Professional background and experience:

Fiona Southwood is a practicing Advocate specialising in Intellectual Property Law disputes. She is a member of the Johannesburg Society of Advocates and the South African Institute of Intellectual Property Law. She was called to the Bar in 2003. Senior Counsel status was conferred on her on 28 February 2020. She has acted as an arbitrator in arbitrations and has served as an acting Judge in the High Court. Before being called to the Bar in 2003, she practised as an Attorney in the trademark litigation department of Adams and Adams. Her practice includes tax law, general commercial disputes, and administrative law disputes. She regards mediation as a creative and powerful process to resolve disputes which may favour all parties to the dispute. Usually, solutions that suit all the parties are not available to the courts or arbitrators. Adv. Southwood is available to act as a mediator throughout South Africa. She is fluent in English and Afrikaans.

Mediation experience and style:

In 2015, Fiona was accredited as a commercial mediator by both Conflict Dynamics and the UK-based international dispute resolution centre, the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR). Her mediation practice areas include intellectual property law, income tax, administrative law, commercial disputes, medico-legal disputes, RAF disputes and workplace mediations. She has advised parties in commercial mediations. Fiona has attended a Conflict Dynamics medico-legal mediation workshop in 2017 and an RAF mediation workshop in 2025. Fiona also participated in SAMLA's multi-year pilot project to mediate claims against the Road Accident Fund. She has also been trained in workplace mediations. Fiona serves on the Conflict Dynamics commercial mediator training panel.