The African Legal Awards took place at The Hilton on Friday, 1 September, where we were awarded several prestigious awards, making us the biggest winners of the evening.

For the third consecutive year, Webber Wentzel was awarded the ESG Initiative of the Year Award, highlighting its commitment to making a transformative and sustainable impact through our work and actions. This award is for the pro bono advice the firm is providing to the Minerals Council of South Africa's Partnership to tackle Gender-Based Violence in Mining Communities. In their comments, the judges noted that "Webber Wentzel is the continent's driver in ESG".

The firm also won various team awards, including:

• Competition and Regulatory Team of the Year
• Employment Team of the Year
• Transport and Infrastructure Team of the Year

"Congratulations to Tobia Serongoane, our very own trailblazer, for winning the Private Practice Most Promising Newcomer Award. This award highlights the work done by Tobia on prominent cases as well as his assistance to a large mining company in conducting an ESG risk assessment of its mining operation in Sub-Saharan Africa and for contributing to the wider community by offering pro bono assistance as an Advisory Board Member for various NGOs," said Christo Els, Webber Wentzel Senior Partner and Chair.

Webber Wentzel shares in the success of its deep relationship with firms across Africa, as it is through collaborative efforts, that the firm is able to provide its clients with the best expertise wherever they do business. The firm extends its congratulations to Aluko & Oyebode (its key relationship firm in Nigeria), who received the Banking & Finance Team of the Year as well as the Private Equity Team of the Year Awards. Bentsi-Enchill, Letsa & Ankomah (Webber Wentzel's relationship firm in Ghana) was awarded the Capital Markets Team of the Year (Medium-Sized Firm) Award. 

"We are proud of this recognition as it demonstrates our professional expertise as well as the trust and confidence that our clients have in our capabilities," said Els.