The world's largest law firm votes to combine with elite Tanzanian law firm

Dentons' partners have voted in favor of combining with East African Law Chambers, a pre-eminent law firm in Tanzania. In 2020, Dentons has added 21 new offices around the world in an environment where other law firms are standing still, contracting or withdrawing from key markets. 

On a continent scarred by the legacy of colonial domination and in a market where the operations of every leading law firm are hierarchical, Dentons’ unique polycentric and anti-colonial approach has been a stark differentiator, disrupting the traditional model for providing legal services in Africa.

The combination with EALC advances Dentons’ strategy to become the leading Pan-African law firm owned and controlled by Africans. The combination will position Dentons as the largest global law firm in Tanzania from launch, helping clients to navigate the New Dynamic in 14 locations in Africa and 188 locations across 77 countries around the world.

EALC has five partners and 13 lawyers and is a recognized leader in Banking and Finance, Capital Markets and Securities, Competition, Mergers and Acquisitions, Corporate and Commercial, Employment and Labor, Intellectual Property, Dispute Resolution, Mining, Oil and Gas, Real Estate, Taxation and Tax law, Telecommunications, Media and Technology. The combination would lead to significant synergies in light of Dentons' strengths in each of these areas.

The combination is expected to launch in the next several months.

In 2020 to date, Dentons has added 21 offices. In addition to the combination with EALC in Tanzania, Dentons announced a future combination with Salt Lake City-based Durham Jones & Pinegar - which also has offices in Lehi, St. George and Ogden - as part of Project Golden Spike. 

Dentons has also launched six combinations:

• Dentons Bingham Greenebaum and Dentons Cohen & Grigsby, the inaugural member firms with Dentons US as part of Project Golden Spike;
• Dentons Kensington Swan in New Zealand;
• Dentons Lee in South Korea;
• Dentons Jiménez de Aréchaga in Uruguay; and
• Dentons Rattagan Macchiavello Arocena in Argentina. 

Dentons has also opened offices in the British Virgin Islands, St. Lucia and Ireland.

^{*Includes offices announced in 2020 but not yet launched}

About Dentons

Dentons is the world's largest law firm, connecting talent to the world's challenges and opportunities in more than 75 countries. Dentons' legal and business solutions benefit from deep roots in our communities and award-winning advancements in client service, including Nextlaw, Dentons’ innovation and strategic advisory services. Dentons' polycentric and purpose-driven approach, commitment to inclusion and diversity, and world-class talent challenge the status quo to advance client and community interests in the New Dynamic. www.dentons.com