Willem le Roux is an Executive Consultant at ENS and was previously Joint Head of the Mine and Occupational Health and Safety practice.

He has successfully acted in several large and extensive litigation matters and some of the foremost chemical and metal corporations and mining houses, including one of the largest gold producing mining companies in the world, have enlisted his expertise for high-profile inquests, inquiries, litigation and prosecutions. Such matters include large seismic events and falls of ground, furnace explosions, slimes dam disasters and flammable gas explosions in mines on South Africa’s West Rand, Rustenburg area and the Free State.

Willem represented the Chamber of Mines in the Leon Commission, whose report gave rise to the enactment of the Mine Health and Safety Act, 1996 (“MHSA”). He regularly comments on proposed amendments to South African mine health and safety legislation and compensation legislation. 

Willem has successfully defended mine managers and other employees on charges of culpable homicide and alleged contraventions of the MHSA relating to mine accidents. He has represented employers in claims for damages based on lung diseases, an inquiry into manganism and has acted and still acts on behalf of one of the world's largest gold mining companies in silicosis litigation.

Willem has presented various papers and training courses to a variety of companies, corporations and other organisations, and has also conducted annual seminars on his field of expertise. He is the author of LexisNexis’ Mine Health and Safety Law, a loose-leaf commentary on the Mine Health and Safety Act, 1996, and is also the co-author of the Commentary to the Construction Regulations, 2014, as well as Occupational Health and Safety Law, a loose-leaf commentary on the Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1993.

Willem also lectured for several years until 2017 to graduates and LLM students in prospecting and mining law courses presented by the Mandela Institute of the University of Witwatersrand.

Education

• BIuris (University of Pretoria)
• LLB (University of Pretoria)
• Admitted as an attorney of the High Court of South Africa

Willem is recognised as a leading/recommended lawyer by:

• Chambers Global Guide 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015 – Energy and Natural Resources: Mining Health and Safety (South Africa)     
• The Legal 500 EMEA 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015 – Mining (South Africa)
• Who's Who Legal 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015 – Mining (South Africa)
• Best Lawyers® 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018 – Mining; 2023, 2022, 2021 - Occupational Health and Safety Law (South Africa)

• South Africa: All Industries excluding the mining industry: is there an obligation on employers to report and investigate incidents of employees contracting the Coronavirus (COVID-19) ?

  By Willem le Roux |April 2020

• South African Mining Industry: is there an obligation on employers to report and investigate incidents of occupational-acquired Covid-19?

  By Willem le Roux |March 2020

• South Africa: is there an obligation on employers to report and investigate incidents of occupational-acquired COVID-19 in the mining industry?

  By Willem le Roux |March 2020