Ten lawyers from Baker McKenzie South Africa and nine of its practice areas have been recognised by international legal research organisation, Chambers & Partners in its 2017 Chambers Global Guide. These results reflect the firm’s exceptional standard of legal expertise across key sectors in Africa.

The firm received a band 2 ranking for both Capital Markets: Debt, and Construction. Chambers Global said the firm had a noted debt practice with considerable expertise in securitisation, high-yield and sovereign bond issuances.

According to the Guide, the firm, “represents an impressive list of financial institutions and major corporate issuers, particularly in the resources and commodities sectors. The team is focused on cross-border deals, regularly working alongside colleagues located elsewhere in the firm's international network.

The Guide stated that the firm’s construction team was popular choice among significant domestic and international construction, energy and mining companies. The firm, “offers a range of construction expertise, but is particularly well regarded for its construction dispute resolution practice.”

The firm was also ranked in Banking and Finance, Competition/Antitrust, Corporate/M&A, Projects and Energy, Dispute Resolution; and Energy and Natural Resources: Mining. In addition, it was listed as a “recognised practitioner” for Corporate Investigations.

Chambers Global is an independent legal directory that identifies and ranks law firms and lawyers in over 180 jurisdictions around the world. The research team comprises 170 full-time editors and researchers who conduct in-depth interviews with lawyers and their clients, as part of the ranking process.

Morne van der Merwe, Co-managing Partner at Baker McKenzie's Johannesburg office, says "In a year filled with regulatory and political uncertainty, both in Africa and globally, it has never been more important for lawyers to offer the highest standard of expertise to their clients so that they can effectively mitigate complex compliance risks,” he says.

“It is for this reason the Chambers Global rankings are taken seriously by our firm. The rankings serve as an objective, client endorsement of our specialised legal services across multiple jurisdictions in Africa,” van der Merwe notes.

Chambers Global noted a client’s praise for the Baker McKenzie team, stating, "What jumps to mind about Bakers is their high degree of professionalism, the turnaround times when we have queries, the quality of their advice and their knowledge of the local market."

The Guide noted that clients also praised the team's responsiveness and ability to give advice that "takes into account our commercial relationships and how those might be impacted."