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Meet Kim Lancley Pietersen
Intellectual Property Lawyer | Middle East & Africa
Admitted Attorney of the High Court of South Africa and Senior Associate practising with CWB in Dubai, with more than 8 years' post-qualification experience advising international technology, luxury, fashion and consumer-facing brands.
Practice centred on intellectual property, litigation and enforcement, brand protection, portfolio strategy and related commercial advisory, with extensive experience navigating complex matters across the Middle East and Africa.
Today, I am most proud of acting as lead counsel on
Middle East trade mark enforcement matters for a leading
US-based multinational technology company valued
at more than USD 4 trillion.
Why Clients Choose Me
Cross-Border Legal Counsel
On any given day, I'm navigating matters in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Morocco, Algeria, Egypt, Pakistan or elsewhere across the region.
My career has involved advising clients across the Middle East, North Africa, South Africa, the SADC region and Africa at large, giving me extensive experience coordinating legal strategy across different laws, languages and cultures while working closely with trusted local counsel.
Litigation, Enforcement & Negotiation
Contentious work has been a thread throughout my legal career, beginning with general litigation during my Articles of Clerkship (legal training in South Africa), and developing into sophisticated IP litigation and enforcement. I advise from pre-litigation strategy through settlement negotiations and formal proceedings, coordinating external counsel, advocates, investigators and supporting teams across jurisdictions while retaining strategic oversight of matters.
International Brands & Technology
I regularly advise international technology, luxury, fashion, blockchain, fintech and consumer-facing brands, working closely with headquarter legal teams and senior business stakeholders to translate local legal requirements into practical, commercially sound strategies. My experience extends beyond traditional IP protection into digital brand protection, related commercial agreements, privacy and website terms, risk management and the increasingly important intersection between IP, technology and innovation.
Leadership & Legal Operations
Alongside client work, I oversee associates, paralegals and support teams and contribute to practice manuals, legal guidelines, training, knowledge management and process improvement. I am particularly interested in how AI and legal technology can improve legal service delivery, and regularly work with tools including Harvey AI, Microsoft Copilot, Corsearch and ChatGPT, to name a few tools.
Recognitions That Bring Me Joy
World Trademark Review 1000: 2024 · 2025 · 2026
Managing IP – Rising Star: 2023 · 2025 · 2026
Trade Mark Practitioner & Fellow of SAIIPL
Passed both specialist SAIIPL IP examination groups (specialist IP exams in South Africa) in a single sitting each and achieved Spoor & Fisher's highest trade mark-focused oral examination result in 2019.
Law, Business & What Comes Next
I have always been interested in the point at which law meets business, technology and culture.
Intellectual property gives me a front-row seat to that intersection. The work is ultimately about protecting and commercialising the ideas, brands, creativity and innovation that create value for businesses.
As technology continues to change both the assets businesses create and the way legal services are delivered, I am particularly interested in AI, emerging technologies, digital business models and the future of legal practice.
IP & NFTs
An early look at what content creators, artists and businesses should understand about
NFTs from an intellectual property perspective.
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Fashion & IP in the UAE
Contributing author, Law Over Borders Comparative Guide to Fashion Law,
The Global Legal Post, 2026.
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IP for Start-ups
IP for Start-ups
Practical guidance on how businesses can identify, protect and commercialise
intellectual property from the outset.
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My Education
2018
2018
2018
Admission as an Attorney, Cape Town, High Court of South Africa
2015
2018
2018
Postgraduate LLB Degree, Stellenbosch University, South Africa
2015
2018
2015
Transnational Commercial Law Programme, EBS Law School, Germany