Since 1936
Thorpe and Hands was founded in 1936 by Herbert Atwell Thorpe and Wilfred Hands.
Wilfred Hands died in 1959 and Herbert Thorpe continued as Senior Partner until his retirement in 1963. He was succeeded as Senior Partner by his nephew Tony Thorpe, followed in 1984 by Roy Phillips who retired from the practice in 2004.
One of the highlights in the firm’s history was its appointment as one of the legal firms representing the Administrator of Natal in the James Commission of Enquiry in 1987.
For many years, Thorpe and Hands has been synonymous with angling and is fondly known as “the fishing firm”.
Tony Thorpe was a Springbok angler and Roy Phillips represented Natal. Richard Pearton is a keen fly fisherman and also fishes rock and surf.
The practice was incorporated in December 2000 and Richard Pearton, Robin Topping and Richard Till are the current directors of the Company.