Department profile

Intellectual Property

Global Guide 2026 : South Africa

Rankings

Ranked Individuals

About

Provided by Adams & Adams

Adams & Adams is a leading South African law firm and is best known for having the largest trade mark & patent law practices in South Africa and on the continent of Africa. The firm’s Intellectual Property law practices work with clients around the globe and across many industries to protect, enforce and commercialise their intellectual property. The firm currently has 93 attorneys, including 56 partners and 37 associates and consultants who specialise in IP. Many of the IP professionals at the firm are actively involved with various statutory and institutional committees, both locally and internationally. Adams & Adams is highly regarded for the depth of its IP expertise by clients and competitors alike, and continues to provide high quality, cost-effective services for their clients.

Chambers Review

Provided by Chambers

Intellectual Property - South Africa

Band 1

What the Team is Known For

Adams & Adams is highly regarded for its ability to handle a broad array of significant IP matters for a portfolio of blue-chip clients. It is headquartered in Pretoria, with additional bench strength in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban. The firm offers impressive IP-related experience across a wide range of industries, with noteworthy proficiency advising clients from the food and beverage, retail, banking and pharmaceutical sectors. It is particularly well respected for its strength in trade mark issues, with notable expertise in both contentious and non-contentious concerns. The team offers clients invaluable knowledge of IP regulatory regimes and other considerations applicable to clients operating in various African jurisdictions.

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Work Highlights

Provided by Chambers

Adams & Adams acted for TikTok in a trade mark opposition case filled by Twellium.

Strengths

Provided by Chambers

It provides excellent service and advice. The team is both practical and creative in helping us to enforce our rights in the region.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
The firm distinguishes itself by its experience, human capital and reputation.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
Adams & Adams biggest strength is the ability to seamlessly and efficiently work across several countries in Africa, and having a one-stop shop is very valuable.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
The department possesses a deep understanding of sub-Saharan African markets, and a breath and depth of IP expertise.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
I appreciated the firm's willingness to think outside the box in order to arrive at a highly effective solution for the client.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal

Notable Practitioners

Provided by Chambers

Band 1
Band 1
Danie Dohmen
Pretoria-based Danie Dohmen operates a practice primarily focused on patents and designs. He handles both contentious and non-contentious matters, including representation in instances of infringement, with IP commercialisation being another area of particular strength.
Danie Dohmen is a great litigator.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
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Band 1
Band 1
Russell Bagnall
Russell Bagnall enjoys a distinguished reputation for his patent litigation work, handling top-tier cases in South Africa, with further experience assisting with prosecution and registration. He is based in Pretoria.
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Band 2
Band 2
Gérard du Plessis
Gérard du Plessis is a senior partner who specialises in contentious IP mandates, including representing multinationals in trade mark litigation.
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Band 2
Band 2
Kelly Thompson
Firm chairperson and Pretoria-based lawyer Kelly Thompson maintains her high standing in the area of trade mark litigation, representing clients in opposition and enforcement proceedings. She acts for a number of notable domestic and international clients.
Kelly Thompson is excellent. She is super knowledgeable, thoughtful and creative.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
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Band 3
Band 3
Alexis Apostolidis
Pretoria-based partner Alexis Apostolidis is particularly active in patent litigation for pharmaceutical companies. He boasts additional experience in competition law-related matters.
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Band 3
Band 3
Darren Olivier
Darren Olivier is well recognised in the space for his work on IP commercialisation and portfolio management. He is often instructed to advise top-tier clients in the technology industry.
He possesses attention to detail and great customer service. He makes things concise and he's very personable and receptive to new ideas.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
He is truly passionate about IP, goes the extra mile for clients and is respected by peers.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
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Band 3
Band 3
Joanne van Harmelen
Joanne van Harmelen advises clients from the biotechnology and life sciences industries on patents matters.
Joanne van Harmelen is very responsive.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
She's very good at her job. She is well versed in IP, prosecution and all other related matters.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
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Band 3
Band 3
Pieter Visagie
Pretoria-based Pieter Visagie is an experienced patent lawyer who acts on the drafting of patents and the prosecution of patent applications.
He's an engineer by profession as well as patent attorney; his biggest advantage is the fact that he understands research and the scientific aspects of a patent.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
Pieter Visagie is technically highly competent and commercially astute.
Intellectual Property respondentGlobal
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Band 3
Band 3
Steven Yeates
Cape Town-based Steven Yeates is experienced in providing counsel to clients on trade mark searching, registration and enforcement, and assists with the management of IP portfolios across a number of African jurisdictions.
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Band 4
Band 4
Jenny Pienaar
Jenny Pienaar is based in Pretoria and provides her clients with wide-ranging trade mark expertise, encompassing registration, enforcement and protection. She is additionally respected for her contentious copyright work.
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Band 4
Band 4
Simon Brown
Simon Brown is based in Pretoria and possesses expertise that extends across a broad array of trade mark-related issues, such as filing and prosecution.
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