Attorneys in private practice and those working in law firms all have an obligation to stay compliant with a host of regulatory requirements, says Sabinet, one of the leading suppliers of online legal information in South Africa.

“Attorneys operating in the mercantile or commercial law space shoulder enormous responsibility to ensure that their clients remain legally compliant,” says Sanet Vos, Sabinet’s Head of Product. “All transactions are governed by Financial Regulatory Instruments issued by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) and the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA).”

Mercantile law relates to merchants and traders, while commercial law talks specifically to those who are dealing in a business of exchanges and transactions, whether for products or services, with regard to the regulation of profit-driven transactions. These laws apply to the conduct, rights and relations of individuals and businesses engaged in merchandising, commerce and trade.

The term merchant can be traced back to the 15th century when merchants and traders were selling and buying goods and services. Over the centuries those transactions became more complicated and evolved into what is now governed by commercial or mercantile law.

To meet the challenges faced by attorneys in guiding their clients through a maze of legislation, Sabinet has created a new service to simplify the daunting regulatory compliance.

“Sabinet’s Regulatory Instruments will help clients navigate the evolving and increasingly complex regulatory environment. Combining legal and regulatory knowledge with practical industry experience will enable them to deliver practical and commercial solutions through streamlined access to these instruments. Having access to financial regulatory instruments is paramount when giving legal advice to financial institutions and banks in South Africa, including their investment banking divisions.

“Commercial lawyers are governed by regulatory instruments, which comprise a prudential standard, a conduct standard and a joint standard,” explains Vos. Sabinet offers a streamlined workflow by linking the Regulatory Instrument with relevant legislation.

“Commercial lawyers play a crucial role in drafting agreements which enable clients to achieve their commercial objectives while managing the risks inherent to doing business,” she says. Sabinet provides easy access to all updated Regulatory Instruments as issued by the South African Reserve Bank and the Financial Sector Conduct Authority. Gain easy access to up-to-date guidelines, standards, directives, and links to additional related content such as the relevant acts as compiled by Sabinet’s product specialists for ease of use.

Conduct standards ensure the protection and fair treatment of financial customers and enhance the efficiency and integrity of the financial system. These standards maintain financial stability and reduce the risk of financial crime to financial institutions, representatives, significant owners, key persons and contractors.

“As a business grows, it is required to navigate a wide spectrum of rules and regulations that can impact its commercial activities significantly. From the basic to the complex, commercial lawyers need to be perfectly placed to act as legal partners, supporting management teams, CEOs, CFOs, legal counsels and in-house compliance teams. Commercial lawyers need to assist clients to do business successfully. Sabinet facilitates this complex compliance by facilitating online access seamlessly across major business and financial hubs,” concludes Vos.

Subscribing to Sabinet Financial Regulatory Instruments, users receive weekly newsletters as well as all updates and amendments. The subscription also includes an HTML view and PDFs. Save time by accessing all relevant information from a single, streamlined platform. Access all Regulatory Instruments as issued by the South African Reserve Bank and the Financial Sector Conduct Authority. Gain easy access to guidelines, standards, directives, and links to additional related content compiled by Sabinet’s product specialists for ease of use. Sabinet offers a streamlined workflow by linking the Regulatory Instrument with relevant legislation.

Subscribe to our Sabinet Financial Regulatory Instruments