ATTORNEY Richard Spoor, who represented claimants in the successful asbestos class action against Gencor, which netted R480m in 2002, was in the Pretoria High Court yesterday to stop Anglo Platinum (Angloplat) placing a gag on him. Spoor has been a vocal critic of Angloplat’s interaction with and handling of communities living on land it wanted to mine. He accused the company of being a racist “corporate thug” that used “confrontation and repression” to get its way. Angloplat has denied the allegations and accused Spoor of making defamatory statements. The case is important to Angloplat because its failure could mean the escalation of Spoor’s campaign to get a fair deal for the communities living on such disputed land.