legal profession was just there to implement, because we blindly trusted our leaders,’ he said. He pointed out that he speaks of financial assistance on how it should be defined. He said that it is now a conversation that will be debated by the legal profession, because without the profession, the charter would not know what financial assistance is and what type of financial assistance will be necessary. Mr Dewrance said the Charter Council should guard against some of the mistakes that were made by the previous LPC where it shut out the legal profession when dealing with transformation.
Legal practitioner, part-time member of the Companies Tribunal, and former member of the LSSA House of Constituents, Matshego Ramagaga told legal practitioners to be advocates of the Legal Sector Code.
Legal practitioner, part-time member of the Companies Tribunal, and former member of the LSSA House of Constituents, Matshego Ramagaga said that there are challenges relating to the LSC. She asked if it is necessary to have the LSC. She pointed out that looking at the history of the legal profession the answer would be a resounding yes. She gave two examples to illustrate that the LSC is needed. ‘It is the fact that as far back as 2007 the LSSA was excited and believed that the Legal Services Charter had been ushered in and there would be progress made within the legal profession. And the LSSA adopted the Legal Services Charter for the profession. However, Ms Ramagaga pointed out that nothing meaningful happened. She added that in 2020, in the case of the Cape Bar v Minister of Justice and Correctional Services and Others (National Bar Council of South Africa and Others as Amici Curiae) [2020] 3 All SA 413 (WCC) the court said the following: ‘Transformation of the legal profession has been a goal that has eluded the South African society since the dawn of our democracy, and is an area of challenge that our society has struggled to make significant strides in.’
Ms Ramagaga said that arising from that the LPC stood up in 2020 to mobilise and get the LSC in place. She added that in September 2024 the LSC was promulgated. She said that it is a common understanding that the LSC is drawn by the legal profession and even the elements that should govern the Code should be by the legal profession. ‘And once we have agreed substantially about the Legal Sector Code then we submit it for consideration and gazetting,’ Ms Ramagaga said. She encouraged legal practitioners to be activists of the LSC. She added that the profession can be meaningful activist of the LSC if they think outside the box.
Outgoing President of the Law Society of South Africa, Joanne Anthony-Gooden presented the President’s Report at the Law Society of South Africa Annual Conference and AGM in East London.
While presenting the presidential report, the former President of the LSSA, Joanne Anthony-Gooden, said that 2024 was a remarkable year for the organisation. Ms Anthony Gooden noted that the LSSA is continuing to see the legal landscape evolve. She added that while listening to other speakers at the AGM, the message is clear that the legal profession needs to be unified, instead of being divided. ‘We need to find common ground to move forward to engage with the members of our profession for the betterment of our profession. We need to put aside our politics and our agendas and we need to actively get together and have this indaba. Let us try and tackle the elephant in the room and see how far we can get to move forward,’ Ms Anthony-Gooden said.
Ms Anthony-Gooden added that the LSSA and LPC have had meaningful engagement, and she believes that the meaningful conversations will continue to take place as she sees the two organisations as one strong team. ‘I believe that the LPC has its place and the LSSA has its place and together we move for the betterment of all our practitioners,’ Ms Anthony-Gooden added. She said that the legal profession has been faced with increasing regulatory demands and stricter Financial Intelligence Centre Act regulations and requirements, which places a huge administrative burden on members of the legal profession. ‘We have seen the consequences of non-compliance, which carries severe penalties,’ Ms Anthony-Gooden added.
Ms Anthony-Gooden noted that legal practitioners have a bad reputation. She pointed out that she is not a RAF legal practitioner, however, when the headlines on RAF legal practitioners come up, it does not matter what one’s area of practise is because all legal practitioners are painted with the same brush and that has to stop. She said the legal profession must go back to being a profession which is honourable and has integrity. ‘We need to find our moral compass and I think we also need to start speaking up where we are seeing incorrect things within our legal framework, within our communities. We are the boots on the ground and a lot of that needs to be fed through our local LPC, because that is not happening. If the reporting gets better, it gives the LPC better tools to start investigating these matters sooner rather than later,’ Ms Anthony-Gooden added.
Ms Anthony-Gooden pointed out that the LSSA has taken a firm stand that legal practitioners can perform their duties without fear or favour. She said that the LSSA’s provincial structures have been hard at work trying to resolve backlogs in courts and other forms of administrative issues prejudicing the practice of law. She pointed out that the LSSA provincial structures – together with the Department of Justice – are trying to make sure that the practice of law can be easier and more efficient for the members of the public, because that is ultimately access to justice.
Kgomotso Ramotsho Cert Journ (Boston) Cert Photography (Vega) is the news reporter at De Rebus.
This advertorial was first published in De Rebus in 2025 (May) DR 5.
