LAHLOU Avocats & Associés
3 OUR FIRM is a practice specialised in business law. It was founded by Saâd LAHLOU in 2006. Our strategy is twofold. We focus our development efforts, our knowledge and our skills on high added value activities; we provide a comprehensive and personalised legal assistance to national and multinational operators. Our respect for and commitment to the ethics of the law profession are at the core of our activity. Driven by these values, our team is able to offer a proactive and efficient advice in the matters entrusted to us. is a leading practice in business law. We offer our Moroccan and foreign clientele a varied range of services with constant personalised attention to their needs in order to insure the legal security required by their activity. Available, coordinated and reactive, our teams include trained, experimented and competent members. Our lawyers offer a high level expertise covering various areas of Moroccan and international law. We provide expert assistance to our clientele which comprises local and multinational corporations, public institutions and foreign investors.
4 BANKING, FINANCE & CAPITAL MARKET Assisting your financial operations. Stock exchange law, securities law, capital market law Block trade and equity in listed companies; Transfer of majority or minority interests in the scope of takeover bids; Initial Public Offering: legal audit and provisional restructuring; drafting contractual documents (shareholders agreements, distribution contracts, market-making contracts, and prospectus); Issue of stock and debt securities with public offering or private equity; Advice in securities law for all parties involved in stock exchange transactions (initiators, issuers, investors, arrangers, lead arranging banks and financial institutions); Follow up and assistance in data management and financial communication; Advice in implementing various types of public offers, analysis of concert party and anti-takeover measures, drafting prospectus and assistance with the regulatory authorities.
5 BANKING, FINANCE & CAPITAL MARKET Fproject finance & structured finance Drafting invitations to tender; Preparing the bids in PFI procedures; Definition and completion of the contractual framework for the financing of projects; Setting up guarantees and mechanisms to secure financial flows; Syndicated loans and leasing operations; Acquisition finance; Real estate financing. Banking and finance Support in banking law and negotiable instruments law; Negotiating and drafting banking contracts: loan agreements, factoring contracts, bank guarantees; Assistance with the regulatory authorities.
6 Helping you achieve your growth targets corporate law CORPORATE, MERGER-ACQUISITIONS AND PRIVATE EQUITY Droit des sociétés Assistance in choosing appropriate legal structures and drafting of legal documents pertaining to the creation and activity of commercial and civil firms; Legal monitoring for our clients, companies or groups in regard to their conformity with corporate law; Administrative services for the client, organisation of board of directors meetings and general assemblies; handling of legal formalities required by the authorities; Capital operations: increase and reduction, accordion features, partial asset contribution, issuance of simple and hybrid securities, stock acquisition; Drafting of shareholders agreements. Mergers and acquisitions - restructuration Legal, social and tax planning of merger-acquisition transactions and restructuring operations; Data rooms organisation and legal auditing; Drafting of acquisition contracts and merger agreements; Setting up the mechanisms for seller s warranties on assets and liabilities; Drafting of pre-contract documents (confidentiality agreements, letters of intention, mandates, letters of offer or interest); Handling the legal formalities required by the authorities.
7 CORPORATE, MERGER-ACQUISITIONS AND PRIVATE EQUITY Capital investment Creation of investment structures (Holdings, SPV); Approval and assistance with the regulatory authorities; Legal and social audits; Drafting of shareholders agreements; Establishment of compensation schemes for executives and corporate officers (carried interests, stock option schemes); Legal and financial engineering; Organising and securing managements packages; Setting up exit mechanisms.
8 COMMUNICATIONS, MEDIA AND TECHNOLOGY LAW Accessing ict (information and communication technologies) safely. Preparation, negotiation and assistance in implementing and operating facilities management contracts; Drafting and negotiation of all types of internet contracts and licenses (web design, web hosting and relations with access providers); Assistance in negotiating and concluding archiving contracts; Databases law; Protection and management of personal data, support in establishing a security charter.
9 Safeguarding your company s social interests. LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT Employment law Individual employment relationships:drafting employment contracts and amendments to employment contractsassistance in operating disciplinary and layoff procedures for severe defaulting; negotiating and drafting settlement agreements or other documents for terminations of employment by mutual agreement; Employment collective relations: Design of job rescue plans, negotiation with staff representative bodies, providing support in collective agreements negotiations within the company; drafting and implementing ethical charters and IT charters; Helping client companies conform to safety, hygiene, information security and personal data management laws and regulations. Employee savings and employee shareholding Setting up of employee savings schemes: Mandatory and optional profit-sharing, company or group saving schemes; Setting up employee shareholding operations: allocation of bonus shares, stock options schemes, employee incentive arrangements based on share issuance.
10 Securing ownership over and guaranteeing protection of immaterial assets. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW Industrial and commercial property Legal advice relating to brands, trademarks, industrial drawings and designs handling procedures with the authorities in regard to legal registration; Due diligence research and opposition procedures; Negotiation and drafting of all types of contracts: licensing, intellectual property rights transfer and franchising agreements. Copyrights and similar rights Legal advice in copyrights and similar issues; negotiation and drafting of contracts: licenses, development, intellectual property rights transfer, distribution, maintenance, outsourcing, facilities management etc..; Personal data management: client databases, canvassing, electronic monitoring at work, international data transfers etc.. Advertising law Legal advice in advertising law; Negotiating and drafting of contracts between advertisers, advertising agencies and production companies; Protection of advertising creations.
11 Protecting the general interest of your company. LITIGATION AND DISPUTE MANAGEMENT Litigation We advise and support our clients, either individuals or companies, in the entire scope of procedure areas and the main aspects of the business law. We represent them before all courts in Morocco and at all stages of the litigation process, whether the legal proceedings are initiated by the clients or they are related to a defensive action. Criminal business law Urgent procedures, debt recovery, claim for payment; Provisional measures and their execution: seizure, confiscation, mortgage; Contract cancellation, disputes arising upon termination of contractual relationships. Employment Individual and collective work litigation; Handling of litigation pertaining to the dismissal and/or removal of executives and corporate officers; Management of pre-litigation issues relative to employees, their representatives or the various social organisations involved; Disputes pertaining to work accidents.
12 LITIGATION AND DISPUTE MANAGEMENT Corporate law Management assessment procedure; Expertise on behalf of minority shareholders; Dismissal of directors; Partners pre-emptive rights; Legal dissolution of companies; Directors liability; Appointment of ad hoc directors or experts. Banking law Debt recovery procedures; Procedures pertaining to banking liability. Intellectual property Descriptive seizure procedures; Counterfeiting and unfair competition procedures; Copyrights counterfeiting procedures; Opposition procedures. Transportation law Legal procedure of ship arrests; Demurrage recovery; Shipping broker s liability.
13 Arbitration LITIGATION AND DISPUTE MANAGEMENT We operate at all levels of the arbitral process: Drafting of the arbitration agreement; Designing the pre-litigation and litigation strategy; Acting on behalf our clients during the arbitration procedure; Petitioning state courts to assist the arbitration process; Seeking interim relief; Enforcement of the arbitral judgement.
14 REAL ESTATE LAW & GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS Safeguarding your property / real estate. Construction law and planning regulations Designing the legal scope of real estate projects; Negotiating and drafting contracts pertaining to properties/ real estate: agreements for sale, definitive sale contracts, real estate development contracts, delegation of project management, contracts relating to the sale of property for future completion; Handling of legal procedures at the land registry and taxation authority; Assistance with carrying out development operations and monitoring of procedures relating to planning permission delivery. Leases Negotiation and drafting of commercial and residential leases; designing rental management contracts. Enhancing relations with the authorities. Legal advice in administrative law; Negotiation and drafting of public contracts; Legal analysis on regulated economic sectors: Energy, telecommunication, media, transportation, defence, health, finance, etc..; Competition law and state regulations.
Adresse : 2, Angle Bd Moulay Youssef et Avenue Hassan Souktani, 5 ème étage Maroc Tél : 00 212 5 22 27 83 13 - Fax : 00 212 5 22 27 83 14 E.mail : lms@lahloulawfirm.com Site web : www.lahloulawfirm.com