With the New Year approaching and Pinsent Masons preparing to launch a much-anticipated office in Johannesburg the firm has announced that is has grabbed two partners and six associates from African law firm Bowmans.

The eight-strong team comes after two Bowmans construction partners, Rob Morson and Shane Voigt, already jumped ship to Pinsent.

The latest moves involve Corporate Partner Daniella Zussa and Construction Disputes Partner Junaid Banoobhai. The firm is set to open its office in the South Africa business hub in January.

So far, Pinsent’s preparatory efforts in South Africa have focused on amassing lawyers with experience servicing clients in the infrastructure sector.

“Our intention in Africa is to build something markedly different to what already exists in the market,” said Senior partner Richard Foley in a statement.

The Johannesburg office will be the firm’s first on the African continent.