Martin Kavanagh is a partner at international law firm Herbert Smith Freehills LLP. He is the co-Head of the Africa practice group and he also leads the firm's energy, natural resources and infrastructure finance team in London.  

Martin has extensive experience in the project finance and project development fields. He works for all project parties – corporates, lenders, borrowers, governments and multilateral agencies – and does most of his work in Africa and other emerging markets. Martin has led teams advising on over 50 different projects and deals across Africa, mainly in the energy sector, including a number of first-in-country deals where structuring and risk allocation are crucial. This experience allows Martin to provide clients in Africa with solutions-based and commercially robust advice, regardless of the jurisdictions involved.  Martin leads the firm's relationship with the IFC, and many other DFIs.

Martin is singled out as a leading lawyer for Africa-wide Projects & Energy by Chambers Global 2021, which quotes an independent source as saying that “He’s excellent at managing the overall relationship“, further praising his “ability to coordinate complex transactions that involve various aspects“. Another source said that “He has an excellent reputation for transactions in Africa“. Martin is also ranked as a leading lawyer by Legal 500 UK, Who's Who Legal and Best Lawyers.