Bowmans > Johannesburg, South Africa > Firm Profile

Bowmans > The Legal 500 Rankings

South Africa > Banking and finance Tier 1

Allen Leuta and Ulrike Naumann co-head the banking and finance practice at Bowmans, which continues to handle a high volume of sustainability-linked funding transactions and large-scale restructurings. Cross-border mandates are prominent in the ‘responsive and knowledgeable‘ team’s workload, and the group is well versed in representing borrowers and lenders in complex matters. Naumann is a key contact for debt restructurings, leveraged and mezzanine finance, and preference share funding transactions. Jan Kruger is highly regarded for his solid track record in acting for financial institutions, and Michael Swartland‘s practice takes in BEE funding matters. Pride Jani joined the group in December 2023, and the practice was also bolstered by the arrival of Ryan Nelson and Amanda Jones in January 2025. Deborah Carmichael and Jayson George left the firm in December 2024.

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

Led by Tholinhlanhla Gcabashe, the M&A practice at Bowmans is ‘distinguished by its deep expertise and extensive experience in handling complex transactions‘. Ezra Davids regularly advises domestic and international blue-chip clients on complex transactions, and Nanga Kwinana has a solid track record in handling corporate finance, cross-border securities matters, restructuring, and equity capital markets issues. Ryan Wessels‘ workload includes BEE matters, and James Westgate counts private equity work as a core strength.

South Africa > Competition Tier 1

Bowmans stands out for its strong offering across the full range of competition law matters. The group regularly acts as counsel to a solid client base of blue-chip companies on a wide range of complex competition issues, and continues to advise on multi-jurisdictional merger matters, high-profile market inquiries, and abuse of dominance claims. Practice co-head Derek Lötter is ‘very commercial and very experienced‘, and practice co-head Tamara Dini fields expertise in cross-border transactions and merger control issues. Heather Irvine has solid expertise in acting for clients in the financial services and manufacturing sectors. Xolani Nyali is well versed in handling pan-African merger transactions.

South Africa > Dispute resolution Tier 1

Commended as a ‘very well oiled litigation machine‘, Bowmans is jointly led by Jonathan Sahli and Lyndal Anderson. Clement Mkiva, Jonathan Barnes and Adam Anderson are key contacts in this space, and they are adept at handling shareholder disputes and international arbitrations. Anderson is also singled out for his excellent track record in advising on contentious insurance, construction, and financial matters, while James McKinnell is ‘an excellent negotiator.’ Tim Gordon-Grant is a highly regarded practitioner in the dispute resolution space and Kelly Calvert-Evers is knowledgeable of constitutional and administrative law disputes. In September 2024 Kelly Mzobe joined the team;, whle Gerhard Rudolph, Callum O’Connor and Wihan Meintjes arrived at the firm in January 2025.

South Africa > Employment Tier 1

Lauded for providing ‘exceptional labour law advice’, Bowmans is headed by Helen Wilsenach, who well versed in trade issues and major retrenchments and restructurings. Jerry Kaapu fields expertise in collective bargaining matters, and Karen Fulton has an excellent reputation for assisting financial services sector entities with a broad range of employment matters. Nadine Mather‘s workload includes unfair dismissal cases, and Talita Laubscher is a key contact for advising on discrimination claims. Keshni Naicker is very experienced in disciplinary matters.

South Africa > Shipping and transport Tier 1

‘Top-tier firm‘ Bowmans garners praise for its ‘deep jurisdictional expertise‘. The ‘responsive‘ team has an excellent reputation for advising on a broad spectrum of shipping, aviation, and transport matters. Andrew Pike is a highly regarded practitioner in the port infrastructure and development space, and is regularly instructed by international port and terminal developers; Craig Cunningham brings over three decades of experience in shipping law, and acts for shipowners, financiers, marine insurers, charterers and suppliers in a wide range of contentious and non-contentious maritime work. Heather Manson, who leads the aviation group, fields expertise in aviation insurance, disputes and regulatory issues; Claudia Jackson has ‘a very impressive intellect and knowledge of the law, as well as strategic insight‘. Lana Stockton‘s workload includes shipping litigation and cross-border shipping insolvency issues, and Jeremy Prain‘s broad practice takes in ship finance, rail and road transportation work, and marine insurance cases.  Bills of lading and charterparty matters are core areas of instruction for Mark van Velden, and Shanae Durman lends support on aviation insurance and dispute resolution matters.

South Africa > Tax Tier 1

At Bowmans, the ‘approachable‘ tax team is regularly instructed by clients in the mining, manufacturing, financial services and oil and gas sectors in a broad range of contentious and non-contentious work. Practice co-head Barry Garven specialises in tax litigation, and is equally adept at assisting blue-chip companies with international tax matters. Practice co-head Mike Benetello is a key contact for mining taxation, as well as the tax aspects of business rescue mandates, corporate restructurings and private equity transactions, to name a few areas. Roné la Grange and Samir Ellary are well known for their strength in corporate tax, and firm managing partner Alan Keep has an excellent track record in advising on the tax aspects of structuring prominent B-BBEE transactions. Kelly Wright brings experience in assisting domestic and international clients with the tax structuring of M&A deals.

South Africa > Investment funds Tier 2

Bowmans’ ‘responsive‘ investment funds team, headed by John Bellew, operates out of the firm’s wider private equity department, and has a solid track record in advising prominent private equity houses and limited partners on complex fund formation and structuring work. Jutami Augustyn is highly regarded for assisting South African funds and private equity houses with transactions, and regularly acts for managers and investors. Joshua Janks is a key contact for venture capital matters.

South Africa > Mining Tier 2

The mining group at Bowmans has traditional strength in advising technology entities, financial services clients and prominent mining companies on mining-related corporate matters; practice head Charles Young is a key contact for M&A deals in the mining space. The team reports an increase in instructions with a focus on minerals, and has also been kept busy handling restructurings and environmental impact matters. Mining title issues and regulatory work are core pillars of strength in Claire Tucker‘s practice, and Wandisile Mandlana is sought after for his expertise in advising on mineral rights disputes. Deepa Vallabh joined the group in November 2024.

South Africa > Projects and infrastructure Tier 2

At Bowmans, the projects and infrastructure team reports an uptick in instructions from the renewable energy sector, as well as advising on matters concerning the financing of battery storage projects. The practice is led by Allen Leuta, who heads the firm’s banking and finance department and acts for developers, export credit agencies and development finance institutions in project financing transactions. Shamilah Grimwood-Norley fields expertise in all areas of infrastructure project development, and Bavesh Pillay brings experience in assisting with the construction law aspects of energy infrastructure projects. Onalerona Phiri joined the group in November 2024, and the team was bolstered by the arrivals of Alexandra Clüver, Alessandra Pardini, Alexandra Felekis and Mongezi Dladla in January 2025. Emma Bleeker joined the team in March 2025.

South Africa > Real estate Tier 2

Bowmans‘ ‘experienced‘ commercial property team provides ‘sound and balanced advice‘ on a broad range of real estate issues. Practice head Craig Schafer fields extensive expertise in property finance matters, while Samantha Saffy acts for renewable energy and mining clients in commercial property matters, among work in other sectors. Julia Power is ‘extremely knowledgeable on real estate and provides superb assistance with real estate-related matters‘. Philippa Sutherland is another key contact.

South Africa > Construction Tier 3

Bowmans‘ team has ‘deep industry knowledge‘ and ‘excels in resolving construction disputes‘. Lize-Meré Ludick heads up the practice, and is highly regarded for her strong track record in handling construction litigation. Front-end construction work is a core area of strength for Bavesh Pillay, who is well versed in advising on contractual issues, equipment supply agreements, and professional services agreements. Diana Burger left the firm in September 2024, while the practice was bolstered by the arrival of Gerhard Rudolph, Alessandra Pardini and Wihan Meintjes in January 2025.

Kenya > Banking, finance and capital markets

Praised by clients for its ‘very creative solutions for client’s transactions’, Bowmans‘s banking and finance team benefits from the firm’s full-service offering, advising lenders and borrowers on the full spectrum of strategic finance matters, including debt restructuring, projects, real estate and commodities finance, acquisition finance, capital markets, leveraged and acquisition finance, and structured finance.  The team is highly sought after for its international expertise, advising clients from the banking, energy, telecommunications, and other industries on local and cross-border transactions. Cornelius Kigera heads the team, and is frequently approached for high-value corporate financing matters, while Dominic Indokhomi has a strong track record in fintech, capital markets, and debt structurings. Paras Shah is highly active in complex transactions, including syndicated loans.

Kenya > Real estate and construction

Bowmans‘s real estate department is noted by clients for fielding a ‘very knowledgeable and collaborative team’ and is sought after by clients for its extensive experience in major real estate mandates, including most master plan projects in Kenya, construction transactions, disputes, and contracts, including energy and infrastructure projects. The team is also known for its strong presence in environmental and conservation matters, frequently being retained by environmental NGOs, along with negotiating commercial leases for local and international clients. Cornelius Kigera heads the team, and boasts considerable conveyancing, construction, and commercial real estate matters. He is ably assisted by Alex Njage, a specialist in complex real estate and master planning matters. Simon Kiriba is another key member of the team for construction contracting and dispute resolution.