The Law Society of Botswana (LSB) has issued a stern notice, accusing some banks of violating the Competition Act, 2018, by forcing property buyers to use the bank’s panel attorneys for both bond registration and property transfer conveyancing. This practice, outlined in Notice No. 17 of 2025, is deemed “tying and bundling conduct,” an abuse of dominant position that restricts consumer choice and undermines fair competition in legal services.
The LSB differentiates between bond registration, which secures the bank’s financial interest and legitimately requires a panel attorney, and property transfer, which is a separate process of transferring ownership. The Society argues that requiring the same attorney for both is unjustified, as these processes can be handled separately without operational difficulties or increased risk.
The restrictive practice negatively impacts consumers by denying them established relationships, removing quality control, potentially increasing costs, and interfering with sellers’ rights. It also distorts the market by creating an artificial oligopoly and eliminating merit-based competition among legal practitioners.
The LSB recommends that banking institutions immediately cease requiring panel attorneys for property transfers, allowing them to continue for bond registration. They urge banks to explicitly inform consumers of their right to choose their own transfer attorney and call on the Competition Authority to investigate this practice. The LSB stresses that consumers have the right to choose their own attorney for property transfer and should not be forced to abandon their chosen conveyancer.
