CURRICULUM VITAE : PROF. HENRY VORSTER

1 Henry Vorster was born in Johannesburg on 25 February 1948.

2 Formal qualifications

2.1 BA (1969) LLB (cum laude) 1972 University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg

2.2 H Dip Tax Law (1978) University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg

2.3 LL.M (cum laude) (1984) University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg

3 Professional career as attorney

3.1 He commenced articles of clerkship as a candidate attorney in 1972 and was admitted to practice as an attorney, notary and conveyancer in January 1974.

3.2 He was admitted to partnership at Hofmeyr Herbsteins [now Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr] in 1975.

3.3 He left in 1993 to start his own firm under the name Vorster Pereira Attorneys specialising in project and structured finance, banking and tax law (trusts and estates). His practice experience however covers a wide range of corporate and commercial law.

3.3.1 The Chambers Global has for many years listed Henry Vorster on their main page of notable tax attorneys in South Africa. For twenty years, Chambers has published the leading directories of the legal profession. Their reputation is based on the independence and objectivity of their research. In respect of their 2010 list, their expert researchers state:

“Henry Vorster of Vorster Pereira, Inc. is regarded as a ‘doyen of the industry’ due to his ‘formidable knowledge of the market’ and ‘pragmatic and commercially insightful tax advice.’ In particular, he was singled out for his tax litigation skills, with clients agreeing that he is “the number-one choice when you anticipate a fight.”

3.3.2 He is also ranked by the International Tax Law Review, which states as follows:

“Vorster Pereira has five professionals in its tax practice. Henry Vorster is mentioned by peers for his strong work in tax controversy. Vorster Pereira deals almost exclusively in corporate tax matters for many of the large corporate taxpayers in the country. Clients include FirstRand Limited, Mercantile Bank Limited, Murray and Roberts Limited, the Industrial Development Corporation, AECI, and Irvin and Johnson Limited. The firm advises on disputes with SARS. They also provide tax opinions on various structured finance projects and Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) transactions”

3.4 He was for many years chairman of the Law Society’s Specialist Committee on Taxation and Exchange Control and has been a member of several other specialist committees over the years.

4 Lecturing

4.1 He presented the post-graduate H.Dip Tax Law course at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg from 1985 to 1991.

4.2 He presented the H.Dip Tax Law course at the University of Johannesburg from 1992 to 2013 when he retired from lecturing.

4.3 He has been and remains a visiting professor at UJ since 1992.

4.4 He acts as external examiner for various academic institutions.

5 Involvement with the judiciary

5.1 He is a former chairman of the Tax Board of Appeals.

5.2 He acted as Judge in the High Court of South Africa (Witwatersrand Local Division/ Gauteng South).

5.3 As acting judge he has delivered precedent setting judgments. These include:

· Pareto Ltd and Others v Mythos Leather Manufacturing (Pty) Ltd t/a Venucci 2000 3 All SA 286 (W); 2000 3) SA 999 (W)

· Standard General Insurance Co Ltd v Eversafe (Pty) Ltd and Others 2000 (3) SA 86 (W).

6 Papers

Over the years, Professor Vorster has presented numerous papers on taxation issues at Law Society and other professional seminars and as guest lecturer at the University of Natal, the University of South Africa, the Fiscal Association, the SA Institute of Tax Practitioners and other organisations.

7 Publications

7.1 His contributed to the tax literature by acting as one of the editors, first of the South African Special Board Decisions Reports (Robbertse, Gideon J.; Vorster, Henry. Durban, South Africa : Butterworths, 1996-2003) and thereafter of the South African Tax Board Decisions Reports (Robbertse, Gideon J.; Vorster, Henry. Durban : LexisNexis Butterworths, 2004- )

7.2 He has published articles on this field in the South African Law Journal, the South African Tax Journal, the Annual Survey of South African Law, De Rebus (a journal published by the Law Society dedicated to the attorneys’ profession) and the press. His publications include:

· The Parameters of Tax Planning: a Comparative Analysis of Legislative, Administrative and Judicial Techniques Employed in Combating Tax Avoidance (1984 dissertation)

· “Wholly and exclusively laid out for trade” 1987 Annual Survey 462 (with Jager, L)

· “Sales tax exemption” 1987 Annual Survey 469 (with Jager)

· “Instalment sales: Lategan revisited: 1987 2.1 South African Tax Journal 64

· “Refunds” 1988 Annual Survey 489 (with Jager, L)

· “Wanted: a bill of rights” Financial Mail Vol 111, Issue 13, Apr 7, 1989, p 35

· “Law of taxation” 1990 Annual Survey of South African Law 512

· “Wealth tax countered: but issues of redistribution through the tax system must be addressed: 1992 Vol 54 Issue 54 Jul De Rebus 31

· “Attorneys, capital accounts and interest deductions: 1995 Vol 3 Issue 336 Dec De Rebus 750

· “The deductibility of interest: the basic truths and the cash-flush borrower” 1998 SALJ 417

· “Self-help and the fiscus” 2001 Jan De Rebus 47

· Review: “Two books on capital gains tax” 2001 Vol 21 Issue 440 Dec De Rebus 52

· “Registration of attorneys as tax practitioners” 2005 Vol 68 Issue 440 Jan-Feb De Rebus 20

· Tax Administration. 2011 De Rebus

Prof Vorster is now the only member of Vorster Pereira Attorneys but with effect from 1 March 2012 he associated his practice with Faber, Goertz, Ellis, Austen Attorneys of Bryanston, Johannesburg and now also acts as a consultant to that practice.