Attorneys Act, 1979 (Act No. 53 of 1979)Chapter I : Practitioners: Qualifications, Admission and Removal from Roll23. Juristic person may conduct a practice |
| (1) | A company may, notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Act, conduct a practice if— |
| (a) | such company is a personal liability company contemplated in the Companies Act, 2008 (Act No. 71 of 2008); |
[Section 23(1)(a) amended by section 16(b) of Act No. 40 of 2014]
| (b) | only natural persons who are practitioners and who are in possession of current fidelity fund certificates are members or shareholders of the company or persons having any interest in the shares of the company; |
| (c) | the name of the company, other than the expression 'Incorporated' or 'Inc.', consists solely of the name or names of any of the present or past members of the company or of persons who conducted, either on their own account or in partnership, any practice which may reasonably be regarded as a predecessor of the practice of the company, unless the council of the law society having jurisdiction has approved any other name in writing in accordance with the rules of such law society: Provided that the words 'and associates' or 'and company' may be included in the name of the company. |
[Section 23(1)(c) amended by section 16(c) of Act No. 40 of 2014]
[Section 23(1) amended by section 16(a) of Act No. 40 of 2014]
| (2) | Every shareholder of the company shall be a director of the company, and only a shareholder of the company shall be a director thereof. |
| (3) | If a shareholder of the company or a person having any interest in the shares of the company, dies or ceases to conform to any requirement of subsection (1)(b), he or she pr his or her estate, as the case may be, may, as from the date on which he dies or ceases so to conform, continue to hold the relevant shares or interest in the shares in the company for a period of six months or for such longer period as the council of the society having jurisdiction in the area in which the company's registered office is situate, may approve. |
[Section 23(3) amended by section 16(d) of Act No. 40 of 2014]
| (4) | No voting rights shall attach to any share held in terms of subsection (3), and the holder of any such share shall not act as a director of the company or receive, directly or indirectly, any director's fees or remuneration or participate in the income of or profits earned by the company in its practice. |
| (5) | [Section 23(5) deleted by section 16(e) of Act No. 40 of 2014] |
| (6) | [Section 23(6) deleted by section 16(e) of Act No. 40 of 2014] |
| (7) | Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any other law, the memorandum of incorporation of the company may provide that a shareholder of the company may not appoint a shareholder of the company, to attend, speak or vote in his or her stead at any meeting of the company. |
[Section 23(7) amended by section 16(f) of Act No. 40 of 2014]
| (8) | If the company ceases to conform to any requirement of subsection (1), it shall forthwith cease to practise, and shall, as from the date on which it ceases so to conform, not be recognized in law as a practitioner: Provided that the provisions of this subsection shall not, during the period referred to or contemplated in subsection (3), apply to a company by reason only that a shareholder of the company or a person having any interest in the shares of the company has ceased to be a practitioner or to be in possession of a fidelity fund certificate. |
| (9) | Any reference in this Act or in any other law to a practitioner or to a partner or partnership in relation to practitioners, shall be deemed to include a reference to a company under this section or to a shareholder of such a company, as the case may be, unless the context otherwise indicates. |
[Section 23(9) amended by section 16(g) of Act No. 40 of 2014]