I’m genuinely humbled by this nomination. To me, excellence is measured not only by what you achieve, but by the responsibility you take for others, leading with purpose, mentoring the next generation, earning clients’ trust and contributing meaningfully to the profession and the country.

I’m an an attorney and Associate Director at Van Deventer Dowlath & Marx Inc. (VDM), where I co-lead the firm’s litigation department. I specialise in property law, particularly evictions, landlord-tenant disputes and the complex issues arising under the PIE Act, acting for developers, property funds, managing agents and private clients across some of South Africa’s most challenging property disputes.

At the centre of my practice is a simple purpose: protecting landlords’ and property owners’ investments, with strategy rather than aggression. I’m passionate about my work, but equally passionate about the people and values behind it. I believe leadership is about responsibility, creating opportunities for others, mentoring junior attorneys, sharing what I’ve learned and helping the next generation of lawyers build careers they can be proud of.

I’m also passionate about representing South Africa. I’ve practised karate for 25 years, have competed at world championship level and currently represent my country as a member of the national karate team. Karate has shaped much of who I am: discipline, humility, respect, resilience and the ability to remain composed under pressure.

Those principles extend into every part of my life. I’m deeply committed to my family, my community, proud of my country and passionate about using whatever opportunities I’m given to make a meaningful contribution to my clients, my profession, the people I lead and the country I represent.

I don’t believe I was nominated because of any single achievement. If anything, I think it is because of the person I have tried to be, the values I have upheld and the responsibility I have been trusted with at a relatively young age.

I have been fortunate to establish myself as a leader and specialist in a particularly demanding and contentious area of law, in a profession where reputation, expertise and trust are built over many years. I don’t take that for granted. Having the privilege of this responsibility is as much a reflection of the people who believed in me as it is of anything I have done myself.

I’ve had incredible people invest in me — people who challenged me, taught me, opened doors for me and gave me opportunities before I was in a position to give anything back. This nomination is a culmination of that investment. The recognition therefore is not mine alone. It belongs to those who helped me get here, and to the people I now have the privilege of guiding and supporting.

For me, professional excellence is ultimately about character. It is about being a mensch, leading with humility, making those around you better and remaining humble in a profession that can be fiercely competitive. It is about being someone your colleagues, family, community and clients can rely on and trust.

If I am deserving of this recognition, it is because of those values, and consistently applying them in and out of the courtroom.

Professionally, my vision is to keep building on what leadership has meant for me so far — not simply chasing a title, but earning the kind of trust that allows me to have a meaningful impact. My goal is to continue breaking away from the traditional idea of what an attorney should be: not just an attorney who resolves disputes, but a leader, mentor, educator and trusted partner who protects the people and institutions investing in South Africa’s future.

A big part of that is training and mentoring the next generation of attorneys, particularly young Jewish lawyers in South Africa. Our community has a remarkable tradition of producing lawyers, judges and business leaders, and I strive to ensure that tradition continues — not only by paying forward the knowledge that was imparted on me, but by inspiring others to become the kind of professionals and people our country and community needs.

Personally, I want to carry the same discipline that has taken me to the South African national karate team into every part of my life, while staying rooted in the values I was raised with: family, humility, community and the belief that we are responsible for more than our own success. To continue to be an ambassador for both my country and my community, and one day pass those values on to a family of my own.

For South Africa, my hope is for a country where people continue to see possibility rather than only challenge; where young South Africans are inspired to build, lead and contribute; and where our communities continue choosing to invest their talent, energy and future in the country rather than simply looking elsewhere.

If I can spend my career inspiring others to build that future — one client, one mentee and one act of leadership at a time — I will consider it a career worth having.

Recreational activities

Karate – SAJKA – National Team Member