Johlene Wasserman
Johlene Wasserman
Director & Head of Community Schemes
Johlene Wasserman is the Director and Head of Community Schemes at Van Deventer Dowlath & Marx Inc, with over 20 years' experience advising bodies corporate, HOAs, developers and managing agents. A former senior executive at the PPRA, senior management at CSOS, she is a published LexisNexis author, accredited mediator, and one of South Africa's leading experts in community scheme law and governance.
How Johlene works
Technically strong, practical and solutions-focused. Johlene combines deep expertise in community scheme and sectional title law with a clear understanding of the people and practical realities behind each matter, providing advice that is legally sound, decisive and workable.
Body corporates, trustees, homeowners’ associations, managing agents and property owners rely on Johlene to navigate complex community scheme matters, from governance and compliance to disputes and difficult sectional title issues, with clarity, confidence and precision.
Advising trustees, body corporates, homeowners’ associations, managing agents, property developers and owners across the full spectrum of community scheme and sectional title law, from governance and regulatory compliance to complex disputes and scheme management.
Department Overview
Services offered
The Community Schemes Department supports bodies corporate, homeowners’ associations, trustees, managing agents, developers and property owners across the full spectrum of sectional title and community scheme matters.
Types of matters handled:
- Sectional title and community scheme law
- Body corporate and HOA governance
- Trustee duties, powers and decision-making
- Conduct and management rules
- Levy disputes and collection matters
- Dispute resolution and CSOS proceedings
- Meetings, resolutions and governance procedures
- Managing agent and trustee advisory
- Scheme compliance and regulatory matters
- Interpretation and enforcement of scheme rules
- Complex owner and body corporate disputes
- Developer obligations within community schemes
How complex matters are managed
Complex community scheme matters require more than a technical reading of the legislation. Johlene and her team combine specialist legal knowledge with a practical understanding of how bodies corporate, HOAs and sectional title schemes operate day to day. The department works closely with trustees, managing agents, developers and owners to resolve disputes, strengthen governance and find practical, legally sound solutions.
Path, credentials & experience
The professional journey behind Johlene’s practice — education, admissions, and the matters that define the work.
Qualifications
Degrees
- LLB University of North West
- LLM - Master of Laws University of Cape Town
- Conveyancer
Admissions
- Admitted Attorney of the High Court of South Africa
- Admitted Conveyancer
Additional qualifications
- Accredited Mediator Dispute Resolution
Representative experience
- Drafting of Scheme Rules
- Drafting of MOI’s
- Ensuring POPIA compliance (Protection of Personal Information Act)
- Drafting of POPIA and PAIA manuals
- Chairing of AGM’s & SGM’s
- Drafting of all CSOS documents
- Community Scheme Training
Leadership Philosophy
Good leadership is about giving people clarity, trusting them to take ownership, and being there when the difficult decisions need to be made.
Speak to Johlene or the Community Schemes department
Speak to Johlene or the Community Schemes department - usually within the hour.