On June 22, 2020, the South African President announced that certain provisions of POPIA would take effect on July 1, provisions which most regard as essential to the statute, such as those imposing conditions on the lawful processing of personal information, procedures for handling complaints, and general enforcement provisions. Only
Continue Reading Inside Privacy Audiocast: Episode 5 – View From Johannesburg Part I: GDPR vs. POPIA – What Should Businesses Be Considering?

South Africa Eases COVID-19 Restrictions

On September 16, 2020, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that South Africa would move from Alert Level 2 to Alert Level 1 of Risk Adjusted Strategy as of midnight on September 20, 2020. This is in part in response to the relatively low levels of infections and the government led interventions to combat the spread of COVID-19. While South Africa has confirmed over 650,000 infections and has suffered 15,000 deaths, recent data illustrates that the number of new cases has substantially decreased—from nearly 14,000 new daily cases on July 24, 2020 at its peak, to just 1,555 new cases on September 20.

This announcement comes a few days after the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) announced the extension of the national state of disaster from 15 September 2020 to 15 October 2020, as published in Government Gazette 43713. The reason for the extension of the national state of disaster is to grant government the authority required to continue updating existing legislation and contingency arrangements undertaken to address the impact of the pandemic.
Continue Reading South Africa Eases COVID-19 Restrictions

In a recent client alert, we explored the U.S. Department of Justice’s (“DOJ”) June 2020 update to its guidance on Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs (the “DOJ Guidance”).

In this series of posts, our Africa Anti-Corruption Practice will be focusing on the key takeaways from the DOJ Guidance through the lens of companies operating in Africa, starting with a foundational question: Why does guidance issued by U.S. law enforcement authorities matter to companies operating in Africa?

Strictly speaking, the DOJ Guidance does not “require” anything of companies, regardless of where they are headquartered, incorporated, or operate. Even for U.S. companies, the DOJ Guidance is not a prescriptive regulation with the force of law. Rather, it is a guidance document that is “meant to assist [U.S.] prosecutors in making informed decisions as to whether, and to what extent, [a] corporation’s compliance program was effective at the time of [an] offense, and is effective at the time of a charging decision or resolution.” This evaluation by prosecutors can impact various aspects of a DOJ enforcement action, including the form of resolution (e.g., guilty plea vs. deferred prosecution agreement), the monetary penalty imposed, and other compliance-related obligations imposed in a settlement (e.g., self-reporting requirements or independent compliance monitorships).
Continue Reading Africa Compliance Minute Series – What Does DOJ’s Recent Guidance on Compliance Programs Mean for Companies Operating in Africa?

In a recent contribution to the CovAfrica blog, our Africa Anti-Corruption Practice outlined key considerations for handling internal investigations in Africa.  Here we take a deeper dive into one of the most important, and challenging, aspects of internal investigations – remediation, drawing on a longer article we recently published in Global Investigations Review’s 2020 Europe, Middle East, and Africa Investigations Review.

Key Takeaways:

  • Taking corrective action during the course of an investigation can put a swift end to any ongoing misconduct and help a company avoid further losses or liability.
  • A company will often have enough information early in its investigation to take steps to mitigate the risk of continued harm to the company.
  • Promptly investigating and addressing identified risks can help to narrow the scope of the investigation and save a company time and money.

Continue Reading Africa Compliance Minute Series – Acting Early to Save You Later: The Importance of Taking Corrective Action During the Course of an Investigation

On August 15, 2020, the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) announced the extension of the national state of disaster. The national state of disaster was declared under Government Gazette No 43096 of 15 March 2020 (and extended by Government Gazette Nos 646 of June 5, 2020 and 765 of July 13, 2020), from August 15, 2020 to September 15, 2020. The reason for the extension of the national state of disaster is linked to the need “to continue augmenting the existing legislation and contingency arrangements undertaken by organs of state to address the impact of the disaster”. On the same day, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a decision to transition the country from Alert Level 3 to Alert Level 2 of the Risk Adjusted Strategy, following consultation with the National Coronavirus Command Council, Cabinet and the President’s Coordinating Council.

Government Gazette No. 43620 sets out the revised restrictions that will govern this period effective 00H01 on August 18, 2020. The following restrictions have been lifted:
Continue Reading South Africa Eases COVID-19 Restrictions with the Transition to Alert Level 2

As project finance becomes more widespread in Africa, government officials, bankers and developers will all become exposed to the complex documentation that comes with it. Some of the payment mechanisms can be very complicated and lawyers are often asked to include “worked examples” in the documentation. A recent case looked at the use of worked examples in contracts governed by English law. The court concluded the following:

  • worked examples are integral parts of finance and other commercial contracts;
  • it is often only when narratives and formulae are worked through that their true effect can properly be seen;
  • where there is more than one worked example, consistency among the examples (in this case the inclusion of a missing step), strongly suggests that this was a deliberate choice by the drafter; and
  • it is inherently more probable that the parties’ true bargain is to be found in the worked examples.

Continue Reading Making Your Intentions Known in Contract: Complex Formulae

President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on June 22, 2020, that certain sections of the Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013 (Act 4 of 2013) (“POPIA”) would become effective on July 1, 2020.  POPIA gives effect to the right to privacy in section 14 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (Act 108 of 1996).  POPIA will impact all responsible parties that collect, store, process and / or disseminate personal information as part of their business activities.  POPIA defines a responsible party as “a public or private body or any other person which, alone or in conjunction with others, determines the purpose of and means for processing personal information”.  The commencement of these essential provisions contained in POPIA, now position South Africa in line with global best practice on data protection and privacy.  The commencement of POPIA signifies a great advance for the South African data protection and privacy legal landscape.
Continue Reading An Update on South Africa’s 2013 Protection of Personal Information Act

On June 17, 2020 South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced government’s intention to further ease the lockdown restrictions imposed due to COVID-19, allowing more industries to re-open fully under stringent health and safety protocols. This announcement comes two weeks after the government de-escalated the country from Alert Level 4 to
Continue Reading South Africa Prepares to Further Ease Lockdown Restrictions

Following the declaration of the National State of Disaster on March 15, 2020, a number of regulations have been enacted to contain and minimise the spread of COVID-19 in South Africa. On June 2, 2020, Judge Norman Davis of the South African High Court found the regulations issued in terms
Continue Reading South African High Court rules COVID-19 Lockdown Regulations Unconstitutional

Join us tomorrow, June 3, 2020, from 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. for a webinar featuring The Honorable Eric Holder, 82nd Attorney General of the United States, to discuss the topic of Law and Crisis Management: Working with Lawyers in Business, Government, and Society to Manage the Challenges of
Continue Reading Register Now: Law and Crisis Management Event with The Honorable Eric Holder, Wednesday June 3rd