Norton Rose Fulbright (NRF) and its 120-lawyer South Africa practice are set to split, NRF said today (12 November).
The firm’s offices in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban will become an independent law firm on 31 March 2026, following a “carefully structured transition”, NRF said.
The separation comes more than a decade after NRF entered the South African legal market through a merger with Deneys Reitz, then one of South Africa’s largest firms. It will mean NRF no longer has an on-the-ground presence in the country, joining its rivals Hogan Lovells and A&O Shearman, both of which shuttered their Johannesburg offices last year.
“The transition marks the next phase of growth for the South African firm as it builds on its reputation as a market-leading practice,” NRF said. “This firm will continue to advise clients across South Africa, the African continent and globally, serving international clients investing in Africa as well as African clients expanding abroad.”
Deneys Reitz joined the Norton Rose Group Verein in 2011, rebranding as Norton Rose South Africa. The move came amid a period of international expansion by NRF in the early 2010s that also saw it combine with Australian firm Deacons and Ogilvy Renault, a Canadian firm with nearly 450 lawyers.
The newly independent firm, the name of which has not yet been announced, will be led by Brent Botha, the current chief executive officer of Norton Rose Fulbright South Africa.
Botha said: “We look forward to building on our 100-year legacy in South Africa and across Africa, and to investing, innovating and evolving in line with the needs of our clients and people. We are proud of our heritage within Norton Rose Fulbright and look forward to working with the firm and other global partners, wherever our clients operate.”
Following the split, NRF will maintain an office in Africa, in Casablanca, as well as existing alliances with firms in Burundi, Kenya, Uganda and Zimbabwe.
Peter Scott, NRF’s co-global managing partner, said the split represented a “natural evolution” for both firms as the dynamics of international markets and client needs change globally.
He added: “We thank our South African colleagues for their contributions to our shared success and will support them through this transition. We look forward to continuing to collaborate where our clients’ interests align.”
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