Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Act, 2003 (Act No. 53 of 2003)

Sector Codes

Legal Sector Code, 2024

8. The Legal Practice Council
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8.1. The LPC was established as a national statutory body to, in conjunction with its provincial councils, regulate the affairs of and exercise jurisdiction over all legal practitioners in South Africa, that is, attorneys, advocates and candidate legal practitioners.

 

8.2. The purpose of the LPA is to inter alia:
8.2.1. “Provide a legislative framework for the transformation and restructuring of the legal profession that embrace the values underpinning the Constitution and ensures that the rule of law is held …”; and
8.2.2. Broaden access to justice by putting in place: (iii) measures that provide equal opportunities for all aspirant legal practitioners in order to have a legal profession that broadly reflects the demographics of the Republic.

 

8.3. Section 5 (a) of the LPA provides that one of the objects of the LPC is to facilitate the realisation of a transformed and restructured legal profession.

 

8.4. Section 6(1) (b) (v) of the LPA further enjoins the Council to develop programmes to empower black legal practitioners as well as candidate legal practitioners.

 

8.5. The role of the LPC in facilitating the development of the LSC is in terms of ss 5(a) and 6(1) (b) of the LPA.

 

8.6. In pursuance of these provisions of the LPA, the LPC in February 2020, resolved to facilitate the development of the LSC. The procedures followed in developing the LSC were in accordance with the provisions of the B-BBEE Act as read with Statement 003. In June 2020, the LPC issued a public notice notifying all stakeholders and members of the public, that it was commencing with facilitating the drafting of the Legal Sector Code. In August 2020, the LPC issued invitations to stakeholders to participate in the formation of the Steering Committee which would be responsible for the development and drafting of the Legal Sector Code. The Steering Committee was duly constituted. The LPC issued a further media alert in October 2020 extending an invitation to all legal practitioners (attorneys and advocates), all government departments and other stakeholders to consultative physical meetings; virtual meetings and to submit written submissions to a dedicated email address within the stipulated periods.

 

8.7. The Steering Committee conducted public consultations throughout the country from November 2020 in seven provinces physically and one virtual meeting was held to include all stakeholders who could not attend physical meetings. Stakeholders were also invited to submit written comments. Based on the public consultations and comments received, several drafts of the LSC were produced by the Steering Committee. The LPC provided logistical support for the consultations and acted as secretariat for all the work of the Steering Committee. After comments closed, the Steering Committee held several meetings to consider the comments and amended the draft LSC accordingly. The final draft was submitted to the DTIC in August 2021 and published for comment in July 2022. After comments were received, a committee consisting of some members of the Steering Committee, officials of the DTIC and the DoJ &CA considered the comments and amended the draft LSC. The full Steering Committee considered comments and the amendments and made their own and then approved the final draft for gazetting. This draft was submitted to the Minister of Justice in September 2023 for approval. The Minister of Justice approved the LSC and submitted it to the Minister for gazetting in October 2023.