In conversation with Joris Willems

Teaching About Special Economic<br>Zones in South Africa
In conversion with Joris Willems

Joris Willems, a partner in the Intellectual Property & Technology practice in DLA Piper’s Amsterdam, Netherlands office, joined a team of DLA Piper lawyers on a New Perimeter project who taught a weeklong course about international trade and investment at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. Graduate level law students from 14 African nations participated.

Joris, who is also an elected board member and non-executive director of DLA Piper's International and Global boards, helped deliver the curriculum, which is designed to expose Africa’s future policy makers to the legal, policy and regulatory concepts and practices of special economic zones as a policy tool, as well as provide the students with professional legal and practical skills. The course, part of the International Trade and Investment LLM at the University of Pretoria, aims to equip the students with the tools and knowledge to critically review and analyze trade and investment options and policies and to act as future trade and investment policy advisors in their respective countries. 

Given the international emphasis of the course, Joris' global background was a strong asset to the training team. Having worked across all continents, Joris was able to bring global insights and best practices to the classroom, as well as practical tips on what companies look for when assessing a legal and regulatory environment and making decisions to invest.     

Joris focuses his practice on international commercial contracting, outsourcing, technology licensing and IT. He advises IT, technology companies and content providers as well as telecommunication and broadcasting companies on their global operations. He specializes in complex multi-jurisdictional transactions and has extensive experience in a range of international jurisdictions, including in a number of African countries, China, India, the Middle East, South-East Asia and the US.

Joris is also a member of the board and treasurer of the Dutch Media and Communications Law Association, and a member of the LES Benelux, ItechLaw and the VIRA (the Dutch Technology Lawyers Association). He also coaches junior high school and university students from disadvantaged backgrounds in study and career skills.

"Joris is a wonderful pro bono advocate and we were delighted when he joined the team for the Pretoria course," said Claire Donse, International Pro Bono Counsel with New Perimeter. "He brought skilled leadership and a real depth of international experience to the team, as well as compelling enthusiasm and humour. We are grateful to him for his participation and for the considerable time and energy he devotes to supporting pro bono at the firm". 

"Pro bono is a great opportunity for us to give back to our communities and it is also very rewarding on a personal level. It was an incredible privilege to be able to meet students from across Africa and hear their stories. They had a great depth of talent, but there are also very real challenges. One student in our class commented that she felt a lot of pressure to achieve quickly as the average life expectancy in her country was 47 years old. Stories like that strike a cord and stay with you."