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been very present but in fact they should because we have the added advantage, especially out of Quebec, of offering a whole host of bilingual professionals," observes Bahamin. "If you are covering West Africa, you need to be bilingual." Bahamin, who was with Heenan Blaikie LLP prior to joining Norton Rose, figures she averaged about 100 days per year over the past five years away from Montreal to service her Afri- can business. "I say to my clients, and I think it applies to law firms too, if you want to carry on business anywhere you have got to be ready to invest some time and actually send someone there to figure it out," she says. "It does take a certain level of travelling if you want to be [successful], especially on the M&A and local side. If you just want to do the HOW WILL KEY LABOUR DECISIONS INFLUENCE THE WORKPLACE? WILLIS & WINKLER ON LEADING LABOUR CASES, 2011 ELAINE B. WILLIS AND THE HONOURABLE WARREN K. WINKLER, CHIEF JUSTICE OF ONTARIO ALSO AVAILABLE ONLINE IN LABOUR SPECTRUM Identify the cases and trends that are important to your organization with Willis & Winkler on Leading Labour Cases, 2011. You'll find expert analytical review of key decisions and trends from across Canada and get clarification of the significance of these recent developments. THE 2011 EDITION INCLUDES: • Recent Charter Cases • The Remedial Consequences of Flawed Disciplinary Action • Current Issues in Union Leadership: Union Power and Union Liability • Current Issues in Union Leadership: Industrial Action and Management Reaction • Damages • • Test for Prima Facie Discrimination Sufficiency of Reasons Willis & Winkler on Leading Labour Cases, 2011 gives you the big picture of the key decisions influencing labour law and arbitration to help you understand the impact on your organization. ON SUBSCRIPTION ORDER # 920239-63671 $74 Hardcover approx. 136 pages August 2011 1920-2393 ONE TIME PURCHASE ORDER # 920239-63671 $84 Hardcover approx. 136 pages August 2011 1920-2393 AVAILABLE RISK-FREE FOR 30 DAYS Order online at www.canadalawbook.ca Call Toll-Free: 1-800-387-5164 In Toronto: 416-609-3800 Shipping and handling are extra. Price subject to change without notice and subject to applicable taxes. CANADA LAW BOOK® financing side then you probably don't have to, you just have to get the clients that have projects in Africa." Face time is especially important in Africa, she notes. "You have to be pres- ent, you don't do deals by e-mail like we do here. We can do a billion-dollar deal and never ever see each other [in North America]. It just doesn't work that way in Africa. You have got to be there, they have got to see you, and they have got to trust you, they have got to trust your clients." Bahamin notes that the pace of mod- ernization of business laws across the continent is uneven. A group of 16 French-speaking countries in west and central Africa have harmonized their commercial laws under the aegis of the Organization for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa in part to attract foreign investment into the OHADA zone. As well, speed and timing of business agreements often present a challenge to western law firms and their clients, says Bahamin. "We are used to doing things very fast. It doesn't always happen at the same speed" in Africa. "The only way to deal with it is to accept that the way we do it is not necessarily the right way. . . . You really have to have that [attitude] otherwise you will get very frustrated." Foreign investment in Africa has progressed over the years from World Bank-backed projects and large oil and gas projects to U.S., French, and U.K. investments to most recently large proj- ects financed by China, observes Heen- an Blaikie's director of international business Jacques Bouchard Jr. "But now it is really open for business, people feel more comfortable about the conti- nent, you have real democracies that are really stable that are open for business," he says. "People are aware obviously of the resources but they now see Africa as a real place to do real business." Heenan Blaikie services clients doing business in Africa primarily out of its offices in Montreal, Toronto, and Paris and has seen activity on the upswing there. "We see the business growing and growing rapidly," says Bouchard. African countries in general have 00181RW-A26671-63671_CanLaw4.625x7..indd 1 30 OCTO BER 2011 www. CANADIAN Lawyermag.com 8/19/11 9:33 AM