Fighting the legal battles for South African Port Operations

Aug 5, 2004
Author: Lesley van Duffelen

The recently introduced ISPS code, which stipulates that the contents of containers should be fully disclosed, will have a far reaching impact on the transport of hazardous material and the trafficking of illegal goods, says Thato Tsautse, Legal Adviser to South African Port Operations.

It is now necessary to fully declare the contents of the container so that all players in the logistics chain from cargo owners to the ships agents, shipping lines, terminal operators and the road transporter know what they are moving.

This new legislation will go a long way to clamping down on drugs and reducing incidents such as the fire caused by chemicals on board a ship outside the Durban port earlier this year, she says. But it is early days and it still remains to be seen if cargo owners comply.

Thato is one of a handful of women in South Africa who are maritime lawyers. There are so few in fact that she knows all her ‘colleagues’ by name and can count them.

Since joining SAPO three years ago Thato has set about putting the organization’s legal house in order and making sure the cost of claims is reduced.

“When I joined, SAPO was paying out 80% on all claims without actually understanding the extent to which it was liable. In addition it was clear that many of the claims were inflated so there was little or no saving to the organization.”

Now under her guidance no claims are paid without a thorough investigation. Thato believes that the department’s interventions have saved SAPO a substantial amount due to the new measures being implemented.

Her task is vast. To improve the department a number of measures have been implemented including inviting experts from the University of Natal to lecture staff so they are better equipped to deal with claims and contracts and appointing four Legal Advisers – all women with a Masters in Maritime Laws - to each of the four ports to assist her.

For Thato joining SAPO’s legal department from civil practice was a rude awakening – the summonses were different, the jargon was different and everything was highly specialized. She had to do something to raise herself to the same level as ‘the guys’ in private maritime practice. So she joined the Maritime Law Association (MLA) and Women’s International Shipping and Trade Association (WISTA). She also enrolled for Masters in Maritime Studies at the University of Natal.

“I fell in love with maritime law it is so different,” she says. Having completed her Masters Thato felt she still needed to advance and has enrolled for a PhD.

Through the MLA she obtained a scholarship to train at Holland and Knight LLP in New York, one of the top Maritime Law firms in the world, under three mentors. Her four months there proved to be a steep but exceptionally valuable learning curve that provided insights that have regularly been put to use in her SAPO litigations. It also deepened her love for her line of law.

She was impressed by the way her New York mentors ate and drank maritime law always making sure every case they tried was in the interest of the country.

“I would really like to see South African lawyers looking at legislation in the same light, how it would benefit the country,” she says.

A challenge for SAPO is to balance compliance with antiquated legislation and the expectations of clients in terms of operational efficiency, says Thato.

“The legislation governing our operations and customer expectations are worlds apart,” she says. “For instance legislation says that as a public body we are a common user facility and should therefore treat all clients in the same way. But this is not always possible as we strive to be a world-class operation. It also puts us at a disadvantage to our international competitors that are private entities. So we end up trying to expand the parameters of the law to meet client needs.”

In addition to fighting battles in the Admiralty Court Thato looks after SAPO’s contracts management, compliance function, and insurance.

Moving from a legal to a corporate environment has been another learning curve, she says. But her SAPO colleagues provide guidance and support. She has enrolled on the organization’s executive development programme through Gibbs and says she has thoroughly enjoyed learning about management.

Thato’s peers see her as a leader who constantly challenges the status quo and as a pathfinder. However she says she does not feel that she has done as much as she would like to educate women to know about their rights and fight for them.

While keeping up with a hectic business schedule she finds time to give her family the attention they deserve, do work for charity and teach Sunday school.