Bowmans > Johannesburg, South Africa > Firm Profile

Bowmans > The Legal 500 Rankings

South Africa > Banking and finance Tier 1

At Bowmans, the banking and finance practice has a solid track record in advising on high-profile, complex restructurings, and sustainability-linked funding transactions. The team is noted for its strength in representing borrowers, however the group is equally adept at advising lenders such as investment banks in high-value matters. Shamilah Grimwood-Norley co-heads the department with Ulrike Naumann, who has extensive experience in mezzanine finance, secured and syndicated lending, and debt restructuring. Jan Kruger specialises in handling preference share funding arrangements. Jason Wilkinson and Michael Swartland are also singled out for their contributions to the team.

South Africa > Commercial, corporate and M&A Tier 1

M&A forms the backbone of Bowmans’ transactional practice, and the ‘very responsive‘ team has an excellent track in advising financial institutions, state-owned enterprises, government departments, domestic and international companies and banks on public and private M&A mandates. Joint ventures and private equity deals are other key drivers of work for the group. Charles Douglas and Tholinhlanhla Gcabashe jointly head up the department; Ezra Davids stands out as ‘a superb corporate advisor‘, and Nanga Kwinana assists with domestic and cross-border transactions, as well as equity capital markets and corporate finance work. Naqeeba Hassan is also singled out for her contribution to the practice group. In April 2024 Angela Simpson joined the group.

South Africa > Competition Tier 1

At Bowmans, the practice’s ‘ability to provide a one-stop-shop for all things competition-related in Africa is invaluable when it comes to navigating complex multi-jurisdictional matters‘. Derek Lötter is ‘extremely knowledgeable in competition law‘, and jointly heads the department with Tamara Dini, who possesses ‘a supreme grasp of the technical nature of competition law‘. The team is highly regarded for advising a client base of blue-chip companies on a broad spectrum of complex competition matters, with noted capabilities in handling abuse of dominance allegations, prohibited practices investigations, and merger control mandates. Heather Irvine regularly acts on cross-border mergers, and Rudolph Labuschagne has solid expertise in advising on competition litigation and cartel and abuse of dominance investigations. Other key practitioners include Xolani Nyali, Sivuyise Lutshiti, and Kayla Abrahams. Disebo Leokaoke joined the practice in late 2022.

South Africa > Dispute resolution Tier 1

Headed up by Lusanda Raphulu, the dispute resolution practice at Bowmans ‘is in a class of its own‘ for some. The team stands out for being ‘particularly strong in complex commercial, company law and shareholder disputes, and is exceptional at providing strategic advice‘. Jonathan Sahli and Lyndal Anderson co-head the litigation department, which continues to handle a high volume for contentious work for mining, financial services, insurance and food and beverage sector clients. Tim Gordon-Grant has an excellent track record in handling international arbitrations and audits-related litigation; Adam Anderson‘s expertise includes banking, construction, corporate and insurance disputes; and James McKinnell is ‘a seasoned litigator with good commercial acumen‘. Jonathan Barnes has established experience in class action litigation.

South Africa > Employment Tier 1

Bowmans’ employment and benefits practice houses ‘an exceptional team of lawyers, with an unwavering commitment to excellence coupled with a pragmatic and strategic approach to solving complex issues‘. Led by Helen Wilsenach, the group routinely advises on a wide spectrum of contentious and non-contentious employment matters. Karen Fulton fields expertise in advising financial services sector entities on employment issues, and Jerry Kaapu is sought after for his experience in advising on collective bargaining and restructurings. Nadine Mather provides ‘practical, commercially sound advice on anything employment-related‘. Rosalind Davey advises on outsourcings and dismissal disputes, and Talita Laubscher handles discrimination claims. Graham Damant and Mbali Mnyandu are key names in the department.

South Africa > Shipping and transport Tier 1

At Bowmans, Craig Cunningham is a highly regarded practitioner in the shipping space, and is sought after by marine insurers, charterers, shipowners, suppliers and financiers for his expertise in advising on cases involving maritime casualties, ship finance and the arrest and attachment of vessels. Andrew Pike stands out for his focus on port infrastructure and development work. Heather Manson leads the aviation practice, and is well known for her specialist expertise in aviation insurance, also a key area of strength for Claudia Jackson. Mark van Velden specialises in charterparty matters, and is equally adept at handling shipping litigation and mortgage foreclosures; Jeremy Prain‘s workload includes rail and road transportation matters and ship finance work; and Lana Stockton fields expertise in cross-border shipping insolvency matters.

South Africa > Tax Tier 1

The highly-regarded practice at Bowmans is well-versed in handling a wide range of complex tax matters, with noted strength in tax litigation and the tax aspects of international trade. Barry Garven advises on corporate and international tax matters, as well as tax dispute resolution; he co-heads the department with Mike Benetello, an expert in advising on mining taxation, the tax aspects of business rescue, private equity and mergers and acquisitions. Wally Horak‘s broad experience includes transfer pricing, exchange control and the development of tax-efficient structures for inbound and outbound investments. Kelly Wright is sought after for her expertise in assisting corporate clients and financial institutions with tax litigation. Alan Keep, Robyn Berger and Esther Geldenhuys are also practitioners to note.

South Africa > Investment funds Tier 2

Bowmans’ investment fund group acts from within the firm’s private equity practice, and is well known for assisting an established client base of limited partners and private equity houses with high-value, often cross-border fund structuring and formation matters. Private equity specialist John Bellew leads the team and is highly regarded for advising private equity industry stakeholders within multiple African countries. Jutami Augustyn is well-versed in representing South African funds and private equity houses in transactions, and Joshua Janks specialises in venture capital mandates.

South Africa > Mining Tier 2

At Bowmans, the team fields particular expertise in handling mining-related corporate and M&A mandates for large mining companies, financial services entities and technology clients. The practice is also highly regarded for its capabilities in handling employment disputes, financial matters and environmental work, and the group reports an uptick in instructions focusing on regulatory issues. M&A expert Charles Young leads the department, and Wandisile Mandlana is a key name for assisting mining houses and suppliers in the industry with mining titles, disputes concerning mineral rights, and environment impact matters. Claire Tucker handles a wide spectrum of mining law matters, and is noted for her strength in regulatory work.

South Africa > Projects and infrastructure Tier 2

Bowmans’ project finance practice is led by Shamilah Grimwood-Norley, who heads the firm’s banking and finance department, and Patrick Hirsch, who leads the project finance group. Grimwood-Norley has ‘deep knowledge of the infrastructure space‘ and acts for sponsors, lenders and government entities in PPP and IPP projects; Hirsch is sought after by mining, energy and transportation clients for his expertise in transactional matters. Daryn Webb and Anton Barnes-Webb are key practitioners in the team.

South Africa > Real estate Tier 2

The commercial property team at Bowmans has ‘superior industry knowledge when it comes to real estate transactions, and certainly adds value to any real estate deal‘. Led by property finance expert Craig Schafer, the practice has an excellent track record in assisting developers, banks, listed and unlisted property funds, as well as mining and renewable energy companies, with a wide spectrum of real estate matters. Schafer acts for commercial property lenders in relation to the financing of property acquisitions and developments, and Samantha Saffy is well-versed in advising on the registration of notarial and mortgage bonds as security for project finance. Julia Power has experience in conveyancing matters. Philippa Sutherland also plays an important role in the team.

South Africa > Construction Tier 3

At Bowmans, the team stands out for its ‘great legal acumen‘ and ‘very good construction capabilities‘. Practice head Lize-Meré Ludick has ‘outstanding knowledge‘ of contentious construction matters, while Bavesh Pillay brings experience in handling non-contentious construction work, with a focus on front-end instructions involving contractual matters. Diana Burger is also singled out for her contributions. Stephanie McDonald left the firm.

Kenya > Banking, finance and capital markets

With a strong foothold in complex domestic and cross-border finance transactions, Bowmans assists a wide range of clients, including lenders and borrowers across the energy, telecoms, real estate, and financial services sectors. Leveraged and acquisition finance, structured finance, derivatives, securitisation, subordinated debt, and insolvency and restructuring lie within the strengths of the practice, in addition to a dedicated fintech team. Practice head Cornelius Kigera has most recently been engaged by lenders in the oil and tea sectors on commodity finance matters, while Dominic Indokhomi is the go-to for queries relating to digital assets. Managing partner Paras Shah supports on complex transactions, including IPOs and sovereign bonds.

Kenya > Real estate and construction

Dividing its attention between private city master plan developments, construction law matters, conservation projects and commercial leases, Bowmans enjoys a strong position in the fields of real estate and construction. Real estate transactions, construction contracts, private conservancy foundations and land development, and land rights disputes count among the team’s strengths. Practice head Cornelius Kigera is a heavyweight in real estate financing transactions, and is supported by the complex projects-focused Alex Njage, construction law specialist Simon Kiriba, conveyancing and property development expert Paras Shah, and commercial property expert Philip Coulson.