Mervyn King (judge)
| Mervyn Mau E. King | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Mervyn Masiapa Mau Eldred King 22 July 1937 Johannesburg |
| Nationality | South African |
| Occupation | Attorney, arbitrator, mediator, commission chair |
| Known for | King Report on Corporate Governance |
Mervyn Eldred King (born 22 July 1937, Johannesburg) is a South African corporate attorney, arbitrator, mediator, corporate director, commission chair, author and speaker. A former judge of the Supreme Court of South Africa, he is currently chairman of the IIRC, chairman emeritus of the Global Reporting Initiative and director of the Association of Business Administrators of Southern Africa. He is best known for chairing the King Committee on Corporate Governance, which issued three comprehensive reports in 1994, 2002 and 2009 endorsing an integrated and inclusive approach to corporate governance in South Africa.
King was born on 22 July 1937 to Aubrey and Mona King. He attended the University of the Witwatersrand, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Law, and a higher diploma in tax law.
From 1961 to 1964 he was a practising attorney. From 1965 to 1979 he was an advocate to the Supreme Court of South Africa, specialising in commercial law; he was appointed senior counsel in 1975. He became a judge of the Supreme Court of South Africa in 1977. He resigned that post in 1980 – reportedly after an altercation with Prime Minister P. W. Botha – and entered the commercial arena.
He became executive chairman of Frame Group Holdings, a textile giant, and executive chairman of First National Bank's corporate and investment banking group. In later years, he chaired and was a director of Capital Alliance Ltd and Metro Cash & Carry Ltd.
From 1981 to 1989 he was the first chairman of Operation Hunger, a South African charity which aimed to feed children in rural areas; he is now honorary life president of that organisation.
King is a founding member of the Arbitration Foundation of Southern Africa. He has acted as a company inspector and commissioner of inquiry into the affairs of companies, and has chaired many meetings to effect compromises for company creditors and on behalf of shareholder interests. In 1994 he chaired a commission of inquiry into political divisions in athletics, drafting recommendations for future conduct of the sport in South Africa; this was followed up by his second commission investing the sport of tennis.
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