Commercial law firm Dommisse Attorneys has been joined by new partner Jana van Zyl, an expert in consumer law, following the firm’s recent acquisition of RTK Attorneys.
“Jana’s presence on the team means we can offer a rounded set of compliance and commercial skills to our clients,” says lead partner Adrian Dommisse. Many of the firm’s clients are in the ICT industry, and Dommisse says there is an increasing need for guidance on how to comply with the raft of new consumerrelated legislation that has been introduced in recent years.
The more recent laws include not just the Consumer Protection Act (CPA), but also the National Credit Act (NCA), the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act (ECT), and more recently the Protection of Personal Information Bill (POPI) which is expected to be enacted soon.
“POPI compliance will need to be considered by any business who processes information” says Van Zyl, who is assisting several large clients in the retail industry, “and a compliance project can be a significant exercise. Typically one would conduct a gap analysis, develop an action plan and then help the client to implement appropriate business processes.”
On CPA side, Van Zyl says clients also often ask for one-off consultations and opinions relating to the application of the CPA to their particular business operations. These could include everything from the wording of customer facing documentation, policies and competition terms to how to practically implement a particular section of the legislation.
“Training is a fairly large component of what I do,” she adds. “A number of common practices around marketing and promotions, for example, have had to change with the introduction of the CPA and POPI will add to that once enacted. Clients often need in-depth training before they can understand and implement the new laws in their everyday business practice.”
