Legal updates and opinions
News / News
King V: South Africa’s Governance Evolution
by Eric Levenstein, Director and Head of Insolvency & Business Rescue and Helena Stoop, Senior Knowledge Lawyer
The official King V was launched on 31 October 2025. The project was spearheaded by the Institute of Directors in Southern Africa NPC (IoDSA) in its capacity as Secretariat for the King Committee and custodian of the King Reports on corporate governance in South Africa. It replaces the previous edition (‘King IV’) and will be effective for financial years beginning on or after 1 January 2026.
The fifth edition of the Code (‘King V’) follows the trend of previous editions and sets out the philosophy, principles, practices and outcomes which serve as the benchmark for corporate governance in South Africa. It was drafted to address both national and global developments, improve accessibility for all types of organisations, and promote the ongoing evolution of governance outcomes. Werksmans provides a bespoke and summarised overview of key components relevant to King V.
Download the King V Overview here.
Latest News
Urgent update: COVID-19 Temporary Employer / Employee Relief Scheme (“TERS”) deadlines and delay in payments
by Jacques van Wyk, Director; Andre van Heerden, Senior Associate; and Thabisa Yantolo, Candidate Attorney On 15 September 2020 the [...]
Update: COVID-19 Temporary Employer / Employee Relief Scheme (“TERS”) system maintenance and payment delay
by Jacques van Wyk, Director; Andre van Heerden, Senior Associate; and Thabisa Yantolo, Candidate Attorney The Unemployment Insurance Fund ("UIF") [...]
Update: COVID-19 Temporary Employer / Employee Relief Scheme (“TERS”) Extension
by Jacques van Wyk, Director; Andre van Heerden, Senior Associate; and Thabisa Yantolo, Candidate Attorney On 7 September 2020 the [...]
Unilateral change to employee’s retirement age may constitute an automatically unfair dismissal in terms of The Labour Relations Act and unfair discrimination in terms of The Employment Equity Act
by Jacques van Wyk, Director; Andre van Heerden, Senior Associate; and Thabisa Yantolo, Candidate Attorney Issue Whether an employer may [...]
Automatically unfair dismissals: An employer may dismiss an employee for lodging a false grievance
by Jacques van Wyk, Director; Andre van Heerden, Senior Associate; and Thabisa Yantolo, Candidate Attorney Issue Is the lodging of [...]
Draft Code of Good Practice on the Prevention and Elimination of Violence and Harassment in the World of Work
by Jacques van Wyk, Director; Andre van Heerden, Senior Associate; and Thabisa Yantolo, Candidate Attorney On 20 August 2020 the [...]
