back door for my second-class citizens so that they won’t rub shoulders with the elite like Quantal,’ Richard had responded hotly, in a less gracious allusion to the past. Igshaan had glowered, but let the comment go.
Quantal Investments (Proprietary) Limited was a private black-empowerment company. With a prominent struggle activist at the helm, the company had powerful trade union contacts and had established itself on a range of lucrative fronts, rapidly becoming one of the largest private conglomerates. It was now ready to be floated as a public company on the stock exchange. It would be a glittering move, resplendent with political backing and struggle credentials – a flagship of activism in the financial sector, the minister of finance had proclaimed in anticipation. For Richard’s firm, the publicity and sheer revenue from being the listing attorneys firm would be significant; the long-term possibilities for the firm should it secure Quantal’s patronage were immeasurable. It remained the firm’s single most important prospect. Igshaan supposedly had a connection to Quantal’s CEO, which had secured him his position at Richard’s firm in the first place. It was a tenuous contact, but one that he unfailingly brought up in conversation. Nevertheless, Igshaan and David had been tasked with securing the firm’s position with Quantal. The fact that Richard had not been asked was both a relief and a slight, an indication of the firm’s lack of faith in his contemporary sensitivities.
The attempt to woo Quantal had inevitably given rise to lengthy and uncomfortable discussions about whether the firm was black enough, with contorted references to Igshaan’s undefined racial categorisation. Ultimately, it had been decided to headhunt a black partner for the firm (‘A real black,’ Selwyn had blithely muttered in the debate), offering a generous package and immediate full-partner status. The post had been advertised and applications were trickling in. Igshaan advised the partners that Quantal’s CEO had himself acknowledged the wisdom of the move, indicating that, with the right partner, the firm would be viewed as a competitive bidder. He had almost salivated when telling the partners the good news.
But an association with a Russian mobster, if publicised, could discourage applicants and might even scare off Quantal. The dramatic corruption trials had left a pious aftertaste in the media, and a mere suggestion of unsavoury collusion could be enough to poison the public’s view. Yet, the financial benefits could not be ignored, even by Igshaan. Svritsky was a paying client who brought a significant income to the firm, both personally and through his myriad underworld contacts. He provided cash flow for the firm, and Richard’s monthly income targets were both high and paid up. With the closure of their conveyancing department and the birth of dedicated paralegal tax and labour firms, litigious clients who paid their bills were highly valuable.
So the partners endured Svritsky’s presence on their books. But the meeting had verbalised a long-held suspicion on Richard’s part, namely that his partners viewed his criminal practice with disdain and that it would be tolerated only for as long as it continued to generate adequate fees. There was an underlying sense that criminal law was not true law, that it was the poorer cousin to important legal disputes in the fields of commercial and administrative law. Real law played out in the halls of the High Court, before judges and counsel, bedecked in robes and bibs, while criminal law eked out a living in the sordid corridors of the district courts. His partners never asked him about his cases, never congratulated him on any successes and raised the subject of his side of the practice only when the firm’s name was mentioned in the newspapers in connection with some disreputable matter.
Richard had felt it all along, but in the beginning this disregard had not
Quantal Investments (Proprietary) Limited was a private black-empowerment company. With a prominent struggle activist at the helm, the company had powerful trade union contacts and had established itself on a range of lucrative fronts, rapidly becoming one of the largest private conglomerates. It was now ready to be floated as a public company on the stock exchange. It would be a glittering move, resplendent with political backing and struggle credentials – a flagship of activism in the financial sector, the minister of finance had proclaimed in anticipation. For Richard’s firm, the publicity and sheer revenue from being the listing attorneys firm would be significant; the long-term possibilities for the firm should it secure Quantal’s patronage were immeasurable. It remained the firm’s single most important prospect. Igshaan supposedly had a connection to Quantal’s CEO, which had secured him his position at Richard’s firm in the first place. It was a tenuous contact, but one that he unfailingly brought up in conversation. Nevertheless, Igshaan and David had been tasked with securing the firm’s position with Quantal. The fact that Richard had not been asked was both a relief and a slight, an indication of the firm’s lack of faith in his contemporary sensitivities.
The attempt to woo Quantal had inevitably given rise to lengthy and uncomfortable discussions about whether the firm was black enough, with contorted references to Igshaan’s undefined racial categorisation. Ultimately, it had been decided to headhunt a black partner for the firm (‘A real black,’ Selwyn had blithely muttered in the debate), offering a generous package and immediate full-partner status. The post had been advertised and applications were trickling in. Igshaan advised the partners that Quantal’s CEO had himself acknowledged the wisdom of the move, indicating that, with the right partner, the firm would be viewed as a competitive bidder. He had almost salivated when telling the partners the good news.
But an association with a Russian mobster, if publicised, could discourage applicants and might even scare off Quantal. The dramatic corruption trials had left a pious aftertaste in the media, and a mere suggestion of unsavoury collusion could be enough to poison the public’s view. Yet, the financial benefits could not be ignored, even by Igshaan. Svritsky was a paying client who brought a significant income to the firm, both personally and through his myriad underworld contacts. He provided cash flow for the firm, and Richard’s monthly income targets were both high and paid up. With the closure of their conveyancing department and the birth of dedicated paralegal tax and labour firms, litigious clients who paid their bills were highly valuable.
So the partners endured Svritsky’s presence on their books. But the meeting had verbalised a long-held suspicion on Richard’s part, namely that his partners viewed his criminal practice with disdain and that it would be tolerated only for as long as it continued to generate adequate fees. There was an underlying sense that criminal law was not true law, that it was the poorer cousin to important legal disputes in the fields of commercial and administrative law. Real law played out in the halls of the High Court, before judges and counsel, bedecked in robes and bibs, while criminal law eked out a living in the sordid corridors of the district courts. His partners never asked him about his cases, never congratulated him on any successes and raised the subject of his side of the practice only when the firm’s name was mentioned in the newspapers in connection with some disreputable matter.
Richard had felt it all along, but in the beginning this disregard had not
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