Page 4 - Transformation Report.indd

1. INTRODUCTION

The Phatshoane Henney Group, South Africa’s largest association of
independent law firms, this year celebrates the ten year anniversary of
the first member firm joining the association in 2006. It is therefore most
propitious that this first Group Transformation Report is released a decade
later to benchmark the impact of the Group on transformation in the legal
sector. Over the years many things have changed and many developments
have taken place within the Group, but one constant has been the core
commitment to empowering member firms to lead the way for the legal
fraternity in respect of transformation.
Member firms By setting clear standards for membership and handpicking firms, Phatshoane

Henney members are recognised throughout South Africa as premier firms in
are positioned their regions. Members are positioned as a new breed of law firm in the South
African legal environment and subscribe to a set of core values which forms
as a new breed the DNA of each member firm. Diversity is central to these core values and
is a vital aspect to member firms being perceived as new breed firms. This
of law firm in the value also underpins firm recruitment strategies, staff development initiatives,

socio-economic and community investments and the development of a
South African legal culture of diversity at firms.

environment The past decade has seen many Group initiatives undertaken in respect
of transformation and black economic empowerment. However, none
attest stronger to the Group’s commitment than the Group BEE Standards
unanimously adopted by all members at the end of 2014. These standards
pave the way for continuing transformation initiatives and best practices across
the Group, supporting firms to achieve their transformation objectives. 2015
has been the first year of the application of these standards and appropriately
I herein provide vital feedback on the progress of firms towards meeting these
standards.

The commitment to diversity and transformation has seen Group firms spend
in aggregate of over R50 million this past year on BEE and BEE compliance,
transformation, black procurement and community initiatives - reflecting the
earnestness of our commitment. The introduction of the Group BEE standards
combined with our graduate recruitment initiatives and Group candidate
attorney bursary programme has also seen the percentage of black and
female candidate attorneys being appointed at Group firms escalate to
50% of all candidate attorney appointments in 2015, a percentage we hope
to continue despite economic challenges which law firms face today and
which affect appointment numbers. With time, the growing pool of black and
female candidates will contribute to growth in black and female professionals
in the Group.
Another positive reinforcement of each firm’s BEE commitment is the continuing
exemplary results that member firms achieve through formal BEE verification.

2 setting the standard