Services

Richard Scott

Richard, the current Senior Partner, has been with this firm since its early days, having previously led the litigation department in another established Pietermaritzburg practice. He is also the head of both the litigation and labour departments, and has been involved in general High Court and Magistrates Court litigation since 1979 and in Labour Law since 1980. Richard acts for a number of corporate and institutional clients and specialises in representation at the CCMA and the Labour Court and is currently a member of the SASLAW committee for the KZN chapter. Richard was the Vice President of the KwaZulu-Natal Chapter of SASLAW in 2005 and is an external examiner for the Law Faculty of KZN. He also has a seat on the Epworth Board of Trustees and is a former chairman of this board.

Kathryn Rees

Kath completed her articles of clerkship with Austen Smith and was admitted as an Attorney in 2002. She joined the partnership on 1 March 2005. She has specialised in family law and matrimonial law with a general civil litigation practice in both the High Court and Magistrate’s Court and has handled Plaintiff claims against the Road Accident Fund. She has handled labour matters, representing clients in the CCMA and the Labour Court and drawing contracts and disciplinary procedures and policies. She is also a Conveyancer.

Melanie Kennard

Melanie completed her articles of clerkship with Austen Smith in 1999 and was admitted to practise as an attorney in the same year. Melanie practices in the High and Magistrates’ Court, the Land Claims Court and the Labour Court and specialises in labour law, land claims, evictions and general litigation. Melanie represents a significant number of farming clients, advising them, particularly, on labour-related land issues. Since July 2004, Melanie has practised as a consultant to the firm.