African Bar from 1954 – 1960. In his position as leader of the Johannesburg Bar, he opposed several pieces of oppressive legislation enacted by the government, including the Suppression of Communism Act which led to the persecution and imprisonment of many, but his commercial practice flourished. In 1956, a Vickers Viscount airplane operated by the Central African Airways (CAA) disintegrated over Tanzania, killing all passengers and crew. Maisels represented the CAA and was able to demonstrate that the crash was the result of metal fatigue due to faulty material. Vickers Armstrong paid all of the damages claimed as well as the legal costs. In 1960 David Pratt attempted to assassinate Hendrik Verwoerd, South Africa's Prime Minister, who survived the attack. Maisels defended Pratt who was found guilty but insane and committed to a mental institution where he committed suicide one year later. Maisels represented the Consolidated Diamond Mines of South West Africa (CDMSWA) in what came to be known as “the great Southwest African Diamond Case.” The CDMSWA was owned by the Anglo-American Corporation of which Sir Ernest Oppenheimer was the chairman. The case involved an area of some 10,000 miles of the West Coast of South-West Africa (now Namibia) and the question of the rights to prospect for diamonds between the high and low watermarks along the beaches. In a case that lasted more than one year, Maisels was successful in securing the sole and exclusive rights for CDMSWA. Maisels is perhaps best known for his role as the leader of the defence team (that included Bram Fischer and Sydney Kentridge), in the South African Treason Trial in which 156 people of all races, including Chief Albert Luthuli, president of the African National Congress (ANC), Oliver Tambo, the ANC vice president and Nelson Mandela were arrested in December 1956 and charged with treason. Following a preparatory examination which ended in January 1958, the charges against Luthuli, who gave evidence as a witness in the trial and Tambo were withdrawn and 91 individuals, including Nelson Mandela, were committed for trial. The trial which attracted much international attention was in two parts - the First and Second Indictment. The First Indictment commenced on 1 August 1958. The State's case was cumbersome and vague and, on 13 October 1958, it was withdrawn by the State after being picked apart by Maisels and his team. The State rallied, however, and the same trial,