VDMGA Inc: Empathy and expertise

Pioneering firm continues to break new ground
Van der Merwe-Greef-Andima Inc has built up a sterling reputation as one of the country's leading law firms, with their areas of expertise spanning the legal services spectrum from litigation and commercial law to conveyancing and more.
Yochanaan Coetzee
What is now known as Van der Merwe-Greef-Andima (VDMGA) Inc was established on 1 October 1986 by Maria Catharina Greeff, the first admitted female attorney in then South West Africa. She went on to be the first woman conveyancer to be admitted in Namibia as well.

In 1987, her brother Barend 'Ben' Jacob van der Merwe joined the firm as full partner, and was later appointed as managing director in 1997.

In 2004, Thomas Hitjivirue Andima joined the firm after he was granted annual bursaries for the total period of his studies. He was admitted as a legal practitioner in 2013 and appointed as a director on 1 October 2013.

Over its 35 years in the industry, the firm has cultivated a plethora of professional talents, and made a tremendous impact on the legal landscape in the country, underscoring its commitment to its slogan 'justice must be seen to be done'.

The company has a broad client base from all walks of life, and serves the financial services, short- and long-term insurance, conveyancing and property, micro-lending, commercial and business sectors by servicing various private and public companies, CCs, partnerships, joint ventures, parastatals, municipalities and individuals.

Multifaceted mavens

The company has a well-structured and adequately equipped litigation and collection department, headed by Barend Jacob van der Merwe (senior), in which corporate and other clients are allocated to specific directors and are supported by the most updated software programmes and capable personnel with many years of experience in this field.

Their conveyancing department, headed by Schalk Steyn and assisted by Greeff in her capacity as consultant, continues to lead the way in assisting clients achieve their property ownership dreams - residential, commercial and everything in between.

“To transfer a house, you need to engage a competent law firm and conveyancer, as there are many legal requirements when buying a home and having it transferred to your name."

Conveyancers are key

“The reason people undertaking a property transaction also engage a third-party or conveyancer is the matter of escrow. Under usual circumstances, the two parties don’t know each other to the point at which they fully trust one another to the extent that they can just transfer funds or property between themselves. This is where the conveyancer would assist by putting the funds in a trust to be paid out once the property has been successfully transferred, ensuring both parties can have peace of mind during the transaction and title deed transfer.”

Given that the fees in a property transaction and transfer are prescribed, potential clients need not worry about shopping around for the lowest price for these services. However, given the scale and urgency of property transactions, you want to ensure that you engage the most competent conveyancers you can find.

“The standard of work and quicker turnaround times makes all the difference, and thanks to our level of expertise, commitment to highest levels of service and strong network within the industry, we are able to offer utmost professionalism and efficiency,” the firm added.

A firm for all

Firm manager Anthea van der Merwe said VDMGA Inc has always been wholly committed to advancing the rights of all their clients, regardless of wealth, social standing or background.

“Everything about VDMGA Inc stands for the upliftment and advancement of the people around us. Whether that is through investing in the new generation of legal professionals, empowering those from previously disadvantaged backgrounds or offering the highest levels of professionalism to all clients regardless of the economic standing, we are here to add value to the lives of all Namibians,” she explained.

“The company has been complying with the requirements of Affirmative Action legislation and its vision and objective is to empower its previous disadvantaged employees through skills development and information awareness. This in addition to creating equal employment opportunities in the firm, redressing the position of disadvantaged groups in the company, creating procedures and structures to avoid future unfair discrimination and advancing those who were prejudiced due to imbalances in social, economic and/or educational processes that allowed discrimination in the past.

“The company is fully committed to remain a proudly Namibian company for many, many years to come and to commit itself to the people and corporate establishments in Namibia in order to provide them with a comprehensive legal service in a professional and ethical manner, which will not be compromised by anything whatsoever,” she added.

If you’d like to engage the top light services and expertise of the VDMGA Inc team, contact them at 061 225 497 or send an email to [email protected].

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Namibian Sun 2024-03-28

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Katima Mulilo: 19° | 37° Rundu: 17° | 33° Eenhana: 18° | 33° Oshakati: 20° | 31° Ruacana: 19° | 33° Tsumeb: 17° | 29° Otjiwarongo: 16° | 28° Omaruru: 18° | 31° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Gobabis: 17° | 28° Henties Bay: 16° | 19° Wind speed: 24km/h, Wind direction: S, Low tide: 10:54, High tide: 04:57, Low Tide: 22:58, High tide: 17:16 Swakopmund: 15° | 17° Wind speed: 29km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:55, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:14 Walvis Bay: 16° | 22° Wind speed: 33km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:54, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:13 Rehoboth: 18° | 29° Mariental: 22° | 32° Keetmanshoop: 21° | 34° Aranos: 21° | 31° Lüderitz: 15° | 29° Ariamsvlei: 23° | 34° Oranjemund: 15° | 21° Luanda: 27° | 30° Gaborone: 20° | 32° Lubumbashi: 17° | 24° Mbabane: 15° | 23° Maseru: 12° | 28° Antananarivo: 16° | 27° Lilongwe: 17° | 29° Maputo: 20° | 28° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Cape Town: 17° | 23° Durban: 21° | 25° Johannesburg: 18° | 28° Dar es Salaam: 26° | 32° Lusaka: 18° | 30° Harare: 15° | 31° Currency: GBP to NAD 23.91 | EUR to NAD 20.47 | CNY to NAD 2.62 | USD to NAD 18.96 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.33 | EGP to NAD 0.39 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.74 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.8 | RUB to NAD 0.2 | INR to NAD 0.23 | USD to DZD 134.27 | USD to AOA 832.63 | USD to BWP 13.71 | USD to EGP 47.35 | USD to KES 130.98 | USD to NGN 1415.13 | USD to ZAR 18.97 | USD to ZMW 24.77 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 73909.5 Up +0.41% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1516.02 Down -0.13% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 12981.98 Up +0.34% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 28224.37 Down -2.87% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 210.71/OZ UP +0.91% | Copper US$ 3.98/lb DOWN -0.0004 | Zinc US$ 2 450.10/T DOWN -0.26% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 87.06/BBP UP +0.78% | Platinum US$ 906.57/OZ UP +1.31% Sport results: Weather: Katima Mulilo: 19° | 37° Rundu: 17° | 33° Eenhana: 18° | 33° Oshakati: 20° | 31° Ruacana: 19° | 33° Tsumeb: 17° | 29° Otjiwarongo: 16° | 28° Omaruru: 18° | 31° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Gobabis: 17° | 28° Henties Bay: 16° | 19° Wind speed: 24km/h, Wind direction: S, Low tide: 10:54, High tide: 04:57, Low Tide: 22:58, High tide: 17:16 Swakopmund: 15° | 17° Wind speed: 29km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:55, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:14 Walvis Bay: 16° | 22° Wind speed: 33km/h, Wind direction: SW, Low tide: 10:52, High tide: 04:54, Low Tide: 22:56, High tide: 17:13 Rehoboth: 18° | 29° Mariental: 22° | 32° Keetmanshoop: 21° | 34° Aranos: 21° | 31° Lüderitz: 15° | 29° Ariamsvlei: 23° | 34° Oranjemund: 15° | 21° Luanda: 27° | 30° Gaborone: 20° | 32° Lubumbashi: 17° | 24° Mbabane: 15° | 23° Maseru: 12° | 28° Antananarivo: 16° | 27° Lilongwe: 17° | 29° Maputo: 20° | 28° Windhoek: 17° | 28° Cape Town: 17° | 23° Durban: 21° | 25° Johannesburg: 18° | 28° Dar es Salaam: 26° | 32° Lusaka: 18° | 30° Harare: 15° | 31° Economic Indicators: Currency: GBP to NAD 23.91 | EUR to NAD 20.47 | CNY to NAD 2.62 | USD to NAD 18.96 | DZD to NAD 0.14 | AOA to NAD 0.02 | BWP to NAD 1.33 | EGP to NAD 0.39 | KES to NAD 0.14 | NGN to NAD 0.01 | ZMW to NAD 0.74 | ZWL to NAD 0.04 | BRL to NAD 3.8 | RUB to NAD 0.2 | INR to NAD 0.23 | USD to DZD 134.27 | USD to AOA 832.63 | USD to BWP 13.71 | USD to EGP 47.35 | USD to KES 130.98 | USD to NGN 1415.13 | USD to ZAR 18.97 | USD to ZMW 24.77 | USD to ZWL 321 | Stock Exchange: JSE All Share Index 73909.5 Up +0.41% | Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) Overall Index 1516.02 Down -0.13% | Casablanca Stock Exchange (CSE) MASI 12981.98 Up +0.34% | Egyptian Exchange (EGX) 30 Index 28224.37 Down -2.87% | Botswana Stock Exchange (BSE) DCI Same 0 | NSX: MTC 7.75 SAME | Anirep 8.99 SAME | Capricorn Investment group 17.34 SAME | FirstRand Namibia Ltd 49 DOWN 0.50% | Letshego Holdings (Namibia) Ltd 4.1 UP 2.50% | Namibia Asset Management Ltd 0.7 SAME | Namibia Breweries Ltd 31.49 UP 0.03% | Nictus Holdings - Nam 2.22 SAME | Oryx Properties Ltd 12.1 UP 1.70% | Paratus Namibia Holdings 11.99 SAME | SBN Holdings 8.45 SAME | Trustco Group Holdings Ltd 0.48 SAME | B2Gold Corporation 47.34 DOWN 1.50% | Local Index closed 677.62 UP 0.12% | Overall Index closed 1534.6 DOWN 0.05% | Osino Resources Corp 19.47 DOWN 2.41% | Commodities: Gold US$ 2 210.71/OZ UP +0.91% | Copper US$ 3.98/lb DOWN -0.0004 | Zinc US$ 2 450.10/T DOWN -0.26% | Brent Crude Oil US$ 87.06/BBP UP +0.78% | Platinum US$ 906.57/OZ UP +1.31%