Dennemeyer & Associates takes a safari into Africa

• English

International IP law firm Dennemeyer & Associates has opened a new office in Johannesburg. The new office was set up in collaboration with Christophe van Zyl, Head of Dennemeyer’s Africa Practice Group and Robyn Merry, a South African Patent Attorney who have partnered to found the local law firm. This development places Dennemeyer in a unique position as the only specialized IP Law firm and service provider with offices on all relevant continents.

Dr. Robert Fichter, Director of Luxembourg-based global IP law firm Dennemeyer & Associates, states: “Dennemeyer’s Africa Practice Group was established just in November last year. Part of the development of this group is the establishment of an associated South African law firm to ensure that we have a physical presence on the ground in Africa. South Africa offers an ideal service hub to Dennemeyer to support those multinational companies that are pursuing their African strategies through South Africa, as well as to increase the service options available to South Africans in South Africa and in other Sub-Saharan Countries.”

This development places Dennemeyer in a unique position as the only specialized IP Law firm and service provider with offices on all relevant continents, affording clients a truly global one-stop-shop service ranging from the administrative type of IP services to core legal services. “Our new physical presence in Africa follows the trend of several international firms in the commercial and banking fields of practice who have swarmed into Johannesburg in the past couple of years”, says Dr. Robert Fichter.

The new office was set up in collaboration with Christophe van Zyl, Head of Dennemeyer’s Africa Practice Group and Robyn Merry, a South African Patent Attorney who have partnered to found the local law firm. Robyn Merry has a widespread background in both contentious and non-contentious patent matters. “It is a fantastic new development for IP in South Africa to be welcoming a firm with an international footprint and I am very excited to be a founding partner of the South African firm.”                                   

Christophe van Zyl adds: “We are delighted to have Robyn on board and sitting in Johannesburg. There is no doubt that global and South African IP owners would welcome the refreshing choice of Dennemeyer in the local market, especially Dennemeyer’s existing client base. The global mindset is more IP filings at a lower cost, however, a lack of fully digital records has somewhat slowed the trend of automation in many African countries. Dennemeyer hopes to encourage IP offices on the continent to embrace a digital IP world.”

Dennemeyer’s Africa Practice Group is spread out across the globe to provide direct client access. The group also includes Trademark and Design Attorney (BX, EM) Vanja Nedimovic, Foreign patent filing expert Martin Chatel and Dubai-based attorney-at-law Jan Wrede (DE / IT) who already covers the Middle East and North African regions.

Please contact our new Johannesburg office:
Dennemeyer & Associates
Hyde Park Corner Office Suites, Office Suite 415
Corner of William Nichol and Jan Smuts Avenue
2196, Johannesburg, South Africa
Email: info-za@dennemeyer-law.com

For further information about Dennemeyer & Associates Africa, please contact Christophe van Zyl.

For press enquiries please contact:
Sebastian Deck
Dennemeyer Group
Landaubogen 1-3, 81373 Munich
Phone:     +49 89 2000183-82
Mobile:    +4915168814208
E-mail:    sdeck@dennemeyer.com