Barry Garven
Co-head of Tax | Johannesburg
Contact
T: +27 11 669 9323
Overview
Barry Garven is a partner and the co-head of Tax in our Johannesburg office Tax Practice.
He specialises in corporate and international tax structuring, especially in the mergers and acquisitions area. Barry has also advised on some of the largest debt and group reorganisations in South Africa. Barry’s expertise extends to acquisition funding and other types of debt and equity funding.
Barry also advises corporate and financial institutions on complex tax litigation issues and has been involved in litigating and settling large tax disputes, particularly in the financial products area.
Barry’s clients include Alexander Forbes, Virgin Active, Northam Platinum, SAB Miller, Rand Merchant Bank as well as other local and international banks. Barry was recently recommended in The Legal500 EMEA 2015 editorial.
Experience
Barry Garven has over 15 years of tax experience in the corporate and international tax fields. In addition to his M&A and reorganisation work, Barry has advised in a number of reported and unreported tax disputes both in the Tax and High Courts. Some of these tax issues include the following-
- Tax allowances claimed by taxpayers for the acquisition of trademarks.
- The tax treatment of “provisions” in the context of a sale of a business.
- The capital/revenue nature of certain types of expenditure including advertising and royalties.
- Various financial products including so-called convertible loans, bare dominium and “debt push-down” structures and the like.
- The application of the GAAR and “substance over form doctrine” to various types of financial products, structures and transactions.
- The meaning of the words “permanent nature” in the context of the section 11(e) wear and tear allowance.
- The meaning of the phrase “actually incurred” and “not of a capital nature” in the context of claiming deductions for expenditure.
- The tax consequences of a cession of dividends as the quid pro quo for a loan.
- Various matters involving the entitlement of a taxpayer a tax deduction for interest and related expenditure.
Awards
- Chambers Global consistently recognises Barry’s work in the tax space by ranking him in the top two tiers for the past nine years (2018-2026) and prior to that in Band 3 for the two preceding years (2016-2017).
- Barry was recently listed as a Recommended Lawyer in Legal 500 EMEA 2017 for Tax.
‘Barry Garven understands our business and is able to provide solutions which simplifies transactions, minimises risk and provides value. He is also extremely approachable.’ – Chambers Global, 2026
‘Barry is exceptionally responsive and has years of experience.’ – Chambers Global, 2026
‘Barry Garven continues to impress for the breadth of his experience in tax structuring and disputes, with further activity in acquisitions and investments.’ – Chambers and Partners, 2024
‘Barry Garven is an experienced tax professional who can always be relied upon to provide top-quality support.’
‘Barry delivers exceptional client service.’ – Chambers and Partners, 2023
AREA OF EXPERTISE
Qualifications
- B.Com, LLB and LLM (cum laude) degrees and a Higher Diploma in Company Law from the University of the Witwatersrand.
- Higher Diploma in International Tax from the University of Johannesburg.
INSIGHTS
Overview
Barry Garven is a partner and the co-head of Tax in our Johannesburg office Tax Practice.
He specialises in corporate and international tax structuring, especially in the mergers and acquisitions area. Barry has also advised on some of the largest debt and group reorganisations in South Africa. Barry’s expertise extends to acquisition funding and other types of debt and equity funding.
Barry also advises corporate and financial institutions on complex tax litigation issues and has been involved in litigating and settling large tax disputes, particularly in the financial products area.
Barry’s clients include Alexander Forbes, Virgin Active, Northam Platinum, SAB Miller, Rand Merchant Bank as well as other local and international banks. Barry was recently recommended in The Legal500 EMEA 2015 editorial.
Experience
Barry Garven has over 15 years of tax experience in the corporate and international tax fields. In addition to his M&A and reorganisation work, Barry has advised in a number of reported and unreported tax disputes both in the Tax and High Courts. Some of these tax issues include the following-
- Tax allowances claimed by taxpayers for the acquisition of trademarks.
- The tax treatment of “provisions” in the context of a sale of a business.
- The capital/revenue nature of certain types of expenditure including advertising and royalties.
- Various financial products including so-called convertible loans, bare dominium and “debt push-down” structures and the like.
- The application of the GAAR and “substance over form doctrine” to various types of financial products, structures and transactions.
- The meaning of the words “permanent nature” in the context of the section 11(e) wear and tear allowance.
- The meaning of the phrase “actually incurred” and “not of a capital nature” in the context of claiming deductions for expenditure.
- The tax consequences of a cession of dividends as the quid pro quo for a loan.
- Various matters involving the entitlement of a taxpayer a tax deduction for interest and related expenditure.
Awards
- Chambers Global consistently recognises Barry’s work in the tax space by ranking him in the top two tiers for the past nine years (2018-2026) and prior to that in Band 3 for the two preceding years (2016-2017).
- Barry was recently listed as a Recommended Lawyer in Legal 500 EMEA 2017 for Tax.
‘Barry Garven understands our business and is able to provide solutions which simplifies transactions, minimises risk and provides value. He is also extremely approachable.’ – Chambers Global, 2026
‘Barry is exceptionally responsive and has years of experience.’ – Chambers Global, 2026
‘Barry Garven continues to impress for the breadth of his experience in tax structuring and disputes, with further activity in acquisitions and investments.’ – Chambers and Partners, 2024
‘Barry Garven is an experienced tax professional who can always be relied upon to provide top-quality support.’
‘Barry delivers exceptional client service.’ – Chambers and Partners, 2023
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