Muvingi and Mugadza Legal Practitioners

Uniting years of legal experience with a business-focused approach

Our team of corporate lawyers have expertise and experience to assist on business transaction advice and corporate governance matters. Combining years of legal experience with our commercially minded approach to matters, we achieve favourable outcomes for all our clients, no matter how complex the transaction.

We advise major banks, finance providers, export credit agencies, corporate and sovereign entities, entrepreneurs, owner managed businesses and investors. We also advise on financial services regulation to help our clients navigate the evolving and complex regulatory environment.

Much of our work relates to industry specific practice such as real estate, manufacturing, agriculture, banking, insurance, pensions, technology, energy and infrastructure, retail, education, health and mining sectors.

Facilitating immovable property transfer. Crafting and attesting contracts and documents.

Our Conveyancing department provides services to both local and foreign (individual and commercial) clients. The team comprises of Conveyancers, paralegals and clerks who have knowledge and experience of the property market in Zimbabwe. We pride ourselves on our efficient, cost-effective handling of property related transactions and ensure we guide our clients through the process, every step of the way. We also serve as panel attorneys for major financial institutions and Banks.

Property Due Diligence

Our Conveyancing Department advocates for an approach where sellers and purchaser are encouraged to attend to a property due diligence before marketing and selling immovable property. In doing so, the parties are paving the way to a smooth conveyancing transfer process by preparing for this during the marketing phase of the process.
Priding ourselves on quick turnaround times, we offer the following services;

• Assisting clients before buying or selling a property
• Mortgage Bond Registrations and Cancellations
• Applications for Lost Title Deeds and Mortgage Bonds
• Residential and Commercial Conventional and Sectional Title transfers
• Sale transfers / estate transfers / donation transfers / divorce transfers
• Advice on Sectional Title Schemes and their Management
• Residential and Commercial Developments
• Leasing agreements
• Sale agreements
• Deceased Estates
• Correspondence conveyancing

Notarial Practice

A Notary Public, also referred to as a Notary, is an admitted Legal Practitioner who has written a special exam and has certain special powers. Resultantly, they have been given statutory and common law powers to prepare and attest certain specialized legal documents, administer oaths and perform other wide-ranging administrative functions of a national and international nature.
Our Notarial services cover the following:

• Drafting and Registration of Ante Nuptial Contracts
• Trusts
• Authentication of documents to be utilized outside Zimbabwe
• Long term leases
• Notarial Documents
• Power of Attorney (General and Special Power of Attorney)
• Drafting and Registration of Notarial Bonds
  (General and Special)

When disputes arise, it is handled on the basis of the fundamental principle of professionalism and legal ethics.

Conflicts are best handled getting the full instructions and goals of each party and deciding with the consent of either party of how to resolve an impasse. Alternative dispute resolution is done through Conciliation and Arbitration.

We recognise that alternative dispute resolution yields substantial economic benefits to parties, and we therefore advise our clients on the proper way to resolve disputes. We handle Local and International Arbitrations on behalf of clients.

Domestic and International Arbitration

Our lawyers have specialised experience and expertise in the practice of local and international arbitration with the firm having represented its clients against adversaries represented by the world’s biggest corporate law firms. The firm has successfully represented clients across most industries including but not limited to technical disputes in the renewable energy sector, construction and engineering, mining, finance, infrastructure development and transportation industries.

The firm has handled disputes arising from EPC contracts, sale and purchase agreements, supply agreements, power purchase agreements, mining agreements, BOT Agreements, investment agreements and shareholder agreements. The firm has arbitration practitioners who cover most jurisdictions, arbitral forums, industry sectors and work under multiple laws.

The firm’s lawyers have experience acting as both counsel and as arbitrators involving the major arbitral institutions. The firm’s practitioners have conducted many commercial arbitrations before the International Court of Arbitration (International Chamber of Commerce), Commercial Arbitration Centre (Zimbabwe) and Africa Institute of Mediation and Arbitration (AIMA) and may other institutions as well as ad hoc arbitrations under the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules and the ICC Rules.

Dynamic IP Team, specialising in Trademark & Patent registrations, prosecution, litigation and Audits

Our intellectual property team have a progressive and extensive understanding of intellectual property. We undertake trademark and patent registrations; intellectual property prosecution and litigation; developing intellectual property best practice strategies and policies for our clients as well as intellectual property audits.

Trademark Registrations and Litigation

We offer fully-fledged services on trademark counselling, registrations, prosecutions, opposition, litigation and maintenance. Our firm provides for registration either locally with the Zimbabwe Intellectual Property Trade Mark office (ZIPO); or regionally with the African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO) under the Banjul Protocol; or internationally through the Madrid Protocol.

Cyber Squatting and Domain Name Litigation

We coordinate and offer expertise in a broad range of IP issues involving generic top-level domains and country-code top-level domains.

Patent and Utility Models

Our firm provides expertise on patent and utility model registrations locally through ZIPO, regionally through ARIPO, and we also register international patents through the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

Copyrights

Our expertise spans across rendering opinions on copyright ability, fair use, infringement, ownership and title, notice, security interests, and foreign protection. We also draft and negotiate agreements involving copyrighted works, including joint-development agreements, licenses, assignments, rights clearance, and distribution agreements.

Trade Secrets and Intellectual Property Audits

Our firm advises on trade secrets in light of today’s global economy which is characterised by intense competition, employee mobility, and the proliferation of spin-off and start-up businesses which make the protection of trade secrets critical. The firm also conducts intellectual property audits for our clients, which provide an assessment of the intellectual property assets that are held by our clients. The audit examines and evaluates the strengths and weaknesses in the procedures used to protect intellectual property and where necessary, provide tools to develop additional processes, make improvements to existing processes, and take corrective measures to capture the value and future of your intellectual property rights.

Insurance is a complex and technical area. The insurance industry is constantly facing new challenges arising from technological innovation, new competitors and increased regulation.

Our firm has experience in assisting clients in a full range of insurance issues. We handle commercial insurance disputes, advise risk service providers and review insurance contracts. We also advise both traditional and startup insurance industry companies on insurance regulation and supervision, consumer rights, micro-insurance and climate based products. Our clients therefore include insurers, re-insurers, insurance brokers, risk advisors, insure tech companies, and public insurance corporations. We also represent other business entities in connection with their subsidiary insurance operations, such as banks, leasing companies and retailers.

Pensions

Our firm is dedicated to offering specialist pensions law advice and support for those involved in running pension schemes. Our lawyers also offer a holistic view of pensions as they have extensive experience in advising on public sector pension schemes, pension disputes relating to the administration of public and private sector pension schemes; pension disputes concerning the interpretation of pension scheme rules, pension issues on disposal or restructure of a business, pension tax issues and pensions insurance.

Pensions Training

We also offer services in support of pensions training for human resources, finance specialists, pension managers and company directors who need to know about the legal framework within which their company’s pension scheme operates. Pensions law and practice is constantly changing so it is essential that trustees, company directors and HR specialists undertake regular training in order to stay up to speed with the latest developments. We offer training to Pensions scheme trustees who are required to have a knowledge and understanding of the law relating to pensions and trust and the principles relating to scheme funding and investment.

Expertise in employment law, health and safety, pension schemes, collective bargaining and business sale employment aspects.

Our labour practice encompasses a range of services within the employment law field. We have a robust track record in advising the corporate community on mainstream employment related issues such as health and safety issues, and pension scheme matters. With a special focus on dispute resolution and commercial transactions, we advise on collective bargaining agreements; and are well accustomed with settlement arrangements as well as the employment aspects in sale of business undertakings.

We have assisted clients to develop and implement fair, commercially viable policies and procedures to enhance their business. The labour and employment team’s dispute resolution experience spans the spectrum of private and statutory forums including bargaining councils; Labour Court, High Court and Supreme Court.