Overview
BEMBELLY & Associates is an African law firm committed to providing clear, strategic and reliable legal support, particularly to clients in the oil, gas and mining sectors, while also assisting businesses, institutions and individuals. Although recently established, the firm is built on deep experience from lawyers who have worked in business, private practice and the judiciary. This strong foundation enables the team to understand the real challenges clients face and to offer solutions that are both technically sound and practical.
The firm believes that effective legal advice begins with trust, which is reflected in its emphasis on attentive listening, transparent communication and a distinctly human approach. Rather than offering standard answers, Bembelly & Associates delivers tailored strategies based on thorough analysis and cross cutting expertise in areas including hydrocarbon and mining law, taxation, OHADA law, arbitration and business law. The firm’s mission is to make the law accessible, useful and meaningful while building long term relationships with every client.
Practice Areas
- Corporate Law & Governance
- Mining law
- Foreign investment in Francophone Africa
- Banking & Financial Law
- Project funding
- Corporate Law, Mergers & Acquisitions & Private Equity
- Litigation & Arbitration
- Corporate taxation
- Hydrocarbon Law
- OHADA Law
- Law of Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs)
- Intellectual Property
- Inheritance law
Highlights
- Author of influential publications in legal scholarship, including early analyses such as “The Legal and Political Evolution of the Cabinda Question” (Revue Juridique Indépendance et Cooperation, 1996) and the doctoral dissertation “The Postal Sector and Community Law” (Paris X Nanterre, 1999).
- Regular contributor to the Revue Congolaise de droit et des affaires, with notable articles on the new anti-corruption law (2010) and the ease of doing business in Congo, based on the World Bank’s 2012 Doing Business Report (2013).
- Recognized expert in extractive industries law, with several key publications, including “Essentiel du Droit Minier au Congo (2015), Code des Hydrocarbures du Congo (2019)”, and multiple articles on mining titles and legal frameworks governing natural resources (2013–2014).
- Speaker at major international conferences, including presentations on subcontracting in the oil & gas sector at CIEHC (2011) and on mining titles at CIEMC (2013).
- Contributor to thematic works and collective publications, such as the analysis of vessel conservatory seizure in Le Code Communautaire de la marine marchande (L’Harmattan, 2019).
- Co-author of the leading reference work on subcontracting in Congo, Précis de sous-traitance au Congo (2020), a key text explaining the country’s updated subcontracting regulations.
- Published expert commentary in international industry media, including The Oil and Gas Year (2015), with analysis on subcontracting dynamics in the Congo’s petroleum sector.
- Contributor to ERSUMA and academic research journals, including work on the application of Article 39 of the Uniform Act on simplified debt recovery procedures (2014) and reflections on the specificities of Congolese administrative litigation (RAMRES, 2021).
- Recent contributions to legal reforms and public-private partnership analysis, including articles on PPP contracts in Congolese law (2025).
- Invited researcher at the 2025 Kolwezi Conference, presenting an in-depth study on securing investments in extractive contracts, with a focus on exploration and exploitation agreements in conflict-affected zones.
Achievements
- Contributed to the 2025 Mining Code Reform Project in the Republic of Congo.
