Webber Wentzel was named African Law Firm of the Year at the African Legal Awards hosted by Legal Week and the Corporate Lawyers Association of South Africa on Friday last week.

According to the organisers, the African Legal Awards "set out to recognise exceptional achievement at a time when Africa's legal sector is going through a period of rapid change". African Law Firm of the Year was one of three awards they identified as "key".

In addition to this accolade, Webber Wentzel won two of the seven practice area awards - for Banking, Finance and Restructuring Team of the Year as well as Transportation and Infrastructure Team of the Year.

A major feature of the awards is the credibility of the judging process - the winners are decided by an independent judging panel made up of general counsel and other senior members of the legal community. Judging criteria included: legal expertise and innovation; project management skills; teamwork and client satisfaction.

We are extremely proud of this achievement. It serves as an external endorsement of our leading position in the region and underscores the success of our long-term strategic plan to meet our clients' needs wherever they do business.

Thank you for trusting us with your most complex legal issues - it is one of the reasons we were able to secure these accolades.

Written by David Lancaster, Webber Wentzel