Member Profiles

Sam is a founding partner of the Firm and heads the Banking and Finance Department. He has been practicing as a lawyer for almost 45 years and is recognised as a leading authority on land law and in the Ugandan banking and financial services sector. His main areas of practice include banking and finance, real estate, agriculture and litigation. Over the years, Sam has distinguished himself across numerous sectors within the law. Prior to joining KAA, he worked with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa a Legal Adviser on the Transcontinental Highway from Lagos to Mombasa and was the Bank Secretary at the Uganda Development Bank. He was retained as a legal consultant by the World Bank and worked on setting up the legal framework for the Northern Corridor Transport and Transit Organisation. A respected draftsperson and writer, Sam represented the Uganda Bankers Association in the drafting of the present code of conduct of Ugandan Banks, and was part of the team that drafted the current Financial Institutions Act, the Condominium Properties Act, Expropriated Properties Act, East African Development Bank Act, among others. Sam is a notable writer and has published numerous legal publications. Sam has represented various clients in litigation matters pertaining to banking and finance, constitutional petitions, land law and insolvency laws. He has represented the President of Uganda in three presidential election petitions. Professional Memberships - Uganda Law Society - East African Law Society Professional Qualifications - Master of Laws (LL.M) from Makerere University - Post Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice, Law Development Centre - Bachelor of Laws (LL.B), Makerere University Employment History - 2001 – Present: Senior Partner, Kampala Associated Advocates - 1999 – 2001: Partner, Sam Mayanja & Co. Advocates - 1989 – 1999: Bank Secretary, Uganda Development Bank - 1977 – 1981: Lecturer in Law, Law Development Centre Top Matters - Involved in a tripartite negotiation between East African Development Bank, Centenary Rural Development Bank and Muddu Oils Ltd to reschedule a loan. - Headed the team that carried out debt collection for Civil Aviation Authority where UGX. 54,000,000,000 was recovered. - Heading a team that is overseeing the collection of over UGX.1,500,000,000 out of an assigned portfolio of UGX.3,000,000,000 from various unsecured loan defaulters of Barclays Bank Uganda Limited. - Advised the Bank of Uganda (Agricultural Policy Secretariat) on how to handle the Ginnery loans extended to cotton ginneries by the World Bank through the now defunct Co-operative Bank. - Acted as a legal adviser to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa on the Trans-African Highways Programme, where he helped set up the Secretariat of the Trans-Africa Highway Authority (Lagos-Mombasa) at Bangui, Central African Republic. - He also assisted the Ministry of Finance in its negotiations with Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) on its assumption of the Ginnery loans formerly handled by the Cooperative Bank. - Successfully negotiated a Sembule Group of Companies Loan dispute settlement between Bank of Uganda, PTA Bank and the Sembule Group of Companies. The original principal amount involved was US$ 6.5 million. - Appointed Consultant by NPART (Uganda Commercial Bank Non-performing Trust) to help the recovering of the Uganda Commercial Bank non-performing loans. - Advised the Bank of Uganda (Agricultural Policy Secretariat) on how to handle the ginnery loans extended to the Cotton Ginneries by World Bank through Co-operative Bank – under liquidation. - Appointed by the Ministry of Finance to negotiate with Standard Chartered Bank for that Bank to take over the Ginnery Loans formerly handled by the Co-operative Bank. - Acted on behalf of M/s SGS, an international Swiss company in debt collection. - Represented the Uganda Development Bank on the Uganda Bankers Association and helped draft the present code of conduct for association. - Represented Uganda Development Bank on the Board of Directors of Uganda Institute of Bankers. - Assisted in drafting the current Financial Institutions Act during its formative years as a member of the drafting committee of this Bill in the Uganda Banker’s Association. - Appointed World Bank Consultant to review and update the Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Agreement. The Northern Corridor Transit and Transport Authority consists of the Republic of Kenya, The Republic of Uganda, The Republic of DR Congo, Burundi, Rwanda and South Sudan. This contract is on-going up to 31st March 2020.

John Kaddu is an equity Partner at M/s Kaddu & Partners Advocates, a fast growing Commercial Law Firm which was founded in 2009. He was enrolled as an Advocate of the High Court of Uganda and all Courts of Judicature in the year 2000 and has been in active private practice for over fifteen years. John is one of the leading Intellectual Property Law attorneys and Consultants in Uganda having specialised in handling Trademarks, Patents and Copyrights matters for clients within Uganda and abroad for over twelve years.

Kate has advised and represented a large cross section of the alternative asset management  community over the past 21 years, since founding Oesa in 2002. She has also been engaged as a legal and regulatory consultant by Ernst and Young, as well as by large pension funds, a well-known charitable trust, industrial corporates and proprietary trading houses, all of whom required specialist legal advice in relation to their trading and derivative documentation. Kate qualified as a barrister but decided to pursue a career in the City as a sales and trading lawyer specialising in derivatives, prime brokerage and complex structured products.  She gained invaluable experience in-house at several large financial institutions during the innovative period of the 1990’s  including Daiwa Securities, Salomon Brothers (now Citi) and then Goldman Sachs, where she headed up the Prime Brokerage and the European capital markets legal teams that encompassed all the derivative trading activity for EMEA & Hong Kong. Kate’s advice at all of these institutions was integral to the development of a vast array of new innovative financial products.  In addition, she contributed to the many industry initiatives to standardise documentation and product definitions, including the ISDA Master Agreement and CSA/CSD, Master Confirmations, FOA ETD agreements, and the GMRA. Prior to setting up Oesa, Kate was a consultant to the then FSA and was one of the original authors of the Market Abuse Code and the Wholesale Money Markets Code of Conduct.   Kate’s wealth of experience is unmatched today in the alternative asset manager space.  

Helen is a partner in the Manchester office and heads up the SHE regulatory team nationally for BLM and is also head of the NW region and the firm’s . Helen is also Head of the Manchester Office. She specialises in defending companies and individuals involved in HSE/CPS/EHO investigations and prosecutions. She advises both individuals and companies in manslaughter and complex HSE cases.

Kerry advises on the full range of contentious and non-contentious employment matters as well as business immigration. Kerry is a partner and head of the employment, immigration and pensions practice. Prior to joining Stevens & Bolton in 2006, she qualified and worked at a top international law firm. Kerry advises on strategic HR issues and contentious and non-contentious employment matters. Her experience includes drafting contracts and staff handbooks, advising on dismissals and termination packages, collective redundancies and reorganisations, discrimination, family friendly rights and advising in relation to and preparing for Employment Tribunal claims. She also has particular expertise in advising on TUPE and business transfers, both in the context of outsourcing and business acquisitions. In addition, Kerry is experienced in all aspects of business immigration law and right to work issues. She regularly advises employers in relation to Skilled Worker and Intra Company Transfer applications (previously Tier 2 applications), including assisting employers with the sponsorship registration process, assigning certificates of sponsorship and entry clearance and extension applications. She also advises on sponsor compliance issues, as well as right to work checks. Additionally, she advises in relation to indefinite leave to remain and naturalisation applications, and is currently advising clients on the impact of the end of the Brexit transition period on their ability to employ European nationals and on the recent changes to the sponsorship regime. Recent highlights include: Advising a number of clients on restructuring and collective redundancies, including a publishing company and a well-known luxury hotel group Advising clients, including a publishing company and a coffee and drink machine supplier, on projects such as reductions to pay and reducing working hours Advising a large multinational manufacturing company on outsourcing services to a company in eastern Europe, including drafting and negotiating complex TUPE provisions and managing a project to ensure that the many transferring employees sign up to a settlement agreement prior to each of the phased transfer dates Advising a well-known technology company in relation to the employment and HR issues arising from restructuring the group after an acquisition, including advising on the impact of TUPE and the information and consultation process Advising a FTSE 100 business in relation to the TUPE provisions in a contract with a supermarket, including negotiating the TUPE clauses and obtaining cover for redundancy costs following the transfer Advising a special gases provider in connection with holiday pay calculations factoring in various overtime arrangements and allowances, including in relation to union negotiations and drafting the collective agreement to reflect the agreed terms Advising a luxury retailer in relation to a complex discrimination and whistleblowing claim, which ultimately settled before the hearing Advising clients, including a pharmaceutical company and food and beverage brand, on all of their UK business immigration matters, including advising on sponsor compliance, issuing Certificates of Sponsorship and assisting with Skilled Worker (previously Tier 2) immigration applications Kerry regularly has articles published in the HR press and provides comments to the media on employment and immigration matters. She also provides tailored training to clients and runs webinars.