Webber Wentzel was South Africa's 2011 Law Firm of the Year
The law firm: Webber Wentzel, South Africa’s 2011 Law Firm of the Year
Who was the client? AIDS Accountability International (AAI), a charity that produces scorecards rating leaders on their response to the AIDS pandemic.
What was the request? The charity needed help with employment contracts and securing tax exemption in South Africa.
Why did Webber Wentzel take on the project?
Webber Wentzel said the request for assistance from AIDS Accountability International caught their attention because of the work the charity does in South Africa, which has 5.6 million people living with HIV/AIDS – more than any other country.
“They are doing great work,” said Ayanda Khumalo, the lawyer who took on the case.“I think it will keep South Africa on its toes.”
What did Aids Accountability International say about the assistance they received?
“It has been very important because it would have been very costly otherwise,” said Rodrigo Garay, Executive Director of AAI.
“If we didn’t have the money, maybe we wouldn’t have prioritized these legal issues and it might have had severe consequences. It helped us to become professional.”
What else is Webber Wentzel doing with TrustLaw Connect?
Webber Wentzel have taken on a second TrustLaw Connect case, providing support to a local civil society organization that reports to the United Nations on South Africa’s performance in fighting corruption.
This is part of a major TLC project in which 27 local civil society organisations are reviewing their governments’ compliance with the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, a key international legal instrument- independently of the official reports.
Why did they take on this second project?
This fits neatly with Webber Wentzel’s commitment to being a “good corporate citizen”, Hathorn said.
The law firm acted in South Africa’s famous Scorpions case. It successfully challenged the government’s disbanding of the corruption and crime fighting body, known as the Scorpions, as unconstitutional.
It acted as amicus for the Helen Suzman Foundation.
In the end, the constitutional court ruled in Webber Wentzel’s favour, arguing that the replacement police-run unit, the Hawks, was too susceptible to political influence.
Why do WebberWentzel do pro bono work?
“It’s difficult to just ignore what’s going on around you in the world and just to live entirely for yourself,” said Moray Hathorn of Webber Wentzel.
“I think one’s got to have some regard to the well-being of the society around you. You can’t sleep at night if you are only concerned about your very narrow self interest.”
Last year, the firm provided 13 million rand ($1.6 million) of free legal services to 146 individuals, organisations and communities. This amounted to 9,159 hours of work by 72 lawyers from its dedicated pro bono team.
“It’s to put something back into the community in which you operate,” Hathorn continued.
“There are areas of great need. From a position of relative well-being, you try to do something about that to maintain and to build the integrity of the society in which you operate.”
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