Positions held:

Past president, Environmental Law Association of South Africa, past chair of Law Society of South Africa’s Environmental Law Committee, previously on the Board of the Centre for Environmental Rights, an organisation which she helped to establish.

Accolades:

Rated by Chambers International from 2011 (when Chambers started rating environmental lawyers) to 2025 as a Band 1 environmental lawyer. From 2017 to 2025 she was also named by Chambers as a star individual lawyer – Chambers’ highest accolade, granted to no other environmental lawyer in Africa. In 2024 she was given Chambers’ Outstanding Contribution in recognition of her contribution to environmental law.

In a recent Chambers review, client representatives said: “Terry is a brilliant environmental lawyer, with a keen eye for detail and a solution-driven approach.”

“Terry provides service at the level of excellence that sophisticated clients operating in an international environment expect. Her commercial awareness allows for pragmatic and positive outcomes.”

Rated by Best Lawyers as leading environmental lawyer in South Africa 2011 to 2017 and lawyer of the year in environmental law in 2018.

Described by the Cross Border Environmental Law Handbook as “the doyenne of environmental law in South Africa”.

Nominated as a Top Woman Executive in the Top Women in Business and Government Awards 2010.

The Legal 500 Europe, Africa, Middle East series has named Terry as “one of South Africa’s foremost environmental disputes specialists” and as a recommend lawyer in the environmental aspects of mining law.

Expert Guides – Guide to the World’s Leading Environmental Lawyers, 2010: Terry is nominated by in-house counsel and peers as one of the pre-eminent practitioners in the world.

Global Directory of Who’s Who 2009/2010 edition recognised Terry for outstanding business and professional achievements.

Career

Terry completed her articles in Durban in 1991 after which she worked for a large law firm in Durban. In 1997 she established the first boutique environmental law firm in South Africa, based in Cape Town, through which entity she practised for 11 years. She joined DLA Cliffe Dekker (as it then was) in 2008 where she was national head of the firm’s environmental law practice area; sat on its Exco and its Remuneration Committee. She started Winstanley Inc. a specialist environmental law firm, in July 2018.

Practical experience:

Terry has worked exclusively in environmental law in Southern Africa for the last 29 years. She specialises in the environmental legal aspects of large infrastructure projects, energy (particularly renewable energy) pollution control, noise mitigation, waste management, water use rights and environmental impact assessments. She regularly undertakes pre-acquisition due diligence exercise and advises sellers, potential purchasers and lenders on environmental liability arising out of transactions and drafts contractual provisions regulating that liability.

Terry has advised management and boards of directors of listed companies regarding their environmental, social and governance (ESG) obligations.

Terry has also drafted national, provincial and local government legislation in various jurisdictions in Southern Africa. She was part of the team that drafted the environmental right in the Constitutions of South Africa of 1993 and 1996 and the National Environmental Management: Air Quality Act, 39 of 2004. She prepared the environmental legal aspects of the nomination of the Cape Floristic Region and Robben Island as world heritage sites and advised the governments of Angola, Namibia and Botswana on the sustainable use of the Okavango River. She also advised on the environmental laws regulating public participation in SADC countries and air quality laws in eight African countries.

Terry has assisted developers and lenders in various rounds of the South African government initiated Independent Power Producers’ Programme (“IPPPP”) on contractual aspects of those transactions. She is advising lenders and off-takers regarding shovel ready and operational renewable energy projects for private offtake. She advised the City of Cape Town on the construction of the Berg River Dam (which supplies water to that city); and on a regional landfill site to serve its residents for 30 years. Terry provided the environmental legal expertise on Transnet’s multi-product pipeline running between Durban and Cape Town and the establishment of King Shaka International Airport in Durban.

She has advised manufacturing clients (including Engen, Shell and BHP Billiton) on various aspects of environmental legal compliance, including on emergency responses where large spills or emissions occurred. She advised the Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) its environmental legal obligations following major spills at two of its international airports; Engen and Sapref following pollution incidents at their KwaZulu Natal refineries and BHP Billiton on the two aluminium smelters that it owned in Richards Bay. Historically, she advised Sasol on various aspects of its manufacturing processes. Terry has advised mining and manufacturing clients on various aspects of environmental law in Namibia, Swaziland and Mozambique.

Terry consults to various local and international law firms, including Bowmans, Baker McKenzie; Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr; CMS; Covington, DLA Piper and Trinity.

Terry’s government clients include national, provincial and local governments including those of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, the Western Cape, KwaZulu Natal, Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg and Richards Bay. She has acted for parastatals such as ACSA, Eskom, PetroSA and Transnet. Her commercial clients include Abland, Deloitte; EnviroServ, Exxaro. Investec, Rand Merchant Bank, Standard Bank, Redefine; Sappi, and York Timbers.

Terry has published widely on environmental law, including a chapter (called “Administrative Measures”) in Environmental Compliance and Enforcement in South Africa (Paterson and Kotze, 2009) dealing with environmental legal enforcement by way of compliance notices and directives.