About the practice
Three sides of the same table.
Advice is only as good as the person giving it. So here is exactly who you will be dealing with.
Mthokozisi Brian Mhlongo (LLB) is an admitted Legal Practitioner of the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria, enrolled with the Legal Practice Council on the roll of non-practising Legal Practitioners. He brings more than a decade of post-admission experience at executive level to independent advisory work.
His career spans commercial litigation support and corporate advisory within private practice; sole legal counsel and company secretary to a multi-business-unit corporate group; and senior regulatory work at national level — drafting legislation, rules and codes of conduct, managing government gazetting and ministerial reporting processes, and directing disciplinary, accreditation and education functions for an entire profession.
He has also served for more than a decade as pro bono general counsel and company secretary to a non-profit organisation — governance leadership he regards as part of the practice’s purpose, not an aside.
Perspective
Most advisers have sat in one seat.
Our founder has sat in all three — which is why the advice accounts not only for what the law says, but for how it will be read and how a regulator is likely to respond.
Across the negotiating table
Commercial litigation support, labour, estates and corporate advisory — working with clients directly, across the negotiating table.
Inside the business
Sole legal counsel and company secretary to a multi-business-unit corporate group: M&A restructuring, MOI amendments, high-value contracts and service-level agreements.
Inside the regulator
National statutory regulation — drafting legislation, rules and codes of conduct, managing gazetting, and running disciplinary and accreditation processes.
The road here
A career built for this work.
More than a decade of post-admission work across private practice, corporate counsel, governance, management and statutory regulation.
- Practical Legal Training — awarded Best Performance in Constitutional Legal Practice (LEAD / Law Society of South Africa).
- Admitted and enrolled as an Attorney of the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Pretoria.
- Private practice environment — commercial litigation support, labour, estates and corporate advisory, across the table.
- Sole in-house legal counsel and company secretary to a multi-business-unit corporate group — M&A restructuring, MOI amendments and high-value contracting.
- Moved into national statutory regulation of the legal profession — disciplinary processes, compliance risk and regulatory administration.
- Senior legal advisory at national executive level — legislative drafting, government gazetting, ministerial reporting and governance secretariat.
- Founded MBM Valkyrie Advisory — bringing all three perspectives to boards, businesses, statutory bodies and non-profits.
Proof
What the practice has actually been trusted with.
One engagement matters more than the rest, and it is described here only as far as permission currently allows.
What the firm does not do
- No court appearances, no litigation and no appearance as a legal practitioner for a client.
- No conveyancing, no notarial work and no administration of deceased estates.
- No trust account, and no Legal Practitioners’ Fidelity Fund Certificate — the company holds no client money.
- No reserved legal work of any kind: the director practises as an attorney on the non-practising roll, and the company is not a law firm under the Legal Practice Act.
- No accredited or credit-bearing training.
- No audit or assurance work.
- No retainers and no deposits — the company does not take money before work is performed.
Where a matter needs any of those, we say so and refer it. Saying this openly costs nothing and earns more than it loses: a general counsel or a supply-chain officer will check, and finding it stated plainly here is the difference between a careful adviser and one who was hoping nobody would ask.
Start here
Tell us the decision your organisation needs to make.
The first conversation is thirty minutes, confidential and free. You will leave it knowing which of our services you need and which you do not.