The BBC supports Black lawyer’s court case against Minister Patel to gazette legal sector code

8 March 2024

The Black Business Council (BBC) fully supports the Black Conveyancers Association (BCA), the Black Lawyers Association (BLA), The National Association of Democratic Lawyers (NADEL) and the Pan African Bar Association of South Africa (PABASA) in their court bid to force the Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic), Mr Ebrahim Patel, to gazette the long-overdue Legal Sector Code (LSC).

The BBC takes a dim view of the prolonged delay of the gazetting of the LSC as the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, Mr Ronald Lamola, approved the LSC on 10 October 2023 and forwarded it to Minister Patel, who has been frustrating this process since 2021. The BBC does not understand why. This unreasonable delay, by a minister who is supposed to represent a pro-economic transformation government, means that black practitioners are frustrated and continue to suffer and remain deprived of a sustainable flow of quality legal work. This is the very same minister who has failed to appoint a permanent Director General (DG) for almost three (3) years.

The previous permanent DG, Mr Lionel October, left the department in April 2021. Many other senior positions at the department and its entities are occupied by people on an acting basis. The BBC decries the general apathy and deprioritisation of the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) and calls on H.E. President Ramaphosa to take action against Minister Patel.

The BBC will also request an urgent meeting between the minister and the black lawyers.

Issued by Black Business Councill, 8 March 2024