SCP HOUDA & ASSOCIES

The firm: West Africa, and especially Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire, is one of the most promising emerging markets. However, penetrating the region requires the right partner by your side.

Succeeding Kanjo & Houda Law Firm, founded by Mohamed Kanjo in 1977, Houda Law Firm (Cabinet d’avocats Houda) is regarded as one of the leading law firms operating in Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire. Its 44 staff – half of which are specialised and highly qualified lawyers – provides legal assistance to foreign investors in Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire where Houda Law Firm has opened a secondary office since November 2018.

Indeed, Houda Law Firm has developed an extensive experience by incorporating foreign companies and by providing legal services and representation before national courts and arbitration courts.

When expanding business into Senegal or Cote d’Ivoire, choosing the partner who is there on the ground, prepared to navigate through regional business, law, regulation and local administration makes the difference. Taking the most of the intricacies between overlapping laws such as WAEMU (West African Economic and Monetary Union), ECOWAS (Economic Community of West Africa States) or OHADA (Organisation pour l’Harmonisation en Afrique du Droit des Affaires) is indeed the salient feature of a knowledgeable local law firm confronted to the concrete realities of business laws in West Africa.

With local knowledge and connections, its experienced team assists clients, private or public, with all of their legal needs, from investment structuring until representation before administrative and judicial authorities.

With more than 23 years of experience, the current managing partner, Khaled Abou El Houda, registered at the Senegalese and Ivorian Bar Associations, is recognised as a mining expert in Who’s Who Legal and is rated as a rising star by the International Financial Law Review based on his unique know-how in West African business law.

Houda is the general secretary of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum in Senegal and the general secretary of the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM) in Senegal. Houda is a mediator, a conciliator and is recognised as a chartered arbitrator at the Common Court of Justice and Arbitration (CCJA) in Abidjan and at the Center of Arbitration, Mediation and Conciliation (CAMC) in Dakar. Houda is also a member of the African Business Law Firms Association (ABLFA) based in Ivory Coast.

Under his leadership, and with the special knowledge and experience of its partners and associates, the firm currently holds a central position in key sectors such as oil and gas, mining, infrastructure, and banking.

The firm takes an active part in the diffusion and knowledge of local laws by contributing to legal compendium and reports. Recently and among others, Houda Law Firm was a contributing editor of the Senegal country chapter in 2019 of the Public-Private Partnership Review (Law Business Research), a sole contributor in the 2019 Q&A Mining Law for Senegal, part of the African Mining Database for Simmons & Simmons Elexica, and the author of Doing Business in Senegal.

While contributing to the changing face of business in the region, the firm regularly works with high-profile international law firms, namely (and this is not exhaustive) Allen & Overy, Ashurst, Akin Gump, Dentons, Gide Loyrette Nouel, Hogan Lovells, Jones Day, Mayer Brown, McCarthy Tetrault, Pinsent Masons, Simmons & Simmons, and Global Law Office. Such entities frequently appoint the firm to provide general overview reports and opinions about Senegalese or Ivorian law for international investors in private equity and derivatives finance.

Africa is on the rise. Benefiting from lawyers to help your business to navigate through the local business and legal environment will allow you to seize opportunities in Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire and beyond.