African Legal Awards IP Team of the Year: Webber Wentzel
Full details of the IP Team of the Year category at the African Legal Awards
November 01, 2017 at 05:16 AM
2 minute read
Webber Wentzel senior associate Aalia Manie, with awards judge Gary Berndt, Barloworld
Finalists: Bowmans; ENSafrica; Kisch IP (Highly Commended); Spoor & Fisher.
Webber Wentzel was declared IP Team of the Year for its pro bono lobbying efforts to change South Africa's restrictive intellectual property laws. The firm is seeking to instigate amendments to IP exchange control regulations, which prevent South African residents from selling, assigning or licensing intellectual property and paying royalties to foreign residents without approval from the central bank – a policy that impairs South African businesses from readily accessing global markets and attracting foreign investment.
Led by senior associate Aalia Manie, the advocacy project involves extensive research on the economic impact to South African businesses and engaging stakeholders who have previously lobbied for change, with the intention to help regulators better understand the impacts and unintended consequences of current laws. That has already led to a relaxation in the rules, with the National Treasury earlier this year proposing that standard IP transactions no longer need central bank approval – an emphatic endorsement of Webber Wentzel's influence in this area, given that prior lobbying efforts had failed to yield any changes. The firm continues to advocate for wider reforms to the country's IP laws.
"An excellent strategy to allow businesses to exploit their own IP and generate new opportunities for South African business," a judge noted.
To return to the full list of winners, click here.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Trending Stories
- 1The Law Firm Disrupted: For Big Law Names, Shorter is Sweeter
- 2BD Settles Thousands of Bard Hernia Mesh Lawsuits
- 3First Lawsuit Filed Alleging Contraceptive Depo-Provera Caused Brain Tumor
- 4The 'Biden Effect' on Senior Attorneys: Should I Stay or Should I Go?
- 5The Growing Tension—And Opportunity—in Big Law Nonequity Tiers
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250