scholarly journals Recent Developments in the Provision of Pro Bono Legal Services by Attorneys in South Africa

2013 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
D Holness
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Legal Services ◽  
Pro Bono ◽  
Recent Developments

scholarly journals Recent Developments in the Provision of Pro Bono Legal Services by Attorneys in South Africa

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 128
Author(s):  
Dave Holness
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Private Practice ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Legal Services ◽  
Legal Service ◽  
Daily Lives ◽  
Economic Climate ◽  
The Status ◽  
Pro Bono ◽  
Recent Developments

This paper focuses on legal service delivery for the indigent by attorneys in private practice acting pro bono in civil rather than criminal matters.  In this regard there have been and continue to be considerable gaps between the proper access to civil justice imperatives of constitutional South Africa and the status quo which has existed from the advent of a democratic South Africa until the present. Law as a vehicle for necessary positive change in the daily lives of South African residents is pertinently considered within the country’s woefully unequal socio-economic climate. This paper considers the role which pro bono work by private attorneys is playing and should play in promoting a more just and equitable society through proper access to justice. It explores the current position in South Africa as well as the position in selected foreign jurisdictions regarding pro bono services by attorneys in private practice in civil matters. Part of the discussion focuses on the question of whether pro bono work should be voluntary or mandatory. The merits of introducing a pro bono obligation are critically analysed by looking at the effect on both legal practitioners as well as those receiving the pro bono services. Having defined pro bono work, the practical need for pro bono work by lawyers in private practice is highlighted due to the dearth of legal aid in civil matters for indigent South Africans. Possible constitutional imperatives for the provision of free legal services in civil matters are highlighted. An important part of the paper is a reflection on some of the pro bono work being conducted by private firms of attorneys.  The paper concludes with suggestions on means for establishing a more effective pro bono system in South Africa.

scholarly journals Pro Bono in South Africa

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thabang Pooe ◽  
Alice Brown ◽  
Jonathan Klaaren
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Legal Profession ◽  
Access To Justice ◽  
Legal Services ◽  
The South ◽  
Legal Representation ◽  
Civic Duty ◽  
Pro Bono ◽  
African Context

This chapter explores issues related to the state of pro bono legal services and access to justice in South Africa. As is made clear in this book, what is referred to as “pro bono” comes from the Latin pro bono publico, meaning “for the public good.” It describes legal work undertaken by legal practitioners without remuneration or at significantly below-market rates as a public service for individuals or organizations who cannot afford to pay. In the South African context, the concept of pro bono must be understood alongside specific constitutional provisions as well as against the structure of the legal profession. In our view, increasing access to justice for the poor, marginalized, and indigent individuals and communities should be seen by members of the South African legal community as an essential component to fulfilling not only their civic duty but also their constitutional obligations. Our understanding of pro bono includes aspirations of access to justice with the legal profession playing a part in its realization. This can only be made real for all people living in South Africa if they have access to legal representation, and much of the private legal profession understands and acknowledges that it has anobligation in this regard. Pro bono practice is therefore a necessary institution for addressing access to justice. It is not, however, sufficient. Pro bono practice must be augmented by the work of paralegals and extended to the particular South African vision of community service, which itself does aspire to implement and achieve access to justice.

scholarly journals The curious case of legal translation

Literator ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Cornelius
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Core Competencies ◽  
Department Of Justice ◽  
Constitutional Development ◽  
Legal Translation ◽  
Cultural Systems ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Legal Competence ◽  
Official Languages ◽  
Legislative Language

This article explores the nature and scope of legal translation which is an under-researched area in South Africa. In this article the author predicts that the demand for competent legal translators will increase in the future, evidenced by a recent call by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development(DoJ&CD), inviting applications for ten positions for “legislative language practitioners”. However, legal translation differs substantially from general translation in the sense that legal translation is subject to heavy restrictions at all levels and legal considerations are of paramount importance in a country such as South Africa, which provides for eleven official languages. Legal translation involves different legal languages, different legal systems and different cultural systems that require specialised knowledge and skills of the translator. The aim of this article is to investigate the core competencies and skills the legal translator must have; to consider the balance between legal competence and translation or linguistic competence; and to propose a discourse-analytical method of source text analysis, developed by Bhatia as a simplification strategy, as this may be a powerful tool in the training of legal translators in South Africa. Recent developments in South Africa relating to the Department of Arts and Culture’s obligation to translate legislation into all official languages, have important consequences for legal translation in general and the training of legal translators in particular.

scholarly journals A consumer perspective of advertising by attorneys

1991 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Boshoff
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Communication Strategies ◽  
Legal Services ◽  
Marketing Communication ◽  
Advertising Agencies ◽  
The Public ◽  
Consumer Perspective ◽  
First Time

Attorneys in South Africa may soon be permitted to advertise their services for the first time. This recommendation put forward by the Association of Law Societies, though still to be ratified by the four provincial law societies, has come amid increasing competition between attorneys and non- professionals. The marketing fraternity is, however, uncertain as to how members of the public are likely to react to legal services advertising. This study attempts to provide some tentative guidelines for decision-making on advertising by attorneys. Interested parties like attorneys, marketing consultants, and advertising agencies could use the researched information to structure marketing communication strategies which will not transgress the ethical code of the attorneys' profession, but which will satisfy the information needs of consumers. The study reports the findings of a survey conducted among 1 000 members of the public. Indications are that consumers not only think that advertising should be permitted, but also that it will benefit both themselves and the legal profession. Opsomming Prokureurs mag moontlik binnekort toegelaat word om hul dienste te adverteer. Die aanbeveling van die Vereniging van Prokureursordes, wat nog deur die vier provinsiale wetsgenootskappe bekragtig moet word, is geneem as gevolg van toenemende mededinging tussen prokureurs en nie-professionele praktisyns. Bemarkingsdeskundiges is egter onseker oor wat die publiek se reaksie sal wees. Die studie poog om enkele tentatiewe riglyne voor te stel vir bemarkingskommunikasiestrategieë wat nie die regsprofessie se etiese kode sal oortree nie, maar tog voldoende inligting aan verbruikers sal beskikbaar stel. Die bevindinge van 'n opname onder 1 000 lede van die publiek dui daarop dat reklame nie alleen verwelkom sal word nie, maar dat dit moontlik tot voordeel van sowel die publiek as die regsprofessie sal strek.

Reflections on Prosecutorial Independence and Impartiality in South Africa: The Recent Jurisprudence of the Courts

2021 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ntombizozuko Dyani-Mhango
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Judicial Independence ◽  
The Past ◽  
Its Analysis ◽  
Political Interference ◽  
Effective Administration ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
The Law ◽  
Constitutional Jurisprudence

Prosecutorial independence and prosecutorial impartiality are important for the effective administration of criminal justice in South Africa. These two concepts are interconnected and yet they are distinct, and distinguishable from judicial independence and judicial impartiality. In the past decade or so, controversy has surrounded and allegations have been made of political interference with prosecutorial independence and impartiality in South Africa. This article reflects on recent developments in the exercise of prosecutorial independence and impartiality in South Africa. The interest was sparked by recent constitutional jurisprudence in developing the law on prosecutorial independence and impartiality. In its analysis of the courts’ jurisprudence on prosecutorial independence, the article further demonstrates that this jurisprudence has had an influence in determining the independence of other institutions responsible for the administration of criminal justice.

scholarly journals Resente Matteusnavorsing in Suid-Afrika

1994 ◽  
Vol 50 (1/2) ◽  
Author(s):  
H. J.B. Combrink
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Literary Criticism ◽  
South African ◽  
Large Degree ◽  
Sermon On The Mount ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
African Context ◽  
Social Scientific ◽  
Specific Contribution

Recent Matthean-research in South Africa This article deals with recent developments in Matthean research, mostly by members of the New Testament Society of South Africa. Initially, research on Matthew was influenced to a large degree by discourse analysis. Literary criticism and narratology also made an impact on this research, as well as speech-act theory, pragmatics and rhetoric. Social-scientific criticism also played a role, and the Sermon on the Mount has also been read as littérature engagée. Recently, the specific contribution of Matthew to the subjects of Theology and Ethics has also received attention. A growing sensitivity to the South African and the broader African context is also currently being seen..

scholarly journals Corporate Support for Legal Services

Daedalus ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 148 (1) ◽  
pp. 136-139
Author(s):  
Jo-Ann Wallace
Keyword(s):  
Large Firm ◽  
Law Firms ◽  
Legal Services ◽  
Private Law ◽  
Legal Aid ◽  
Business Experience ◽  
Pro Bono ◽  
Corporate Support ◽  
Corporate Lawyers ◽  
The Impact

The gap in pro bono legal services provided by corporate legal departments and large private law firms is not surprising: The formalization of pro bono work by large firms has been underway on a significant scale for far longer than it has within corporations. This process has made large firm pro bono efforts more efficient and effective through improved practices. It has also led firm leaders and lawyers generally to expect more volunteerism of this sort. Companies that apply their resources, business experience, or other assets have successfully expanded the impact of their pro bono hours. Because of the scale of this need, and because legal-services lawyers have specialized expertise that corporate lawyers can't easily replicate, corporate pro bono efforts will not, on their own, close the justice gap. But these efforts have the potential to contribute significantly more to the ability of legal-aid organizations to serve their clients, and to help close this gap.

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