The Faculty of Law at the University of Pretoria (UP) expresses its heartfelt appreciation and well wishes to Professor André Boraine, whose second term as Dean is ending at the end of October 2019.

Boraine commenced employment as a full-time senior lecturer in the Department of Mercantile Law at UP in 1985. With effect from 1 January 1995, he was promoted to the position of associate professor and to the rank of full professor on 1 January 1997. He became the Head of the Department of Procedural Law on 1 September 1999 and served as part-time Deputy Dean of the Faculty during that year.  He was the Head of the Department of Procedural Law from 1999 until the end of October 2011. He took up office as Dean of the Faculty of Law on 1 November 2011, with a second term appointment from 1 November 2015.

Boraine holds the degrees LLB (Pret) LLM cum laude (Wits) LLD (Pret). The title of his LLD thesis was “Die leerstuk van vernietigbare transaksies in die Suid-Afrikaanse Insolvensiereg” (The doctrine of voidable transactions in the South African Insolvency Law).  He is a B1-rated National Research Foundation (NRF) researcher.

Under the leadership and diligent commitment of Boraine to the UP Faculty of Law and its students, staff and alumni over the past eight years, the Faculty ranked 92nd in 2018 and 76th in the world in 2019*, making it the highest ranked Faculty of Law on the Africa continent. A feat no other law faculty on the continent has come close to in the past few years.  These global rankings demonstrate an ability to attract faculty and students from across the world.  Consequently, this confirms the fact that the Faculty of Law possesses a strong international brand, as rankings establish a firm belief that the high standard of teaching and research predicates the quality of its research knowledge production and transfer. This claim is substantiated further by the record postgraduate output of the Faculty of Law which has conferred 179 master's and 35 doctoral graduates in 2017, followed by 173 master's and 27 doctoral graduates in 2018.  

Boraine is known worldwide as an expert in Insolvency law, and most probably one of the best, if not the best, in the Southern hemisphere as reflected by his significant contribution to Insolvency law and systems in the SADC region and his membership of the International Insolvency Institute and the South African Rescue and Insolvency Practitioners Association (SARIPA).  He is a founding member and former Co-director of the Centre for Insolvency, Labour and Company Law (CILC), formerly known as the Centre for Advanced Corporate and Insolvency Law, based at UP.  Given his expertise, he is frequently invited to present papers at national and international conferences and he has published extensively in the field of Insolvency Law.  He is co-author of the Third Edition of Silberberg and Schoeman’s "Law of Property" and Meskin’s "Insolvency Law".  Both these volumes are leading textbooks in the respective fields of Property and Insolvency Law in South Africa.

Boraine serves on the editorial panel of the International Insolvency Law Review and has acted as referee for numerous articles for national and international journals.  He is also a member of the NRF-rating panel.  He serves on the management board of the Academics Group of Insol International and is an honorary member of the Association of Insolvency Practitioners of South Africa.

In 2011, the World Bank appointed Boraine as a specialist consultant in conducting an analysis and compiling Reports on the Observance of Standards and Codes (ROSC) analysis of the South African insolvency system.  He served as a member of the World Bank team in 2013 when it conducted a similar analysis of the Namibian insolvency system. In 2013, he served as a panellist at an UNCITRAL conference on insolvency systems for small and medium enterprises. A joint paper on the topic followed and subsequently published in the Insol International Review.

Over the years Boraine has taught a variety of law subjects at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, and provided practical legal training to candidate attorneys and insolvency practitioners. His current research interests include Insolvency Law, the Law of Civil Procedure, and Aspects of Property Law and Consumer Law.

His interests outside academia include the restoration of vintage Citroëns and fly-fishing.

The Faculty of Law and the University of Pretoria thank Dean Boraine for his dedicated service and leadership over the past eight years, and wishes him and his family all the best for the new chapter in his career as an academic, legal practitioner and researcher [and as an auto body repair denting and painting technician].

[*THE ranking]

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Restoring his beloved Citroën vintage cars is close to his heart and it has played a significant role in balancing work pressure over the past few years. Professor Boraine loves to convey his endless knowledge of Citroën cars to keen listeners.

This hobby requires a lot of patience and endurance, and he has already successfully transformed two of the five Citroëns in his possession from wreckage to roadworthiness.  He always gives credit where it is due – and never forgets to mention his faithful assistants – Willem, Corne, Piet, Lucky and Klaas.  According to his wife, Hermi, their backyard becomes a weekend workshop and platform for social interaction between Boraine and his team of mechanics.

Boraine lovingly names his restored cars - one is a convertible, and her name is ‘Marie Antoinette’ – as he converted ‘her’ to a T-top by cutting off her roof (head). The second car’s name is ‘Lazarus’, as he literally raised him from the dead (forgotten on a farm somewhere in the Mpumalanga region) and restored to a running condition.  And not to forget that the big highlight of his (hobby) year is participating in the “Cars in the Park” expo at Zwartkops Raceway.

Boraine has a passion for ‘machines on wheels’ in his private time.  He loves watching the Grand Prix, and of course, supports the Ferrari teams. He also enjoys watching rugby and cycling, the sport of his youth.

Another of his favourite hobbies is photography and he takes the most beautiful photos, many of which he has taken on the UP campus.  He is a nature enthusiast and very passionate about protecting the environment from further harm, as is clear from his posts and pleas on social media.

His family, especially his three sons, Bernard, and twins Rudolph and André Jnr, are his top priority. In his spare time, he taught History as an extra school subject to the twins. This has shaped them and strengthened their application for admission as UP students. 

Boraine is famous for his hospitality, and likes treating and entertaining family and friends at home. He also likes to explore new places, always with camera in hand. When his workshop schedule allows for it, he loves fly-fishing and spending time in nature.

He is a story and joke teller of note, to which his staff can testify to, and has one ready for every occasion – like his Irish ancestors.  He loves languages, and constantly plays with words.

He is very involved in the community.  For years, when the Boraine family stayed in Brooklyn, he helped to preserve the residential character of Brooklyn. Currently he is involved with the Lynnwood Residents’ Association, where he assists with patrols and lending a helping hand to the neighbourhood.

 The Boraine family - Prof André and Hermi Boraine.  Front fltr:  Bernard, André Jnr and Rudolph.

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Prof Boraine and his classmates of 1979 will reunite early in November 2019 to relive and revive good old memories.  - Editor