Contracts and Commercial Law

The registration of companies.

The drafting of most types of contracts, the interpretation of contracts and general advice in respect of contracts, such as:

• Trust Deeds
• Contracts of Purchase and Sale
• Rental / Lease Agreements
• “Hire Purchase” Agreements
• Joint Venture Agreements
• Building Contracts
• Sale of immovable and movable property
• Sale of Business
• Sale of Membership/Shares
• Shareholders Agreement
• Loan Agreements / Acknowledgement of Debt
• Suretyship and Pledge Contracts
• Memorandum of Incorporation (MOI)
• Tender Agreements

Conveyancing and Property

Our team of experts pride ourselves in our efficient, cost effective handling of property related transactions. We are on the panel of all major financial institutions.

The services provided by the Real Estate department include:

• Negotiating and drafting of agreements relating to property transactions
• Deceased Estate transfers
• Insolvent Estate transfers
• Sectional title developments
• Sales and leasing of immovable property
• Conventional (Full title erven) and sectional title (more commonly referred to as “flats”) transfer of properties
• Mortgage and covering bonds (ABSA Bank, First National Bank Housing Division, Nedbank and Standard Bank) and notarial bonds
• Sub-Division and consolidation of properties
• Township developments
• Township developments in terms of the Development Facilitation Act
• Various applications, consents and endorsements
• Notarial leases and servitudes
• Amendment of Sectional Title Plans (Extension of Scheme / Extension of Units

Family Matters

We handle legal challenges arising from and related to family relationships among family members, including husbands and wives, parents and children and domestic partners, such as:

• Parental rights and responsibility disputes
• Care and contact disputes in respect of child/children
• Domestic violence
• Matrimonial property rights
• Paternity disputes
• Antenuptial Contracts
• Spousal and child maintenance
• Parenting Plans
• Divorce settlement agreements
• Rights of unmarried fathers
• Co-habitation agreements
• Harassment disputes

Insolvency Matters:

We can assist debtors and creditors in achieving the most effective ways to eradicate debt without compromising human dignity. We will advise you on, and structure the following processes to suit your needs:

• Liquidations of Companies
• Sequestrations – Applications for voluntary surrender of insolvent estates, and forced winding up of insolvent estates
• Business Rescues

Labour Law

Gerrit Duvenage personally appears in all Bargaining Councils and CCMA’s throughout the country and represents clients in the Labour Court.

He conducts training sessions for a various range of corporate, private and public clients. He also conducts legal compliance and compiles all the required documentation, policies and procedures for the clients to ensure legal compliancy. He also acts as chairperson and/or initiator of disciplinary enquiries, assists clients with formal investigations prior to instituting disciplinary action. He serves as an arbitrator on the panel of the VRA, Association of Arbitrators (Southern Africa) and sits as an arbitrator on Sectional Title disputes.

Our Labour Law services include:

• CCMA
• Bargaining Council
• Labour Court
• Chairing disciplinary enquiries
• Act as initiator
• Legal Compliance audits
• Drafting / Amending Policies and Procedures
• Training in all aspects of Employment Law
• Retrenchments
• Industrial Action (Strikes)
• Drafting / Reviewing Employment Contracts

Litigation

Our litigation department deals with most aspects of High Court, Regional court and magistrates court litigation:

• Contractual claims
• Claims for damages (delictual claims) and medical negligence claims
• Debt recoveries (collections)
• Eviction orders
• Foreclosures
• Interdicts
• Criminal matters
• General litigation
• Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Mediation and Arbitration
• Defamation
• Professional Negligence claims

Local Government and Planning

A very substantial percentage of the work done in our litigation department relates to municipal and planning matters. Although we primarily represent municipalities in such matters, we also accept instructions from other clients where there is no conflict of interest. The services rendered in this regard include:

• Interpretation and enforcement of land use management schemes and related legislation
• Appeals and judicial intervention relating to council resolutions and other decisions taken on behalf of local authorities, including appeals to the Municipal Planning Appeal Authority
• Valuation appeals
• General advice
• Tenders and Tender Appeals

Mediation

Mediation is a process where the main focus is to amicably resolve and maintain relations between the parties involved. It is a flexible and informal means of resolving differences and can be utilised in a variety of aspects including, but not limited to, labour matters, family law matters (including divorces, maintenance disputes and/or disputes regarding minor children), corporate and conveyancing disputes, contractual disputes, building disputes and many more, which matters would otherwise have resulted in the institution of legal action in some way or another.

Gerrit Duvenage is a qualified and accredited mediator through the London School of Mediation and serves as such on the Panel of Mediators of the Association of Arbitrators (Southern Africa) NPC.

With his ability to assist participants in defining the issues between them, he is able to guide the parties to a resolution whilst ensuring that the relations or ties between them remain intact.

If you have an on-going dispute with no resolution in sight, contact our office today and schedule an appointment with Gerrit Duvenage to discuss the option of mediation!

Arbitration

This department is managed by our director, Gerrit Duvenage, who is our specialist Arbitrator and Employment Law Practitioner and who has 31 years of experience. He is also a fellow of the Association of Arbitrators and also serves on their panel of arbitrators.

He has extensive experience in all aspects of arbitrations, including but not limited to:

• Family disputes
• Sectional Title disputes
• Construction disputes
• Commercial Law disputes
• Employment Law disputes
• Local Government disputes

Occupational Health and Safety

Duvenage Inc. offers wide range of Occupational Health and Safety compliance services to the various sectors of industries. We understand that occupational health and safety is paramount to every business hence we strive to assist clients to comply with their OH&S obligations. It is the responsibility of every organisation to conduct its business in a manner that does not pose risk to health and safety of employees. 

The following are the OH&S services we offer: 

• Legal Compliance Services
• Legal Compliance Audits  
• Compile and update Legal Registers
• Prepare Health & Safety Specifications for projects 
• Constructions Regulations Audits 
• Advise clients on regulatory compliance
• Representation in DMRE and DoL incident investigations   
• Representation in quasi-judicial inquiries and criminal prosecutions in Magistrates & High Courts. 

Consulting Services 

• We advise clients on OH&S legal compliance requirements, both for occupational Health and Safety Act and Mine Health & Safety Act.
• Assist clients in the developments of compliant Risk Assessments Registers 
• We advise clients on the compensation regimes that are applicable in terms of the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act and the Occupational Diseases in Mines Works Act. 
• Assist clients with the implementation of an effective health and safety management programme. 

Training 

• Introduction to Occupational Health & Safety Act 85 of 1993
• Legal Liability for Management OHS Act 
• Legal Liability MHS Act
• Construction Regulations 2014
• COID Act Training

We have a specialised deceased estates department which deals with:

• Drafting and interpretation of wills
• Estate Planning
• Administration of deceased estates