Bentley wins LexisNexis Prize for Legal Practitioners

The award recognises the best article by a practising attorney published in De Rebus, the official journal of the attorneys' profession, published by the Law Society of South Africa, and is sponsored by LexisNexis, a provider of content and technology solutions.

Bentley's article, entitled 'Separating the baby and the bath water - Garnishee and emoluments attachment orders', dealt with the emotive topic of court orders requiring the employer to withhold part of the wages owed to a particular employee, and to pay the amount instead to that employee's creditor in satisfaction of a debt which is due.

In some instances this provision has been abused and there have been calls for its abolition without proper consideration of the alternatives available to judgment creditors. Bentley's article proposed a middle ground where emolument attachment orders are maintained but the laws amended to afford debtors greater protection.

Invitation to enter

His prize valued at almost R30,000, consists of an iPad and 12 months free access to LexisNexis Practical Guidance, a web-based resource that provides real-world legal content structured around key topics within each practice area.

This year LexisNexis is again offering a prize for the best article by a practising attorney published in the attorneys' journal during 2014. The De Rebus Editorial Committee evaluates qualifying contributions and its decision will be final.

Interested attorneys are encouraged to send in an article not exceeding 2,000 words in length and should comply with the general De Rebus publication guidelines. The article must be published between 1 January 2014 and 31 December 2014.