Norton Rose Fulbright and Dentons are among the fastest growing international firms in Africa by headcount, according to Law.com International's Africa Top 50 rankings in partnership with Africa Legal.

The rankings, which assessed firms based on lawyer headcount and geographical spread across Africa, also showed that Baker McKenzie suffered a notable drop down the table to 22nd place from 14th, having parted ways with 20 lawyers in a difficult year.

The latest table shows that ENSafrica maintains top spot for the third year running with a headcount of 470 lawyers, two fewer than last year. But it is Dentons that has grown most significantly, adding nearly 100 new lawyers to its Africa presence for a 253 total.