Resolve recently assisted a consortium of global businesses and individuals in their public opposition to draconian draft legislation that had already been passed by Parliament. The bill only required ratification by the President to take effect, and the effect of the legislation would have been severe: its implementation would have extinguished an entire industry and tens of thousands of livelihoods.

The ultimate aim of the campaign was to convince President Ramaphosa not to sign the legislation and refer it back to Parliament.

The strategy that the client adopted with us was strikingly effective. We ensured that the threats that the legislation posed, as identified by our client, were front and centre of the considerations before President Ramaphosa, his advisors and in the public debate.

We did this by:

• Creating a compelling core message backed by credible legal and intellectual arguments
  
  
• Identifying key channels to ‘land’ this message including stakeholders within the Presidency and across the media
  
  
• Relentlessly seizing on opportunities to position the client’s issue in the minds of policy makers
  
  
• Retaliating constructively against attacks by our client’s opponents
  
  
• Closely managing a complex client team through regular reporting and recommendations
  
  
• Providing an around-the-clock expert advisory service and skilled implementation

Ultimately, we succeeded in convincing the President that the legislation was not fit to be ratified – and he returned the legislation back to Parliament for further debate and satisfactory amendment in accordance with our client’s argument.