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Never miss a beat on Africa's legal and regulatory landscape.

Webber Wentzel

FSCA declares crypto assets a financial product

The Financial Sector Conduct Authority has published the first of what will be a series of regulations to manage crypto assets and their providers. Following its initial proposal on 20 November 2020, the Financial Se..

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Webber Wentzel

Radio DJ: 15 years later and still not an employee

A recent Labour Court judgment applied the dominant impression test to establish whether a radio DJ was an employee of the SABC or an independent contractor. The Court concluded that the DJ was not an employee and serves to remind employers and individuals that the contra..

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ENSafrica

Grey-listing looming as South Africa rushes to meet tight deadline

It has been a little over a year since the Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”), an international initiative established to combat money laundering published..

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Werksmans Attorneys

Small mergers in digital markets are on the Competition Commission’s radar – Final guidelines on small merger notification

The Competition Commission of South Africa (Commission) recently published its final guidelines on small merger notification (Final Guidelines), approximately sixteen months after the Commission issued a draft for public comment.  The Final Guidelines expand on the t..

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Bowmans

South Africa: Beware when acquiring tailings dams as part of a mine or mineral processing facility

The possibility of tailings dam failure, highlighted by the recent Jagersfontein tragedy, highlights the need for particular care when assessing the risks of a transaction in the mining and minerals processing sectors.

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CMS

New deadline looms for non-residential property owners

Come 7 December 2022, a substantial proportion of South Africa’s non-residential buildings will be required to submit and display an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). The requirement, which was gazetted in December 2020, is aimed at making buildings in South Africa mo..

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Webber Wentzel

Do androids recognise electric sheep? South Africa's recognition of blockchain arbitration agreements

​​​​​​​​The enforceability of (foreign) blockchain arbitrations under South Africa's international arbitration regime might be difficult but there are possible solutions. As technology advances, a recurring tension is the ability of legal systems to cater for or inc..

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Adams & Adams

Parody in South Africa: addressing the Hippo in the room

A recent advertising parody has caused quite a stir at the watering hole, and left consumers questioning whether Hippo.co.za may have been out of line.

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ENSafrica

Colour trade marks: another purple patch?

The issue of colour trade marks rears its head from time to time. In theory, it’s very simple – a colour (or a colour combination) can function as a trade mark and can be registered as a trade mark. But many things are great in theory.

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