Africa Legal Podcast

In this podcast, guests from Ashitiva Advocates LLP, Pinsent Masons and the Nairobi International Financial Centre chat to Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson about the three-way collaboration to woo investors to Kenya – the “Silicon Savannah”. There’s a lot of discussion at the moment around enhancing Kenya’s private investment ecosystem, and the private equity and venture capital roundtable that’s being...

Hogan Lovells recently launched their new podcast, The Africa GC Series, where leading GCs from some of the world’s largest corporates share their experience and insights. In Episode 1, three panellists focus on the evolving GC role as a business enabler and driver. In seeking to expand their knowledge of what keeps their clients up at night, international law firm Hogan Lovells partnered with Afr...

In this episode of Life & Lessons in Law, James Kamau, seasoned lawyer and chair of DLA Piper Africa, chats to Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson on how to attract and retain the best legal talent. Globalisation, the rapid advancement of technology and evolving workplace trends are among the reasons why retaining legal talent in Africa is becoming increasingly challenging. James Kamau, chair of DLA Piper...

Legal technology solutions are not about reinventing the wheel, especially if there has been a culture of solving problems in a certain way for the past hundred years. Instead, it is meant to simplify productivity, making things easier and less time consuming, says Fikayo Durosinmi-Etti, CEO of ToNote, a technology company based in Nigeria that focuses on simplifying the way people agree to do bus...

In this week’s Coffee Break podcast, two seasoned arbitrators, Ania Farren and Marily Paralika, chat to Tom Pearson about how the International Chamber of Commerce Court of Commercial Arbitration is empowering and strengthening Africa’s arbitration landscape. The world’s leading arbitral institution, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Court of Commercial Arbitration marks its centenary an...

Lighthouse Law and its group of companies are disrupting the legal space with their innovative ways of doing things. Justin Cornish chatted to Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson about the firm’s people-centred focus. At a time when AI is the talk of the town, it might seem counter-intuitive to put people at the centre of things, especially for a firm that’s won awards for technology innovation in the lega...

The Legal Locum Network has made its name offering flexible career options for talented attorneys, and high quality services to clients. In this podcast, Maha Deeb chats to Tom Pearson about the company’s impact on the legal profession and its expanding footprint. Established in 2001, The Legal Locum Network (LLN) has been at the forefront of providing alternative and managed legal solutions, offe...

For centuries there has been a strong London–Africa connection, and that’s still true. Weyinmi Popo, managing partner at Asafo & Co.’s London office, chatted to Tom Pearson about the firm’s tailored expertise and international reach. London has been thriving as a legal hotspot for much of the English-speaking world, and a lot of private equity and international finance flows into Africa from that...

In this podcast, Stephen Nthite, a director at Beech Veltman Incorporated, chats to Africa Legal’s Thomas Pearson about illegal mining in South Africa and how it intersects with the sector’s response to environmental and social governance. South Africa is a mineral resource-rich country, with precious metals like gold, diamonds and copper among others, but mining these commodities without authoris...

In this podcast, Alberto Simoes and Bridgett Majola of CMS share their insights on the increasing pace and scale of renewable energy projects in Africa, with Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson. The good news is that the current upswing in renewable investments in Africa is expected to continue for the foreseeable future. Alberto Simoes, a member of the executive team at CMS Africa and partner heading the...

Rupert Candy paints a grim picture of the treatment of whistleblowers in South Africa and calls for a greater level of legal protection for them, in this podcast with Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson. Were it not for the bravery of whistleblowers in the public and private sectors, fraud, corruption and money laundering would cripple the economy and devour the fabric of South African society. Yet not eno...

In this Africa Legal podcast titled Life, Lessons and Law, a new series in partnership with DLA Piper Africa, expert lawyer James Kamau chats to Tom Pearson about legal education in Africa. Even with 30 years’ experience as a corporate and projects lawyer James Kamau, managing partner at Kenyan law firm IKM, and chair of DLA Piper Africa, still considers himself a student of human nature. Kamau wa...

In this podcast, Joy Impano of Gikera & Vadgama Advocates shares her insights on all things related to the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement with Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson. The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement, which aims to create a market for African countries to prosper by engaging in intra-continental trade, has been moving at a slow pace. While 80% of Africa...

In this podcast, John Ohaga, managing partner at TripleOKLaw Advocates, based in Nairobi, Kenya, chats to Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson about Africa becoming a renowned seat for arbitration. Widely recognised in Africa and globally for his exemplary work and expertise in dispute resolution, Senior Counsel John Ohaga is well respected when it comes to all things arbitral related. Ohaga, who holds an i...

Many businesses in financial difficulties wait until it’s too late to apply for corporate administration. Julie Mulindi, an associate at Gikera and Vadgama Advocates, recently spoke to Tom Pearson about the help that’s available. Corporate insolvency is an important but often ignored area of law that companies should be aware of, because there are times that businesses face difficulties which thre...

In this podcast, as part of the Ubuntu Mental Health series, Briony Liber chats to Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson about the journey to burnout and how it can be avoided. Burnout, simply explained, is the emotional and physical depletion of energy that one experiences when they’ve been under chronic workplace stress for a very long time and haven’t managed it. Briony Liber, career- and self-leadership...

Webber Wentzel and their alliance partner Linklaters offer their associates the opportunity to work temporarily for sister companies. In this mini-podcast series, Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson chats to Paula Ann Novotny about her secondment to London. Novotny was offered a secondment to Linklaters London and says she wasn't even aware that such opportunities existed when she joined Webber Wentzel, bu...

Webber Wentzel and their alliance partner Linklaters offer their associates the opportunity to work temporarily for sister companies. In this mini-podcast series, Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson chats to Jimmy Mkhabela about his recent experience in London. Jimmy Mkhabela, partner at leading law firm Webber Wentzel, always knew that he wanted to go on secondment – an opportunity to gain international e...

Secondments are an incredible way to understand different areas of business, structure and work ethic. In this mini-podcast series, Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson chats to Amaarah Mayet from Webber Wentzel who is currently on secondment at Linklaters London. A law firm that offered international exposure was top of mind for Amaarah Mayet when deciding on a company to join after graduating from law sch...

Alliott Global Alliance is rapidly expanding their footprint in Africa. In this podcast, Giles Brake, CEO of Alliott Global Alliance, and Stephen Gitonga, partner and founder of Gitonga Mureithi & Company Advocates, share their back story and vision for the future with Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson. Inspired by the need to provide more than just accounting and tax services to their growing list of cl...

Webber Wentzel and their alliance partner Linklaters offer their associates the opportunity to work temporarily for sister companies. In this mini-podcast series, Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson chats to Eamon Alsaffar and Archie Prew who are on secondment at Webber Wentzel in Johannesburg. Eamon Alsaffar had a choice of being seconded from Linklaters London to Paris, Singapore or South Africa. He chos...

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations are trending right across Africa. In this podcast, Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson speaks to members of ALN Nigeria and ALN Kenya to explore how mergers and acquisitions and corporate transaction trends are shaping business. A robust legal and regulatory premise for ESG, in addition to businesses taking the initiative more seriously, is fast evo...

In this podcast, Zaakir Mohamed, a partner at CMS, chats to Africa Legal’s Thomas Pearson about why cyber security and compliance go hand in hand. Africa is in the midst of a rapid digital transformation, and that brings with it the possibility for some businesses to be cyber hacked. It is critical that organisations ensure compliance with the relevant data privacy legislation across the jurisdict...

In this vidcast, Webber Wentzel’s team of competition, trade and investment (CTI) experts share some valuable knowledge and insights. The vidcast – hosted by Yael Shafrir, a trade and investment lawyer at Webber Wentzel specialising in Africa FDI and the AfCFTA, in collaboration with Africa Legal – focuses on foreign direct investment trends, public interest considerations for merger filings, key...

In this podcast, Daniel Driscoll, a legal expert in the mining and extractives industry, chats to Africa Legal’s Tom Pearson about the state of play among in-house lawyers and what to look forward to at the 2023 General Counsel Forum Mining Indaba. General counsel (GC) are grappling with the legal implications of several macroeconomic challenges facing the mining industry, such as inflation, conti...