Legal updates and opinions
News / News
An Overview of the Domestic Violence Act
Recognising that domestic violence in South Africa is a serious social evil, and that victims of domestic violence are amongst the most vulnerable in society, the Domestic Violence Act (DVA) was introduced to provide victims of domestic violence with the maximum protection against domestic abuse that is available in law.
Despite the implementation of the DVA, South Africa still has unacceptably high rates of domestic violence, femicide and gender-based violence. At the Presidential Summit against Gender-Based Violence and Femicide in 2018, femicide and gender-based violence were declared a “national crisis”.
One of the undertakings made at the summit was that government should amend the DVA to improve the protections available to victims of domestic violence. On 14 April 2023, the DVA was amended by the DVAA, in two main ways.
First, it expanded the definition of domestic violence by introducing new definitions and revising some pre-existing ones. Secondly, it addressed various technical and procedural issues to provide better protections for victims of domestic violence.
This pamphlet provides a general overview of your rights in terms of the DVA, following the enactment of new provisions, processes and obligations introduced by the DVAA.
Latest News
New Code of Good Practice: Dismissal
by Anastasia Vatalidis, Director and Anna Tchalov, Associate On 4 September 2025, the new Code of Good Practice: Dismissal ("New Code") [...]
Balancing union duties and job performance: Association of Mineworkers & Construction Union obo Ntuli v Ferroglobe Silicon Smelters (Pty) Ltd
by Jacques van Wyk, Director and Mike Searle, Candidate Attorney In the construction and engineering sectors, senior employees often [...]
The slippery slope of financial distress
by Eric Levenstein, Director and Head of Insolvency and Business Rescue and Brendan Olivier, Director Negative economic news stories [...]
Reinstatement – not always fair
by Bradley Workman-Davies, Director South Africa’s labour law often elevates reinstatement as the primary remedy for unfair dismissal, but [...]
National Minimum Wage Act: What employers need to know about the 2026 review
by Andre van Heerden, Director, Bradley Workman-Davies, Director and Jacques van Wyk, Director South Africa’s National Minimum Wage Act [...]
Tanzania introduces Trade Mark Rights Recordation for all imports
by Donvay Wegierski, Director and Andreya John, Candidate Attorney As of 1 December 2025, in an initiative administered by the [...]