Heenan Paris was established in 2011 by former partners of prominent international law firms to create a specialist law firm dedicated to the African continent and, in particular, French-speaking African countries whose civil and business laws, particularly Organisation pour l'Harmonisation en Afrique du Droit des Affaires (OHADA) laws, derive from French law.
Heenan Paris has a highly regarded practice focused on the development and financing of projects particularly in Africa in its key growth sectors - natural resources, infrastructure, transport and energy (including renewable energy) for which the firm is ranked by Legal 500 France.
Thomson Wilks is a full service law firm with offices in each of the major commercial centres in South Africa. The firm has been ranked a top 50 dealmaker law firm by EY and its litigation matters feature regularly in the South African Law Reports. The firm is represented on the panels of most major banks and has established a Chinese department where its Chinese language attorneys provide an invaluable service to its Chinese-speaking clients.
The Heenan Paris/Thomson Wilks partnership is expected to be particularly strong in the mining sector, advising mining concerns across the board from junior companies specialised in exploration to multinational mining corporations. The firms have extensive experience dealing with African governments and government officials in the mining and public infrastructure sectors to whom they have provided legal and best practice training.
Thomson Wilks managing partner, Stephen Thomson says that this exclusive strategic alliance has a number of benefits for both firms. “This alliance will offer Thomson Wilks clients with expert legal representation in Europe and French-speaking Africa, and will attract international business for our firm. For Heenan, the alliance means that they have secured a reliable, first class legal firm to look after the interests of its clients in Southern Africa.”
Jean-François Mercadier, managing partner of Heenan Paris concurs. “We recognise that working on African matters and understanding the mindset of the various local players cannot be undertaken from a distance and requires on-the-ground knowledge and expertise, so the next logical step towards reinforcing our commitment to the African continent was to conclude a strategic alliance with Thomson Wilks.
