Home grown success story Cox Yeats recently moved to its new head office - Ncondo Chambers, a purpose-built a state of the art new building within Durban’s premier Ridgeside Office Precinct. 

As KZN’s largest locally based legal practice, Cox Yeats led the migration of top law firms to the north of the city 10 years ago. Since then, this firm has more than doubled in size and needed to spread its wings. 

Ncondo Chambers, with its mid-century modern architectural theme and state-of-the-art facilities, accommodates this and perfectly reflects Cox Yeats’ mix of traditional values and contemporary expertise. 

Managing partner, Michael Jackson, is all too aware of how far the firm has come since it was established more than 50 years ago by Graham Cox. He and partner, Jeremy Yeats, who joined three years later, built a practice that continues to stand on two core principles – integrity and personalised service. 

Both are particularly relevant as South Africa’s public and private sectors struggle to extricate themselves from the tentacles of corruption and poor corporate governance. 
Despite being regarded as a boutique practice and competing with national firms that have large offices across the country, Cox Yeats has one of the largest commercial legal teams of any law firm in the province. It prides itself in being a medium sized law firm as this enables it to provide a more specialized and personalized service. 
“Central to our approach of doing things differently is an emphasis on building relationships by getting to know our clients, their businesses and the problems that they are facing. We don’t have a one size fits all approach. Instead, we find the best solution for each situation,” Jackson explains. 

Through looking at the bigger picture, Cox Yeats is able to place solutions within a meaningful and far broader context whilst still assessing how these will impact each client’s individual business. 

The end result is that Cox Yeats has clients that have remained with the firm for over 50 years. Since moving to Umhlanga Ridge, the company has grown from having 10 partners with a total of 14 lawyers to one with 28 partners and 46 lawyers. Many of its professionals are listed in top legal publications and are regarded as leaders in their fields.  

They are backed by a strong professional team and staff turnover is extremely low. 
Newcomers to the firm are recruited at student level and then nurtured within the organization. Both evolving and experienced professionals make up highly specialized teams. This allows them to leverage off each other’s different insights, allowing for “vibrant cross pollination” and attention to detail. Jackson says this makes them true life partners for their clients.  

Cox Yeats has seven teams. Two concentrate on construction and engineering, two on property, one on corporate law and natural resources, one on labour and one on business rescue and company restructuring. Each team has its own structure and unique approach. What is common to all is quality service, quick response and client confidence. 

Jackson says that this dynamic as well as its new location allows the firm to continue to attract top talents as they enter the profession. Over the past few years, lawyers have adapted due to take full advantage of technological changes. 

“Cox Yeats is keeping abreast of the times. The principles of hard work and commitment coupled with young and energetic attorneys who pride themselves on their individuality, innovation and competitiveness and tempered by the experience of long standing professionals will enable Cox Yeats to embrace our fast changing and challenging world with enthusiasm and excellence,” he concludes.