Webber Wentzel notes the Gauteng High Court judgment concerning the B-BBEE Legal Sector Code, which was given 7 October 2026 and in which Webber Wentzel was one of the applicants.
The Court set aside the Minister's decision to issue the Code. It found that the Minister had not exercised his own judgment when deciding to issue it, which the law requires, and it sent the matter back to him to reconsider.
Chairman and Senior Partner at Bowmans, speaking on behalf of Bowmans, Webber Wentzel and Werksmans law firms: "We remain firmly committed to meaningful and sustainable transformation, including the promotion of diversity, inclusion and equitable access to opportunities across the legal sector. The objective throughout these proceedings has been to ensure that the Legal Sector Code provides a framework for transformation that is lawful, practical and inclusive. We look forward to engaging constructively with Government, the Legal Practice Council and representative bodies across the profession to help develop such a framework."
