Having been a part of the litigation landscape for less than a
decade, the full impact of litigation funding companies is yet to
be determined. However, the now notorious 'Please call me'
case has provided a hint of what may be hiding in the shadows
including the potential for wide-scale reform of South African
law.
As has been widely reported, Mr Makate has been locked in a
dispute with Vodacom (a monolithic mobile phone operator) since
2008. In short, he argues that he developed the novel 'please
call me service' (in terms of which pre-paid users, reluctant
or unable to initiate a call, send a text to somebody calling on
that person to ring them). He further alleges that he entered into
an agreement with Vodacom in terms of which he undertook to hand
over the concept, which if proved technically and financially
viable, in exchange for remuneration on terms to be negotiated.
Backed by litigation funders, and after Vodacom apparently reneged
on the "agreement", he
