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Legal Practice Act, 2014 (Act No. 28 of 2014)

Code of Conduct

Code of Conduct for all Legal Practitioners, Candidate Legal Practitioners and Juristic Entitites

Part I

Definitions

 

1. In this code, unless the context otherwise indicates:

 

1.1 "the Act" means the Legal Practice Act, 28 of 2014;

 

1.2 "advocate" means a legal practitioner who is admitted and enrolled as such under the Act;

 

1.3 "attorney" means a legal practitioner who is admitted and enrolled as such under the Act;

 

1.4 "branch office" means an office at or from which the firm practises, but which is not a main office;

 

1.5 "candidate attorney" means a person undergoing practical vocational training with a view to being admitted and enrolled as an attorney;

 

1.6 "candidate legal practitioner" means a person undergoing practical vocational training, either as a candidate attorney or as a pupil;

 

1.7 "chambers" means premises suitable for the practice of an advocate;

 

1.8 "code of conduct" or "code" means this code;

 

1.9 "conveyancer" means any practising attorney who is admitted and enrolled to practice as a conveyancer in terms of the Act;

 

1.10 "Council" means the South African Legal Practice Council established in terms of section 4 of the Act;

 

1.11 "counsel" means an advocate referred to in section 34(2)(a)(i) of the Act;

 

1.12 "court" means any court in the Republic as defined in section 166 of the Constitution of the Republic;

 

1.13 "disciplinary body" means—
1.13.1 an investigating committee;
1.13.2 a disciplinary committee; or
1.13.3 an appeal tribunal.

 

1.14 "Fidelity Fund Certificate" means the certificate referred to in section 85 of the Act;

 

1.15 "firm" means —
1.15.1 a partnership of attorneys;
1.15.2 an attorney practising for his or her own account; or
1.15.3 a juristic entity

who or which in each case conducts the practice of an attorney;

 

1.16 "Fund" means the Legal Practitioners' Fidelity Fund referred to in section 53 of the Act;

 

1.17 "High Court" means the High Court of South Africa established by section 6 of the Superior Courts Act, 10 of 2013 or, if the context indicates otherwise, the Division thereof having jurisdiction;

 

1.18 "juristic entity" means a commercial juristic entity established to conduct a legal practice as an attorney, as contemplated in section 34(7) of the Act and a limited liability legal practice as contemplated in section 34(9) of the Act;

 

1.19 "legal practitioner" means an advocate or attorney admitted and enrolled as such in terms of sections 24 and 30 respectively of the Act;

 

1.20 "main office" means the premises at and from which the practice of a firm is as a whole administered and controlled, including such premises in two or more buildings situated in sufficiently close proximity to one another to allow the administration of that practice as a single composite entity, and includes premises declared or determined as such in terms of accounting rules 54.2 or 54.5, as the case may be;

 

1.21 "Minister" means the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services;

 

1.22 "notary" means any practising attorney who is admitted and enrolled to practise as a notary in terms of this Act;

 

1.23 "private practice" means the practice of a legal practitioner who places legal services at the disposal of the public for reward and is actively engaged in the profession either as an attorney or as an advocate, or the practice of a legal practitioner as contemplated in sections 34(5)(c), (d) or (e) or section 34(6)(b), (c) or (d), and "practise" has a corresponding meaning; and for purposes of this definition—
1.23.1 attorneys referred to in sections 34(5)(c), (d) and (e) of the Act will be regarded as being attorneys in private practice;
1.23.2 advocates referred to in sections 34(6)(b), (c) and (d) will be regarded as being advocates in private practice;

 

1.24 "pupil" means a person undergoing practical vocational training with a view to being admitted and enrolled as an advocate;

 

1.25 "Republic" means the Republic of South Africa;

 

1.26 "roll" means the roll of legal practitioners referred to in section 30(3) of the Act;

 

1.27 "rules" means the rules made in terms of the Act;

 

1.28 "trust account practice" means a practice conducted by—
1.28.1 one or more attorneys who are; or
1.28.2 an advocate referred to in section 34(2)(b) of the Act who is,

in terms of the Act, required to hold a Fidelity Fund certificate.

 

1.29 Words or expressions referred to in this code which are not defined shall bear the respective meanings assigned to them by section 1 of the Act.