A practical guide to determining which legislations apply to your business. By Monisha Prem Owing to the ever-increasing number of laws, entrepreneurs are faced with mounting red tape and/or regulatory compliance to adopt and apply in their businesses. While these legal requirements create obligations, they also provide certain rights and protection. All businesses, whether small or large, are required to comply with legislation (passed by government), regulations (rules prescribed by regulatory bodies) or industry best practices. Compliance legislations that govern business Compliance requirements range from the registration of businesses and business names to licensing, workers’ compensation, tax, unemployment compensation, intellectual property protection and industry-specific requirements such as compliance with professional bodies. Where does the compliance onus lie? It is the responsibility of the business owner to determine which legislations and regulations apply t...

Are you deliberately confusing the market to gain an advantage for your business? You don’t have to reinvent the wheel, but by ‘borrowing’ from your competitors you may be infringing on Competition Law. By Monisha Prem Passing off is creating the impression that your products or services are somehow connected to those of another business, whether by using the same name, brand, slogan or trade mark. If you use the same colour and style of packaging as a competitor or have a similar logo, you could be guilty of passing off, even if your brand name is substantially different, as was the case in Swartkops Sea Salt (Pty) Ltd vs Cerebos Ltd (CA 2012). What are the legal requirements for being accused of passing off?   Reputation or goodwill: The infringed business has a reputation or goodwill connected to its products or brand.   Misrepresentation: The infringer makes false or unauthorised representations, whether expressly or implied.   Impacting the market: This misr...

Disruptive innovation and smart contracts — what is the future of legal agreements? By Monisha Prem Disruptive innovation displaces old systems, products and technology. It is the radical changes in industry that often result from technical advancements such as automation — in other words, turning tradition on its head. Uber and Airbnb are prime examples of companies who have disrupted their respective traditional industries by providing modern, easy and cost-effective solutions. Even with no assets to speak of, these companies are worth billions of US dollars. A critical component of disruption is the social ease of accessing traditionally inaccessible products and experiences. The financial sector, for example, is experiencing disruptive innovation in the form of FinTech or crowdfunding (online lending or investing without traditional financial systems) and Bitcoin (cryptocurrencies). How does disruptive innovation impact the legal industry? According to the techies, t...