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Our firm

Overview

Lawtons Africa is a South African law firm. Our roots stem from seeds sown in down-town Johannesburg in 1892. 

We are looking forward to building on our legacy as we pursue a bright future in the local and broader African market.

Our history features various changes and different names. During this time, we walked the legal journey with many home-grown and international companies as well as exciting 21st-century ventures.

South Africa is a vibrant, ever-changing country with many challenges and opportunities. Our practice and approach align with national and continental developments, while staying resilient through the tough times.

We always keep an open mind.

During the recent transformation out of a multinational establishment, we realised valuable lessons from exposure to the international legal environment.

We will use it to the benefit of our clients and remain active in markets outside Africa.

Our team of lawyers, including directors, consultants, associates and candidate attorneys are highly qualified, market-recognised and skilled. These committed professionals are backed by considerable resources. This enables us to render transactional, advisory and dispute-resolution services to you - our client. 

We absorb skills and create solutions that are relevant to African business and people.

We pride ourselves on being a diverse family that works with our clients in a team to maintain personal, trust-based, long-lasting relationships.

We are a “home from home” for our clients.

The firm’s extensive client portfolio supports domestic and international corporations, banks, financial institutions and state authorities. Our in-community, often pro-bono services, keep our work real.

We have always been at the forefront of the movement to advance social justice and the rule of law in South Africa and our commitment to community will continue to resonate.

Our practice areas support a broad range of clients: employment, litigation, construction, tax and exchange control, corporate/commercial, transaction advisory, real estate, private equity, competition/anti-trust, business restructuring and insolvency. 

Giving back to communities and society is fundamental to good business - it’s part of our core. We are advocates of justice, equality and opportunity. 

We make a difference through pro bono activities, community investment and social justice.

Our

history

We entered the southern African legal community in 1892, from our first work-space in downtown Johannesburg. The firm, Routledge, built a foundation for the skills, relevance and commitment that have remained intrinsic to our firm over the century and more.

Our 130 years of practice reflect the realities of the city and region that is our cradle. In this time, we moved offices from downtown Johannesburg to Sandton, provided legal services to diverse clients, and participated in and learned from international networks and exposure.

We are Lawtons Africa, a firm that resonates a dynamic history, builds on valuable experiences and helps to take law practice into a new era across Africa.

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Lawtons Africa and Asafo & Co. tie-up

Joining forces with Asafo & Co. offices across Africa, the Asafo & Lawtons team in Johannesburg has a shared dedication to the continent and to meeting the challenges of Africa’s rapid evolving economies.

The launch of Asafo & Lawtons comes as a timely response to current market demands and has transformed the African legal services landscape by creating a unique service offering dedicated to providing top tier legal services on a truly Pan-African basis.

With our combined capacity, Asafo & Lawtons offers a 360° presence throughout Africa: North, South, East and West, comprising both Anglophone and Francophone countries and with extensive experience in both civil law and common law. We bring to the table an integrated team of legal professionals with significant on the ground local know-how and international expertise.