Lawyer Monthly Magazine - April 2020 Edition

15 APR 2020 | WWW.LAWYER-MONTHLY.COM LAWYER MOVES DLA Piper announces the strengthening of its Global Government Affairs team with the appointment of Richard Sterneberg who will head up the team in its Brussels office. Richard brings with him over 20 years of experience working in Brussels as a global government affairs expert. He joins from a leading Brussels based public affairs and communications firm specialising in political and regulatory risk, advocacy and reputation building. In the course of his career, he has advised major global corporations and governments on several high profile issues as partner there, and has built up significant experience in advising (among others) pharmaceutical companies as well as working on numerous trade and antitrust cases. DLA Piper's Global Government Affairs team advises governments, trade associations and corporate clients on a broad range of issues relating to international trade and investment, regulation and policy. The firm is unique in offering a significant trade policy, government affairs and legal and regulatory capacity based not only in the two main European centres in this area, London and Brussels, but also with a presence in the other main EU member States and across the pond in Washington D.C. Commenting on the appointment, Jean-Pierre Douglas- Henry, Global Co-Chair of DLA Piper's Litigation and Regulatory Group, said: “Richard has operated effectively, at a senior level, in the EU government and regulatory affairs market for over 20 years. Over that time, he has built a strong network of influential contacts and is recognised as a leading lobbyist in Brussels. His experience will prove invaluable to the existing global team and to clients who are looking to navigate and influence an uncertain European and worldwide policy environment.” DLA Piper Appoints Head of Global Government Affairs Team Dentons, the world’s largest law firm, has appointed Zaeem Soofie as its Chief Executive Officer for South Africa. Noor Kapdi, the current Africa Region CEO and outgoing Managing Partner of South Africa announced his intention to carve a space for an inspiring young leader as part of his planned succession after almost six years as Managing Partner in South Africa. Noor will continue to serve as Dentons' Africa Region CEO and Chair of Dentons in South Africa. Zaeem Soofie, former BP Group Leader, is an established and experienced practitioner and corporate general counsel. He has a proven ability to deliver results across multiple markets and sectors, simplify and de-risk challenges, and is passionate about leading and developing high-performing individuals and teams. Noor was instrumental in launching Dentons in South Africa and its combination with KapdiTwala in 2014 saw Dentons become the first global law firm with Level 1 Black Economic Empowerment status. For his efforts in establishing the first black law firm in South Africa with global reach, Noor, along with fellow founding partners Shahid Sulaiman and Zithu Twala, was presented with the Presidential Award from the Cape Law Society in 2016. "Exceptional talent is behind Dentons' continued success in Africa," said Noor Kapdi, CEO of Dentons' Africa Region. "Zaeem has a deep appreciation of our clients and their need for trusted counsel who understand[s] their business and industry. He is an internationally experienced lawyer, a great leader and his experience leading multi-functional and jurisdictional teams at BP will not only see him do exceptionally well in this new role in South Africa, but will also continue to accelerate Dentons' position as a leading firm in one of Africa's largest legal markets.” "I am humbled and excited to be given the opportunity to lead Dentons in South Africa," said Zaeem Soofie, the incoming CEO of Dentons South Africa. "Mindful of the responsibility that comes with the role, I am deeply committed to our continued success for the benefit of our people and our clients." DentonsAppointsZaeemSoofieasCEO in South Africa