Megan Sturgeon

• Successfully acted for Vodacom in opposing a review application brought by MTN to review and set aside Transnet’s tender process in which it awarded a tender to Vodacom in Mobile Telecommunications Network (Pty) Ltd v Transnet Soc Ltd and Vodacom (Pty) Ltd.*
• Successfully instituting proceedings before the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) to compel MTN to port all of Transnet’s cellphone numbers on its network to Vodacom in Transnet Soc Ltd and Vodacom (Pty) Ltd v Mobile Telecommunications Network (Pty) Ltd.*
• Advising BMW South Africa (Pty) Ltd in a review application to challenge a decision by the Railway Safety Regulator in terms of the National Railway Safety Act.*
• Instituting action proceedings and advising the Public Investment Corporation SOC Ltd (PIC) in proceedings for the recovery of monies due to the PIC because of the SABC’s alleged breach of a lease agreement and premature vacating of the Bohuthatswana Recording Studio.*
• Advising the South African National Roads Agency Soc Ltd (SANRAL) and defending proceedings instituted by Superway with regards to SANRAL’s termination of Superway’s services for the reconstruction of the R37 road between Burgersfort and Lydenburg.*
• Defending a novel matter relating to alleged delictual liability resulting from a bank’s wrongful and negligent conduct in reversing EFT payments collected by debit order in Spar Group Ltd v Absa Bank Ltd.*
• Advising in proceedings with regards to the alleged repudiation of a supply agreement and subsequent court proceedings relating to voidness of the supply agreement in Osho SA Coal Mining (Pty) Ltd v Tendele Mining (Pty) Ltd.*
• Instituting proceedings in terms of section 165 of the Companies Act due to the respondents’ alleged breach of their fiduciary duties towards the company in Bradley Mcdermott and another v Douglas Woods and Advize Capital (Pty) Ltd.*
• Defending and providing advice on a land claim lodged by the uMgungundlovu community in respect of land leased by Transkei Sun International (Pty) Ltd in the Sun International South Africa Ltd v Wild Coast Sun land claim.*
• Defending several land claims instituted in respect of portions of land owned by conservation non-profit companies in Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces.*
• Successfully opposing an appeal lodged by the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) against the environmental authorisation granted by the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) to a conservation non-profit company.*
• Providing advice with regards to a reportable irregularity reported to the International Regulatory Board of Auditors (IRBA) in Africa’s Best (Pty) Ltd v Ernst & Young Advisory Services (Pty) Ltd.*
• Consulted in the Dieselgate class action where aggrieved car owners instituted action against a multi-national manufacturer who manufactured vehicles in violation of the Clean Air Act.*
• Consulted in an Investor-state claim against the Russian federation for loss of assets pursuant to Russian occupation in the Donbas region of Ukraine. The amount of investor-state claims were estimated in the range of USD300-500m.*
• Consulted in a Investment treaty claim against Central Asian State regarding ownership of the monies held in various bank accounts and transferred to the State of Lithuania. An investigation was conducted into potential money laundering and transfer of monies due to transactions which had no bearing on the real economic activities of the companies.*
• Consulted in a bilateral investment treaty arbitration claim by an investor against the State of Ecuador for USD30m.*
• Consulted in a claim against a German industrial inspection company where claimants suffered a loss after the Brumadinho Dam Disaster when a tailing dam collapsed in Brumadinho Minas Gerais in Brazil and toxic sludge was released into the environment.*
• Consulted in a claim where Claimants suffered loss after the Mariana Dam Disaster where the Fundao tailings dam collapsed in Brazil unleashing toxic waste and resulting in one of the most devastating environmental disasters in Brazilian history. The claim was brought against Anglo-Australian company BHP, which operates in Brazil through a company called Samarco.*
• Consulted in a British Airways data breach claim where sensitive data of over 400 000 British Airways customers were compromised in contravention of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).*
• Consulted in a matter where Brazilian Orange farmers sued a number of companies in the industry engaged in colluding cartel behaviour where they shared competitive information to increase control of the market by excluding independent competitors.*
• Successfully acted in a claim against KLM Airlines for a data breach where sensitive data of KLM customers were compromised in contravention of the GDPR.*
• Other: Initiating court interdict proceedings, damages claims and providing ancillary advice in cross-border litigation matters in various jurisdictions.*

* Denotes experience from a previous firm