THE PIONEER
The pioneer of CHSM Incorporated Attorneys is Celimphilo Hlabeyakhe Sicelo Mngomezulu. Sicelo provides the guiding vision and inspired leadership to the law firm he founded in the year 2009. The married father of two boys is part of a South African generation that seeks to take full advantage of the opportunities that have opened up with the advent of democracy in South Africa, as well as the opportunities presented by the ever-growing interest in Africa as a viable investment destination.
Sicelo’s business and social life as well as his approach to life in general are underpinned by the following motto – “I think, therefore I am.” At a personal level Sicelo also lives by the following values:
• Humility
• Faith
• Imagination
• Innovation
• Ubuntu
Sicelo spends a great deal of his time studying on the following subjects: the mind; technology; governance; jurisprudence; case law; business; political economy, finance and monetary systems.
Sicelo’s paternal roots are in rural KwaZulu-Natal Province at Ingwavuma, Engwenyameni – Umkhanyakude District; he was, however, raised by his grandmother and mother in Manzini, Swaziland. Sicelo went to St Paul’s High School where he completed his high schooling. Sicelo attained his Bachelor of Arts in Law (BA Law) and Bachelor of Laws (LLB) Degrees at the University of Swaziland (“UNISWA”), between 1998 and 2004.
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
After attaining his LLB Degree, Sicelo joined the Legal Aid Board of South Africa in Nelspruit for a short while in 2005 and later in the same year joined Swanepoel & Partners, Nelspruit as a Candidate Attorney. He completed his articles at Snyman Attorneys, Johannesburg in the year 2007 and he was admitted as Attorney of the Supreme Court of South Africa on 29 October 2007.
After completing his articles, Sicelo was appointed as an Associate at Eversheds, Sandton Johannesburg, where practiced until the year 2009 when he resigned to establish CHS Mngomezulu Attorneys, in the same year. CHS Mngomezulu Attorneys, initially a sole proprietorship, was later incorporated as CHSM Incorporated in the year 2012.
With its principal place of business situated at the prestigious Sandton CBD, CHSM Incorporated’s vision is to be internationally recognised as Africa’s premier law firm. CHSM Incorporated’s values are: speed, excellence, relationships, technology and innovation and continuous learning. The law firm’s key practice areas are: commercial law; labour law; civil litigation; personal injury and divorce. As a commercial attorney, Sicelo is one of very few black attorneys with in-depth knowledge and expertise in the area of gambling regulation.
Sicelo is an entrepreneur at heart and thus he always seeks to explore and exploit business opportunities in other industries. Sicelo has, until recently, been a shareholder and board member of Inyosi Mining (Pty) Ltd, a Witbank based coal mining company. Sicelo is currently a shareholder of Portia M Skin Solutions, a Centurion based skin care and cosmetics manufacturing and supply company.
To demonstrate Sicelo’s passion for youth skills development, especially for the previously disadvantaged, CHSM Incorporated, as a matter of business policy, every year, employs undergraduate students studying towards an LLB degree and sets them on a career path that prepares them for the rigours of legal practice. The aspirant attorneys, as salaried employees of the firm, are exposed to the practicalities of legal practice and also receive on-the-job training, at no cost to them.
With the above in mind, it is therefore not surprising that CHSM Incorporated intends to take advantage of the golden opportunities presented by the advent of e-learning and will launch accredited web-based tutorials on various legal subjects, targeting students from various universities and shop stewards from various trade unions as well as line managers, with effect from the second half of 2016.