A number of opportunities are available to South Africa through the use of international intellectual property flexibilities that are targeted and designed to protect and preserve access to medicine and health care. This dissertation will discuss a number of reasons and influences that have an effect on South Africa's accessibility to medicine through the means of intellectual property. This dissertation first embarks on giving a synopsis of the affects patents have with regards to access to medicine. It further contends that the use of the TRIPS flexibility known as compulsory licence should be utilised to realise the need of access to medicines in South Africa, together with how the pricing system has a weighty effect with regards to access to medicines. The TRIPS flexibility has given WTO members the liberty to determine and customise their policy space with regards to TRIPS obligations in a manner that is interpreted and implemented that meets and reflects its citizen's needs. This dissertation seeks to find if South Africa has made use of such means of reflection in its policy space and its proactive prioritisation of access to medicines in South Africa.

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Pre-Democratic South Africa was largely an isolated State. With the exceptions of the automotive and textile sectors, the country did not attract significant foreign investment due to the economic sanctions imposed by the international community in response to the crimes of apartheid. Between 1993 and 1995, the newly elected democratic government of South Africa concluded its first bilateral investment agreements with European countries. These bilateral investment agreements were made the standard for future treaties. The newly elected government realised the importance of foreign direct investment for achieving its economic growth and development objectives. Moreover, the conclusion of several bilateral investment treaties was used to strengthen relations with other countries and a tool to promote investment. However, by the late 1990s the South-African government found that these treaties were no longer appropriate. They often conflicted with the States socio-economic development policies and presented unequal protections for foreign investors and the States national policies. The Piero Foresti case, in which Italian investors brought an international arbitration claim against the South African government, galvanized the investment policy review process. The policy recommendation stemming from the review process included; that the South African cabinet refrain from entering into new bilateral investment treaties (BITs) - unless there were compelling political or economic reasons to do so, terminate existing BITs and replace them with domestic legislation. This dissertation considers the impact of the change in South Africa's investment policy on the Southern African Development Community (SADC) regions' efforts to harmonise investment policy across member states. It is an empirical study which considers South Africa's policy shift within the international investment law global context. Given South Africa's powerful andsomewhat hegemonic position on the African continent and within the region, whatever changes take place internally, are bound to spill-over into the region and potentially across the continent. The regional impact is analysed and described in detail. The research encompasses broader regional integration challenges, relations among member states and implications for dispute resolution. The study concludes that South Africa's policy shift is in line with global developments. It is an attempt to find a balance between investor protection and the States' ability to regulate. However, the policy shift has created a measure uncertainty regarding the settlement investment disputes within South Africa and across the SADC region. Furthermore, the broader obstacles which inhibit regional integration across SADC need to be addressed in order to facilitate investment policy harmonisation.

The primary aim of this study is to identify the characteristics of the South African and German merger control regime with regard to public interest influences in order to compare the different approaches and conclude whether one system could learn anything from the other system and how it is implemented. In addition, it will investigate the casuistry on the legal terms and possible approaches to make a balancing of the competition and public interest effects more concrete. First, this paper will examine both merger regimes separately including a short introduction on the legislative background and an analysis of the merger cases before comparing the systems and coming to a conclusion. Emphasis is put on the investigation of the central public interest ground of employment. The casuistry in both countries falls short of more than some rules of thumb. Economic evaluations that become more detailed through the development of economic models should form the starting point for balancing deliberations, especially in Germany. Whereas the South African model promotes the evaluation of public interests intending to fight the inequalities of the past while also strengthening the economy, the German system gives preference to the independence of its Federal Cartel Office consequent to its focus on competition concerns allowing a ministerial authorisation only in exceptional circumstances. The paper will illustrate the advantages and disadvantages of both systems. The structural differences, in particular in terms of the competent decision making body, are justified on grounds of the different stages of development and the subsequently consistent goals aimed at in the respective country. The thesis therefore suggests that based on these circumstances, the systematic approaches which are tailored to the needs should not be changed. However, it is argued that the German Minister should exploit the full potential of § 42 ARC, especially through the use of appropriate remedies. Furthermore, it is recommended that South African competition authorities follow the objectives of the South African Competition Act with increased readiness and effort. The unique feature of the South African merger control with a mandatory public interest test which is included in the competition assessment has the potential to become a role model for other similarly situated countries with newly developing merger control systems in the future.

There has been a backlash against the Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) system in recent times. Amongst other complaints, critics have argued that the ISDS whittles down the regulatory powers of states in favour of private adjudicators. These criticisms are premised on the fact that unlike commercial arbitration, investment arbitration awards may have far reaching effects on states. In response to these concerns, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Working Group III and other similar bodies have been tasked to carry out reforms to address some of these issues. In spite of ongoing reforms, criticisms have continued with some countries abandoning the investor-state arbitration mechanism altogether. In Nigeria, the state of crisis in the judiciary has necessitated the need for a viable alternative to litigation. The ISDS framework therefore remains the preferrable option for the resolution of investment disputes. There have been recent attempts to amend the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 11 of 1988. Also, the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission recently announced plans to reform the country's investment law framework. It is in the light of these developments that this research has been undertaken to examine the flaws in Nigeria's investment arbitration framework and reforms that may be introduced to address them. In making a case for the retention of the ISDS framework in Nigeria, this study critiques Nigeria's investment arbitration framework and explores a number of recommendations towards addressing current challenges. It is argued that the proposed solutions will improve the effectiveness of Nigeria's investment arbitration framework especially with respect to the legal framework for the consent of the Nigerian government to ICSID arbitration and in the area of court assisted measures and post-arbitral award litigation.

This study is about labour dispute resolution in Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland. The study involves an extensive examination of the political philosophy, methods, structures and rules of engagement comprehensively described as 'emerging' trends. It concerns labour relations in developing African countries and is necessarily located along the continuum of the socio-legal and historical context of each country. The study asserts that there is an indisputable connection between the past colonial state and the post-colonial state. It contends that the post-colonial elite openly assimilated the regulatory legal framework of the colonial master and consolidated this framework soon after independence. The study therefore examines the mode of buttressing the status quo and the sustenance of command and control inherent in labour legislation. This tendency was rationalised by a misguided fear that those advocating for reforms, particularly those with economic power exerting a diluting influence on the dominant position of the state. The research demonstrates how such orientation accounts for subsequent reluctant tinkering with transformational efforts. It also resulted in sporadic, reactive and generally incremental concessions in the direction of workplace democracy. Essentially, this study is about societies in conjunction with law. Inferentially, this means the impact of legal rules and agencies on society in the finding of solutions to societal problems. The study is not based on an assumed premise on the basis of which a credibility test may be made or comparisons drawn. The study sets out to study each society as a unique, discrete entity within a particular blend of social, historical, political and legal contextual permutations. The primary objective therefore is to examine and try to understand and appreciate the strengths, weaknesses, threats and both missed and potential opportunities of each, in addressing a specific social issue such as labour disputes. This study adopts a 'law in context' approach as a sub-text within the broad framework of socio-legal studies. It does not derive from any abstract theoretical hypothesis. It is not based on any quantitative survey approach that warrants the administration of questionnaire. It is strictly an academic observation of distinct, discrete social formations. These are then considered as in transition along the continuum of their socio-economic developmental trajectories. It also ascertains the ground realities such as the political economy of labour disputes. This study required an interdisciplinary perspective, using a sociological approach to the study of law. By consciously focusing on the central institutions of substantive law, it demonstrates the weakness of law's claim to autonomy, its factual interpenetration of all levels with more general structures of government power, In effect, the conclusion drawn is that the attempt at effective dispute resolution, via the instrumentality of legislation, can lead to juridification, the multiplicity of institutionalised structures, over- administration and eventual dysfunction.

MARPOL Annex VI agreement (IMO 2020) entered into force in January 2020, seeking to reduce sulphur emissions in the global shipping industry arising from ships burning high sulphur bunker fuel. The regulation is estimated to cost the industry up to US$ 30 billion and offers no apparent direct benefit or advantage to the industry, as well as being ill-designed for effective enforcement. Shipowners who plan to comply have called for modifications to the regulation to address opportunities for non-compliance so that their good faith will not become a competitive disadvantage. These concerns around compliance are just one of the areas in which the efficacy of this regulation is being questioned. This paper takes a structured approach to assess the efficacy of this regulation in terms of four explicit goals: realising the necessary reduction in global sulphur emissions, achieving high compliance, encouraging continuous improvement in technology and business practices, and not unduly damaging the global shipping industry. These goals are assessed across five chapters, the first of which interrogates the legal framework of the regulation, exploring the complicated question of regulatory authority, with a special focus on the enforcement mechanisms and the catastrophic effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on basic enforcement processes. The next chapter investigates the likely impact on the industry, contrasting the impact of market-based regulations and control and command type regulations, and different tools such as permits and taxes. This chapter also discusses the emerging disagreement between developing and developed countries over who should be responsible for the costs of environmental reform. Next, a case study of A.P. Møller – Mærsk A/S (Maersk) explores the compliance experience of the largest shipping company in the world, including their internal structuring to deliver compliance, and their pricing adjustments to offset some of the costs. The following chapter evaluates the practical and economic costs of this regulation across all major elements of the global shipping industry. The penultimate chapter makes an effort to predict what the long-term impact of this regulation is likely to be, using two different models for evaluating the interactions between profit-seeking industries and new environmental regulations in general: the Porter Hypothesis and the Polluter Haven Hypothesis. The final chapter concludes the paper with an evaluation of the regulation, and some suggested next steps which could improve the likelihood that the long-term goals of IMO 2020 will be realised.

The Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (“the CPA”) has created several enforcement mechanisms through which consumers may vindicate their rights. These enforcement mechanisms have been created to foster efficient redress by promoting forms of alternative dispute resolution which are often more cost-effective, accessible, and speedy. Since the CPA protects human rights and has been enacted to confront South Africa's egregious injustices of the past, ensuring prompt and effective redress is of vital importance. Despite this, South African consumers have experienced difficulties in accessing justice due to some of the CPA's inefficiencies. This dissertation seeks to pinpoint some of the Act's main shortcomings and thereafter proposes solutions. This is done in conjunction with examining the consumer mechanisms and laws put in place in both Nigeria and India as a comparison of how other developing countries have tackled similar issues. A striking takeaway point from both of these case studies is that regulatory bodies often do not have the capacity to play a central role in enforcing the consumer law of these countries. Therefore, it is important that individual consumers are able to vindicate their rights effectively. This dissertation focuses on s 69 of the CPA as somewhat of a stumbling block for consumers to individually enforce their rights. This is because s 69 precludes access to a small claims court in the first instance, presents an unclear hierarchy of redress mechanisms, and rigidly prevents access to a court unless all of the other redress mechanisms have been exhausted. Moreover, this dissertation also critiques the Act's position regarding the court's sole jurisdiction regarding unfair contract terms and the cumbersome two-step procedure prescribed when the quantification of damages is in issue.

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and small scale farming constitute an integral part of African economies. These small scale producers, however, face significant challenges in market access, marketing, advertising, and developing the reputation of their products and services. In this respect, appropriate intellectual property (IP) strategies could be leveraged, particularly where producers come together as a collective. The focus of this thesis is to explore options on how developing countries in Africa can begin to think about using trademarks and geographical indications for SMEs and small scale farmers. The international legal framework for the protection of trademarks and geographical indications has shaped the national legal regimes of countries. There is, however, flexibility in the type of legal protection strategy that could be utilised by small scale producers – trademark, certification mark, collective mark, geographical indication – but these options have not been sufficiently adopted for such producers. This thesis examines the legal frameworks for protection in Zimbabwe and South Africa and submits that by developing clusters to improve the efficiency of small scale producers and strengthening producer associations, governments can set the framework upon which to develop capacity to use trademarks and geographical indications. Using a case study, the thesis identifies issues that impede the adoption of trademarks and geographical indications, among these, institutional deficiencies, insufficient knowledge of trademarks and geographical indications and limited access to legal information. It proposes legislative and regulatory changes to enhance uptake of trademark and geographical indication protection and proposes identifying strategic clusters that could use these IP rights.

The effective protection of taxpayers' rights has not kept pace with the ongoing internationalisation of tax laws. The International Fiscal Association sought to clear this gap by drawing from the experiences of various countries on the subject. This endeavour culminated into a report in 2015 outlining 57 minimum standards for the practical protection of taxpayers' fundamental rights. The report is based on an analytical framework in the form of tax relationships, as well as on a normative framework, which acknowledges that taxpayers have fundamental rights and are protected by certain legal principles. This dissertation will analyse the application of the minimum standards in Mauritius by adopting the frameworks used in the report to provide insight into areas of tax relationships which are vulnerable whilst highlighting fundamental rights and legal principles which require urgent protection.