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Douglas Molepo is an Executive at ENS in the Dispute Resolution practice. He specialises in all aspects of commercial litigation, arbitrations as well as High Court and Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) litigation.

Douglas has a Certificate of Right of Appearance in the High Court in terms of Right of Appearance in Courts Act, 62 of 1995 and has thus personally appeared in the High Court, SCA and Arbitrations for clients.

He has advised and acted for a diverse range of clients from various sectors of the economy including hospitality, building, construction and engineering, financial services, medical schemes, transport and logistics, energy, oil and natural resources, waste and waste removal, organs of state, pension funds, advertising, agriculture, airline and aviation, asset management, automobiles, branding and design, IT and software and mining.

Douglas’ experience includes assisting clients (including the rendering of written opinions to clients) in respect of disputes or potential disputes in the following spheres:

• all aspects of contractual issues such as trusts and wills, lease, agency, loans, suretyship, sale of goods, partnership, joint ventures, possession, ownership, servitudes, donations, unjustified enrichment and delictual claims   
• building and construction matters, including arbitrations relating thereto
• land transportation regulatory framework
• financial services recovery-related litigation under the new statutory dispensation (the National Credit Act and the Consumer Protection Act)
• tender-related disputes
• constitutional and administrative law
• corporate law and advising on the new Companies Act
• insurance law and litigation relating thereto
• gaming and gambling law
• regulatory issues relating to fossil fuels, electricity and nuclear power, climate change and renewable energy
• international business transactions, the application of the CISG and the UNDROIT principles of international commercial contracts to the international sale of goods and international private/state contracts
• international arbitrations and enforcement of arbitration awards
• mining, in relation to the acquisition and conversion of mining rights, transfer, bonding, letting, amendment and lapsing, co-ownership, mixed minerals, unlawful mining, surface use, fiscal issues, environmental issues relating to prospecting and mining, administrative law aspects, constitutional property aspects (expropriation, compensation, bilateral investment treaties, international arbitration), mine health and safety, state royalties, and beneficiation
• regulatory issues pertaining to various statutes, including conducting of corporate training in respect of such regulatory issues

Douglas is a member of the Association of Arbitrators of Southern Africa, the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA), and is an accredited Mediator, accredited by the London School of Mediation (LSM).

Douglas is ranked as a leading/recommended lawyer by: 

• The Legal 500 EMEA 2018 – Dispute Resolution (South Africa) 
• Best Lawyers® 2023, 2022, 2021 - Litigation (South Africa)

• BA (University of Cape Town)
• LLB (University of Cape Town)
• Certificate in Energy Law (The Mandela Institute – University of the Witwatersrand)
• Certificate in Prospecting and Mining Law (The Mandela Institute – University of the Witwatersrand)
• Accredited Mediator (The London School of Mediation)
• Admitted as an attorney of the High Court of South Africa