Find a general practice attorney in South Africa for wills, contracts, letters of demand, affidavits, small claims and everyday legal problems.
List your firm for freeA general practitioner is the attorney most people see first: wills and small estates, lease and sale agreements, letters of demand, debt disputes, affidavits and certifications, antenuptial contracts, uncontested divorces, and pointing a client to the right specialist when a matter needs one.
General practices commonly quote fixed fees for wills, contracts and letters, and bill by the hour for disputes. Ask for the written cost estimate the Legal Practice Act requires. For a claim under R20 000 the Small Claims Court is free and attorneys are not permitted to appear there, so a good practitioner will tell you when to go alone.
General information about South African law and practice, not advice on your matter. The practitioners listed on this page give that advice.
R20 000. Any person, but not a company, can bring a claim against another person or a business in the Small Claims Court for that amount or less. Attorneys are not allowed to represent the parties, the process is informal and free of court fees, and the commissioner decision is final with only a limited right of review.
No, but a will drafted by an attorney is far less likely to fail. To be valid a will must be signed by the testator on every page and at the end in the presence of two competent witnesses aged 14 or older who also sign, and a beneficiary who witnesses may lose the inheritance. Many attorneys draft simple wills at a modest fixed fee or free of charge during National Wills Week.
Do not ignore it, and do not admit liability before you have advice. Note the deadline, gather the documents, and see an attorney if the amount is significant. A response that disputes the claim on good grounds often ends the matter; silence usually leads to a summons and extra costs.
Matters, trust accounting, billing, the court diary and AI in one workspace, at one flat price for the firm.