Thando Manentsa

Thando is a partner and a commercial litigation specialist in the firm’s dispute resolution team. He obtained his LLB degree from WITS University in 2009.

His practice has a specific focus on contractual disputes (in a variety of corporate sectors), unlawful competition (including both resisting and enforcing restraint of trade contractual provisions and Anton Pillar orders) and corporate commercial disputes. He also has assisted certain Constitutional bodies with various high court litigation in terms of which these bodies have asserted their independency within the framework of the Constitution.

Recent highlights in his practice include assisting IPID in a number of high profile court applications that are presently pending in the Pretoria High Court, assisting the Inspector General of Intelligence in court proceedings to assert his constitutional independence; representing BMW in a confidential arbitration against a well-known multinational gas supplier for a claim in excess of R55 million, assisting the Agricultural Research Council in disputing an electricity adjustment effected by the City of Tshwane in the amount of R30 million, advising the Road Traffic Management Corporation in relation to litigation in the Supreme Court of Appeal and the Constitutional court on the interpretation of Section 66 of the Public Finance Management Act, assisting the Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development in an investigation to establish the cause of the roof collapse at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital in Johannesburg.

Thando has also:

1. Assisted IPID in a number of high-profile court applications, the purposes of which was to enforce IPID’s constitutional independence.
2. Worked on an instruction from the Inspector General of Intelligence, in terms of which the Inspector General sought to quell various interference with his independence in investigating matters pertaining to the intelligence community.
3. Assisted a well-known German car manufacturing company against a well-known multi-national gas supplier in a confidential arbitration for a claim in excess of R55 million.
4. Assisted the Agricultural Research Council in disputing an electricity adjustment affected by the City of Tshwane in the amount of R30 million. This matter has now proceeded to arbitration.
5. Assisted a developer in a claim in excess of R21 million, which has now proceeded to a confidential arbitration.
6. Advised the Road Traffic Management Corporation in relation to litigation in the Supreme Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court on the interpretation of Section 66 of the Public Finance Management Act.
7. Assisted a medical supplier in a dispute against a multi-national manufacturing company in confidential arbitration proceedings for a claim valued at R53 million.
8. Representing a company known as SCM Properties and Development (Pty) Ltd in defending various claims instituted against it by architects for claims in excess of R60 million.
9. Assisted the Technology and Innovation Agency (“TIA”) in confidential arbitration proceedings against a foreign entity for a claim valued at R45 million.