Mervyn Vermeulen is a distinguished dual-qualified legal professional with over a decade of expertise in family law. Holding an LLB degree from the University of South Africa (UNISA) and a Certificate in Family Mediation, Mervyn is admitted as an attorney in South Africa and a solicitor in Scotland. As the Director of Vermeulen Attorneys, he specialises in divorce, mediation, high-conflict custody disputes, and family law matters, frequently appearing in the High Court. Mervyn is a qualified Family Law Mediator and an accredited Parenting Coordinator, accredited by the South African Association of Mediators (SAAM), where he remains an active member and frequent guest speaker on topics such as parental rights, responsibilities, and the role of mediation in family disputes. His commitment to alternative dispute resolution is evident in his advocacy for settlement-first approaches, as demonstrated through his published articles and webinars on Rule 41A and mandatory mediation in family law. Beyond his practice, Mervyn serves as Director of LawBox Practice Management Software, innovating at the intersection of law and technology, and founded ThinkLegal to facilitate knowledge exchange among legal professionals. He is a Fellow of the International Academy of Family Lawyers and is actively involved in the Gauteng Family Law Forum. Mervyn's dedication to fostering constructive resolutions in complex family dynamics makes him a valuable contributor to the Exco Panel.

Susan Harris is an attorney, mediator and arbitrator. She has worked in the ADR field since 1994. She has been on the SAAM EXCO Committee from 1994 until 2015 and again from 2018 to date. She is chairperson of the Accreditations panel. An alumni's of the University of the Witwatersrand (WITS), she graduated cum laude with an LLM in 1994. She has lectured at the Practical Legal Training School and at the WITS Law School. She has extensive experience mediating for the CCMA, the Bargaining Council for the Motor Industry and in private practice. She also did voluntary mediations for Family Life Centre (FAMSA) and pro bono work for Probono.org.

Dr. Madelene (Leentjie) de Jong completed her BLC degree in 1984 and her LLB degree in 1986 at the University of Pretoria. She started her working career in Pretoria in 1987 as a candidate attorney at Couzyn, Hertzog & Horak Inc. After her admission as an attorney of the High Court of South Africa, she joined Du Plessis & Eksteen, where she practised as an attorney from 1989 to 1990. She joined Unisa in 1991 as a lecturer in Family Law in the Department of Private Law. She was promoted to a senior lectureship in 1994, an associate professorship in 2004 and a full professorship in 2008. She retired from Unisa at the end of 2019 and is now a full-time mediator, parenting coordinator and divorce liquidator. In 2003 she obtained her LLD degree from Unisa on the strength of a thesis entitled “Divorce mediation in South Africa – a comparative study”. She is the co-author of four books and has published many articles on family law and, more specifically, matrimonial property law upon divorce, maintenance matters, divorce or family mediation, family arbitration and parenting coordination in various legal journals. In 2008 and 2013 she received the Hugo de Groot prize for the best short contribution to the Journal of Contemporary Roman Dutch Law and in 2018 she received the Hugo de Groot prize for the best article in this journal. She has delivered papers at various national and international conferences, mainly on alternative family dispute resolution, matrimonial property law and maintenance matters. Dr de Jong is accredited as a divorce and family mediator and a parenting coordinator by SAAM. She has been practising as a part-time family mediator since 2004. She is presently serving on the advisory committee of the South African Law Reform Commission’s Project 100D (Family Dispute Resolution: Care of and Contact with Children) and acting as project leader of the advisory committee of the South African Law Reform Commission’s Project 100B (Review of the Maintenance Act 99 of 1998).

Toula Pleaner is a psychologist, senior accredited family law mediator, trainer, and supervisor. She holds a master’s degree in psychology, specialises in Gender-Based Violence (GBV), and is currently pursuing a PhD in the field. She serves the magisterial courts of South Africa and specialises in high-conflict family matters, parenting disputes, and child-centred interventions. Toula is actively involved in the training, supervision, and accreditation of mediators and has contributed to the development of mediation in South Africa through her involvement in policy and legislative reform. She also serves on the board of Ma Se Kind; a South African NGO focused on education and the development of future educators. Her work is driven by a commitment to professional excellence, access to justice, education, and child-focused dispute resolution.

John Faris is an attorney of the High Court of South Africa. ​Prof. Faris has served in an advisory capacity as an ad hoc member of the ADR Sub-committee of the South African Rules Board for Courts. He was also appointed as a member of the Ministerial Advisory Committee for Court-Annexed Mediation in the Magistrate’s Courts. ​He was a founder member of the Unisa Legal Aid Clinic and the Unisa Programme for Citizen Education in the Law and for many years served as chairperson of the related management committees. Prof. Faris was also responsible for establishing the Unisa School for Practical Legal Education by Distance Learning.

Barry practices as an accredited family and divorce mediator with Alternative Divorce. As founder of Mediation Academy, he develops new talent in family law mediation. He holds a BCom in Entrepreneurship with UNISA, as well as qualifications in family law, ISO-process design, training and marketing. In 2019, he co-engineered the Zero-Math Maintenance Calculator and made it freely available to practitioners and the SA public. Barry is an ardent enthusiast of SME’s and believes that technology, innovation and a love for people can bring access to justice to all South Africans – and create new opportunities in the process.

I originally started my career as a teacher at Westville Boys’ High School. This was after having completed a BSc Biology and Higher Diploma in Education at the University of Natal. After having taught for approximately 10 years and I then made a career change to study law. I was admitted in 2020 with a triple admission as an Attorney, Notary and Conveyancer and began my own practice in May 2021. I was accredited in 2020 as a Family Mediator with Social Justice and in 2024 as a Civil and Commercial Mediator with Conflict Dynamics. I am passionate about mediation and view it as an invaluable option in alternate dispute resolution. Mediation is about individuals having a conversation about an issue that outside of the safe space created by Mediation they would not normally be capable of.

Simone Lamberti is the Owner and Founder of Simone Lamberti Attorneys, an Attorney, SAAM Accredited Mediator, SAAM Exco Member, and Parenting Co-ordinator, admitted as an Attorney in the High Court of South Africa in 2010. Simone Lamberti was admitted as an attorney in 2010 and brings over 17 years of experience across litigation, commercial law, family law, and corporate matters. She is an emotionally resilient attorney and accredited mediator, known for her calm, structured, and empathetic approach to conflict resolution. Simone is particularly skilled in managing high-conflict interpersonal disputes and complex family dynamics. Her ability to critically assess information, guide parties through emotionally charged discussions, and uphold legal standards with compassion and a fearless approach has positioned her as a trusted practitioner in both litigation and alternative dispute resolution. She is committed to resolving matters efficiently while maintaining professionalism, clarity, and sensitivity, especially in matters affecting children and families.

Thulani Kunene is the founder of 2 Line Mediation, a family mediation practice serving clients across Johannesburg, Gauteng, and South Africa. The name of his practice reflects both his personal identity and his professional philosophy, as Thulani's name itself carries the meaning of peaceful mediation, and his work is built on the principle of bringing two perspectives together to find a shared path forward. Having witnessed firsthand the emotional and financial toll that litigation takes on families, particularly when children are involved, Thulani established 2 Line Mediation with a clear vision: to offer South African families a more humane and effective alternative to adversarial conflict resolution. Thulani is known for his empathetic, culturally sensitive approach to mediation, recognising that South Africa's rich diversity shapes how families communicate, make decisions, and navigate conflict.

Stella practices as an NABFAM and SAAM accredited Family Law Divorce Mediator. Stella completed her B Com (Industrial Psychology) degree from Rand Afrikaans University in 1989. In 2007 she completed her B Compt (Accounting) degree at University of Johannesburg whilst working as a Finance Manager for a large corporate listed company. She completed her honours in Accounting in 2010 from Unisa. She passed both SAICA Board exam 1 & 2 on first attempt during 2011. She is to date still a member of SAICA. Stella gained tremendous experience in Finance from 1997 until August 2019 when she left the corporate world to pursue her passion to help other people, and making a difference in other people’s lives. Children are very special to her, and hence she does volunteer work at an abandon baby house. She continues to do Accounting work on a part time basis. She has been the Treasurer for SAAM since March 2021. Stella’s compassion with people in distress and her drive to make a difference has led her to choose being a full time Family Law mediator. She always considers “the best interest of the child” paramount to any decision made during mediation. Her financial background adds great value to her Mediation clients as she specialises in maintenance disputes and division of assets and liabilities for divorce settlement agreements. She also focusses in her practice on the mediation of maintenance disputes between adult children and their parents.

Barbara Malan is a Director at B-Malan Attorneys Inc. With over a decade of experience in family and commercial law and even longer as a mediator, Barbara is a seasoned litigation attorney, mediator, and legal consultant. Her extensive work across high-conflict matters has reinforced her belief in mediation as a powerful alternative to adversarial litigation.

Alan José is the founder of Alan José Incorporated, a law firm he has been running for 25 years. He began his legal career completing articles at a small Johannesburg firm, after which he started his own practice. Over the years, he has grown and evolved his firm, including a period of partnership with Rudi van Niekerk under José & Van Niekerk Incorporated, before establishing Alan José Incorporated as it stands today. Alan completed a fully accredited Mediation Course and has been dedicated to family mediations ever since. He served on the South African Association of Mediators (SAAM) executive board for a number of years before stepping down to spend more time doing pro bono mediations, a reflection of his deep commitment to accessible and meaningful dispute resolution. His fields of preference are Family Law (and all that entails), Mediations, Insolvency Law, Contract Drafting, and Corporate Law. As a family man, Alan believes that combining professionalism with a personal and human approach is crucial. He is a member of the Gauteng Family Law Forum and is a trained Collaborative Law attorney. Alan holds a BCom, LLB, and LLM, all from RAU, and has the right of appearance in the High Court of South Africa.

Governor Daliwonga (Dali) Duma is currently employed by Northam Platinum Limited as an executive responsible for sustainability for the group and forms part of the executive committee. Previously served on different roles at Impala Platinum (Implats) as Internal Audit Manager, Projects Director for socio-economic development initiatives, Group Sustainable Development Manager, and General Manager: Shared Services for Implats. He also worked as the National Division Operations Manager at the Medical Research Council of South Africa. Graduated from Pretoria University in 2002 with an MBA. Completed BTech degree in Quantity Surveying from Tshwane University of Technology (Pretoria Technikon) and Diploma in Project Management from School of Project Management. Climate change, greenhouse gas emissions, water utilisation, and social capital are my key areas of performance giving direction on corporate governance, strategy, risk management, metrics, and targets.