Speaker: Johan Coetzee, Director of Corporate and Commercial Practice, Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr.

Presentation topic: KING III

Presentation abstract: The third draft Code of Governance Principles for South Africa (King 3) was published by the Institute of Directors for comments in February this year. It is expected that the final report will be published in September later this year and that it will become effective from March 2010. The importance of King 3 from a legal perspective in relation to the recent corporate law reform process in South Africa will be briefly explained and a brief overview of some of the material provisions contained in the Code will be given. King 3 deals for the first time in detail with IT governance and IT security. The role of an audit committee will be discussed as part of the effective oversight of risk management of a company. On overview will be given of the provisions contained in King 3 with regards to the principle that the board of directors of a company should ensure that IT is aligned with business objectives and sustainability.

About Johan Coetzee: Johan Coetzee is a Director in the firm's Corporate and Commercial practice and specialises in all aspects of commercial and corporate law. Johan was admitted as an Attorney in 1989, after which he spent a few years in the Group Legal Services Department of a major banking group in Johannesburg and some further years in the Commercial Department in a Johannesburg firm of attorneys before returning to Hofmeyr (now Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr) in January 1997 as a Director. Johan is a specialist examiner for the Law Society in the Attorneys' entrance examinations and a speaker at several conferences, particularly on Corporate Governance.