Editor's Note

Myrle Vanderstraeten joined Gleason Publications in October 1998. Assistant editor to David Gleason on without prejudice from October 2001 until March 2011, Myrle took over the reins as editor in April 2011.

Passionate about the publication, she has revelled in the challenges to maintain the magazine’s reputation as “a rare source of valuable information” and views the entry into the digital world as an exciting step that will expand without prejudice’s footprint into other jurisdictions.

Editor's Note - March 2020

The 30th anniversary of Nelson Mandela's 'long walk to freedom' was commemorated globally on the 11th of February. There are few people who were old enough to recognise how momentous the event was, who do not remember that moment, when he walked out of jail, and exactly where they were.

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Editor's Note - February 2020

At heart an optimist, I hoped that 2020 – the start of a new decade – would bring with it not just promises of opportunities but also tangible change. Thwarted before we began… We returned home from our holiday to no water – a burst water pipe on William Nicol; then at 20:00 no electricity and lo and behold at 08:00 the next morning no electricity – again. Optimism went swiftly down the drain.

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Editor's Note - December 2019

For a brief moment South Africans stood together wherever they were, rugby fan or not, united by the joy of the Springboks' victory at the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan. For that moment all the adjectives that are used to describe and divide us fell away – but only for 'one moment in time'.

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Editor's Note - October 2019

One of the most serious challenges for man is that of the environment: cleaning up the existing pollution as best as possible and leaving behind a habitable world for future generations. In this issue of without prejudice there are seven articles that focus on some of these challenges.

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Editor's Note - September 2019

In South Africa September marks spring and new beginnings. It should be a time to be hopeful, but global sentiment is less than accommodating.

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Editor's Note - August 2019

August is Women's Month. In recognition of the strides being made we put the spotlight on women in five articles. One article is satire – please read it to its conclusion before putting pen to paper; Bouwer van Niekerk does not want to be shot at dawn.

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Editor's Note - July 2019

This month's issue starts with an area of the law infrequently covered in without prejudice and highlights the fact that legislation, despite good intentions, can result in greater hardship for those directly affected by that law.

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Editor's Note - June 2019

The last of our "Top Student" features appears this month. The Class of 2013 graduates appeared in the April 2014 feature. That year there was an increase in the number of men who were top students, although there were still more women in total, and globally women outnumbered men when it came to enrolling to study law, which led Mary Curnock Cook, Chief Executive of the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service in the UK, to say men were becoming a disadvantaged group when it came to university applications.

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Editor's Note - May 2019

Our annual feature on the top final year LLB students is always interesting for a variety of reasons, for me not least because there often seems to be a similarity in their characteristics, and I enjoy the five and ten year on catch-ups to see whether students still display the traits I may have observed when they graduated.

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Editor's Note - April 2019

In April we traditionally publish the first of three "top student" sections. The Class of 2009 is in the limelight and readers will find interesting the diverse routes taken.

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Editor's Note - March 2019

Without prejudice is delighted to welcome to the Sponsorship Group, MacRobert. In 1989 two law practices –MacRobert, de Villiers and Hitge and Lunnon and Tindall – merged to form MacRobert de Villiers Lunnon and Tindall. The firms have a 123-year-old history, making it one of the oldest law practices in Gauteng. The rather long practice name was shortened to MacRobert Inc in 2000 but the history of the other founding partners' lives on in the consulting rooms named after them in which photographs, documents and other memorabilia can be found.

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Editor's Note - February 2019

A new year, perhaps another opportunity to do the right thing? 2018 was yet another of those "interesting" years, for South Africa and globally. Governments and politicians made the headlines, generally not for reasons to make citizens proud.

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Editor's Note - December 2018

2018 has been a particularly tough year for most people. In fact, it is a long time since South Africans have said "What a great year". For most citizens, and foreigners who contribute in so many ways to our economy and culture, it feels like a long, hard slog to nowhere. And when those in the infamous "corridors of power" continue to behave this year in the same way as they did last year – and the year before that down the tunnel of time – it is little wonder that people question the law and the length of time it takes to provide justice, if it ever comes.

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Editor's note - November 2018

It may well be that as South Africans we love to bemoan things, but then there always seems to be plenty deserving of our indignation…

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Editor's Note - September 2018

In South Africa, women's month is August; and within August we have a public holiday to celebrate women. Internationally March is recognised as women's month.

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Editor's note - July 2018

It is strange that, as is frequently commented, gloom and doom sells. Perhaps in South Africa we are so tired of endless litanies of tales of the darker side to people that news of positive events are what we crave. In this issue we carry an article by Douglas Ainslie on the "silicosis class action". Not only was this the first class action settlement of its kind in South Africa, but it also represents a commitment on the part of all parties to reach an agreement that was fair to all in a particularly complex matter. Suspensive conditions are still to be signed and the matter has not been finalised, but it is hoped that the ongoing work involved, including finding techniques to improve underground dust and the consequential health risks, will be tackled with the same dedication.

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Editor's note - June 2018

May has been an interesting month – the first 100 days in the hot seat for President Ramaphosa, S&P Global Ratings affirmed South Africa's sub-investment grade credit rating but kept its stable outlook, and decidedly less positive – the release of the IMD World Competitiveness Ranking and the World Economic Forum Competitiveness Index 2017-2018.

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Editor's note - May 2018

One of the most important issues to be aired in 2017/2018 is that of harassment, predominantly sexual harassment. Attributed to Voltaire and frequently quoted, "with great freedom comes great responsibility".

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Editor's Note - April 2018

Getting the April issue of without prejudice "to bed" remains a challenge. The Easter weekend is a little like the Christmas break and deadlines seem to have less impact than in other months. I apologise for this issue arriving late but I hope you will enjoy reading the content and will also find it useful.

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Editor's Note - March 2018

February is always a special month at Gleason Publications. The Awards of our sister publication, DealMakers, are made to the tombstone parties of M&A and general corporate finance transactions at our glittering Gala Awards dinner.

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Editor's Note - February 2018

In Hebrew the word for "life" is chai. It has a numerical value of 18. It is a custom to give donations and monetary gifts in multiples of 18 as a physical expression of blessing for long life.

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Editor's Note - December 2017

The negative side of politics has dominated the headlines in 2017. But could the tide be turning?

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Editor's Note - September 2017

There is a chill wind that blows as I write this editor's note. A reminder that winter is not yet over any more than are the ills that beset our country, and the world.

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Editor's Note - July 2017

The headlines of South Africa's newspapers emphasise why the mood in the country is so gloomy. Those who respond by saying everyone should look to the positive rather than concentrating on the negative are, of course, right; but until such time as those who are in positions of leadership are demonstrably ethical, the permeable feeling of pushing against an overwhelming tide will remain.

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Editor's Note - May 2017

In a break from tradition, without prejudice features the Top Students of 2016 in this May issue instead of April. The #Feesmustfall movement last year, the consequent disruption of both classes and exams meant that the universities were unable to guarantee being able to let me know the names of their top students in time to contact them and for the graduates to respond.

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Editor's Note - April 2017

If one were to judge the country by newspaper headlines over the past month it would be for the three Cs – Crime, Corruption and Cowardice. I think that another C can now be added – Conniving. As we were about to go to print news broke of President Zuma's cabinet reshuffle, by 7h00 the rand has dropped 5% in value. Yet again "cry the beloved country".

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Editor's Note - March 2017

March is the without prejudice edition in which we traditionally carry the annual rankings of the legal advisers in M&A and general corporate finance for the previous year. We are delighted with the synergy that exists between the legal award sponsor, JUTA, and sister publication DealMakers under whose banner the DealMakers Gala Awards takes place.


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Editor's Note - February 2017

According to the Chinese, 2017 is the year of the Rooster. Unfortunately, according to those who predict what is on the menu, while there may be positives to the year of the Rooster, it will also provide "conflicts, controversy and plenty of debate". Does that sound a little like "same old, same old" to South Africans?

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Editor's Note - December 2016

Well, here we are at the end of 2016. It has been an interesting year punctuated by surprise political change globally. In Britain, the High Court ruled that parliamentary approval and a vote from the MPs is required in order for Article 50 to be triggered. Lord Chief Justice Thomas ruled that the government's arguments are "contrary to fundamental constitutional principles of the sovereignty of parliament".

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Editor's Note - November 2016

There are a few things that have taken place in the past month that will probably stay indelibly printed on my mind. The first is the ongoing student protests. This issue will no doubt be added to some social event conversation lists in the "do not" column – "Do not discuss politics, religion or student protests".

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Editor's Note - October 2016

without prejudice turns 15

October marks the 15th anniversary of the first issue of without prejudice. A comment by Dr Christel Marshall of Spoor & Fisher made me realise that many attorneys will have no idea how many years the magazine has been published or, for that matter, anything about its provenance. It was also her observation that lawyers would find this interesting, that has resulted in this potted history of without prejudice.

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Editor's Note - September 2016

If there is one thing about which one cannot complain about, living in South Africa, it is being bored. August provided everyone with plenty to discuss.

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Editor's Note - August 2016

This month's feature on Business Rescue is interesting and could prove particularly valuable to many people in this uncertain economic climate. I am always very grateful to the many practitioners who find time to write articles that will benefit others considerably. It is no mean feat for the attorneys, their support staff and my contacts to provide these articles. Work hours are long and full and there is seldom time left over for articles. I do recognise the encroachment into private time, without prejudice and the magazine's readers are ultimately the winners.

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Editor's Note - July 2016

June has been a month of unusual events.

It was going to be close but I doubt many people thought Britain would vote to leave the EU. Close to home, in response to my question what the view was at a large international corporate in London, my daughter answered – "shock and disbelief". Not everyone feels it's doom and gloom, and friends whose opinion I value, who are astute and successful, believe it is the right move.

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Editor's Note - June 2016

The last of the Top Student features for 2016 appears in this issue of without prejudice. Many of them have in common with the Class of 2006 the desire to set off on the road less travelled by LLB graduates. What they do not have in common is jobs abroad – perhaps a sign of the global economy.

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Editor's Note - May 2016

This month, I was personally challenged with the very topical issue of where one draws the line between expressing a genuinely held opinion and offending people. without prejudice received an interesting and well written article for inclusion in this issue of the magazine.

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Editor's Note: President Zuma and the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa: compliance not optional

It was inevitable that the Public Protector's powers would be tested before the Constitutional Court – though few could quite imagine the ensuing crisis, which shows no sign of abating. Demands for the President's resignation have been multitudinous, and an impeachment process played out unsuccessfully in parliament.

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