Position, academic & professional qualifications

Professor Thino Bekker is an associate professor of procedural law and holds the degrees B Iuris (cum laude) LLB (cum laude) LLM LLD (UNISA). The title of his doctoral thesis was “Die Ekstrinsieke Getuienis-reël in die Suid-Afrikaanse Kontraktereg” (The Parol Evidence Rule in the South African Law of Contract).

After the completion of his articles of clerkship, he attended the Association of Law Societies’ School for Legal Practice in 1997 where he received several awards including the award for the best student. He completed his pupillage at the Pretoria Bar, passed the Bar exam and was admitted as an advocate of the High Court in 1997. In 1998 he was admitted as an attorney and coveyancer and in 1999 as a notary public of the High Court. In 2008 he was also registered as a debt counsellor at the National Credit Regulator.

Academic & professional experience

Professor Bekker started his career as an advocate at the Pretoria Bar in 1997 whereafter he practiced as an attorney, conveyancer and notary public at various law firms in Pretoria and Centurion. In 2004 he was appointed as a part-time lecturer at the University of Pretoria (Mamelodi Campus) where he taught the modules Civil Procedural Law, Civil Legal Practice and Ethics. In 2005 and 2006 he was appointed as a part -time lecturer at the University of South Africa where he taught the modules Constitutional Law, Indigenous Law and the Certificate Programme in Provincial and Local Government Law. In 2007 he was appointed as a permanent full-time attorney at the Unisa Legal Aid Clinic where he practiced as such until 31 August 2009. On 1 September 2009 he was appointed as a permanent full-time senior lecturer in the Department of Procedural Law at the University of Pretoria and he was promoted to associate professor in 2018.      

Teaching activities

Professor Bekker teaches Deeds and Notarial Practice, Civil Procedural Law and the coursework LLM in Civil Litigation. He is also an instructor at the School for Legal Practice at the University of Pretoria and Legal Education and Development, Law Society of South Africa.

Representative publications and chapters in books

• Butterworths Family Law Service – The Law and Older Persons (2004) – Chapter on Housing.
• Bekker T “Inheemse Reg: ’n Pleidooi vir ’n Nuwe Jurisprudensie” (2006) THRHR 529-545.
• Bekker T “The re-emergence of ubuntu: A critical analysis” (2006) SAPL 333- 344.
• Bekker T “Die Regsteoretiese Grondslag van die Integrasiereël in die Suid-Afrikaanse Kontraktereg” 2011 Obiter.  
• Bekker T & Van Loggerenberg D “Freedom from arrest for the foreign debtor: A jurisdictional perspective” 2012 THRHR.
• Bekker T & Christian M  “’n Aanval op die Grondwetlikheid van die Prosedure van Voorlopige Vonnis: Twee Jonge Gezellen (Pty) Ltd and Another v Land and Agricultural Development Bank of South Africa t/a The Land Bank and Another 2011 3 SA 1 (CC)” 2012 THRHR.
• Bekker T “Die Integrasiereël in die Suid-Afrikaanse Kontraktereg” 2012 Stell L R.    
• Bekker T “Die Herklassifisering van die Ekstrinsieke Getuienis-reël en die verdere ontwikkeling van die Integrasiereël in die Suid-Afrikaanse Kontraktereg” 2013 Litnet Akademies Regte.
• Bekker T “The rescission of judgments by consent in the South African law - a critical analysis” 2014 TSAR.
• Bekker T “Die Moontlike Regshervorming van die Integrasiereël in die Suid-Afrikaanse Kontraktereg deur middel van die aanwending van die leerstuk van rektifikasie” 2014 PER.     
• Bekker T “Die Interpretasiereël in die Suid-Afrikaanse Kontraktereg – Deel 1” 2016 JJS.    
• Bekker T “Die Interpretasiereël in die Suid-Afrikaanse Kontraktereg – Deel 2” 2016 JJS.
• Bekker T “The rescission of judgments by consent in the South African law - a critical analysis” 2014 TSAR.
• Bekker T “Security for costs by an incola company – at last some legal certainty or more confusion? Boost Sports Africa (Pty) Ltd v SAB” 2017 SALJ.
• Bekker T “Third party joinder: a plea for reform” 2017 THRHR.
• Bekker T “The late amendment of pleadings: time for a new approach?”  2017 Obiter.  

Papers delivered at conferences

• Paper presented at the Law Teacher’s Conference (2011 Stellenbosch) – “The Sheriff, the foreigner and the civil fugitive: a jurisdictional tale”.
• International PPJ Conference (2016 Dubrovnik) - “The interrelationship    between arbitration and civil litigation in the South African legal system”.

Areas of specialisation

His main areas of interest are the Law of contract, general civil procedure, and general conveyancing practice.

Academic & professional memberships

Professor Bekker is an admitted attorney, conveyancer and notary public of the High Court of South Africa, a member of the Law Society of the Northern Provinces and a registered debt counsellor with the National Credit Regulator. From 2014 until 2018 he served as an Assistant Editor of De Jure.

Awards & bursaries

• Merit award received from Unisa – second best student BIURIS degree (1994).
• Best student award at the Association of Law Societies’ (now Law Society of South Africa) School for Legal Practice (Day School) (2007).
• Hugo de Groot Prize for best article in Afrikaans for “Inheemse Reg: ’n Pleidooi vir ’n Nuwe Jurisprudensie” Journal for Contemporary Roman-Dutch Law (2006).

Telephone:  +27 (0)12 420 2409

Email:  [email protected]

[31 August 2020]