Practice area 09
Corporate due diligence
Verification of companies, contracts, compliance status and liabilities before a transaction closes.
We conduct legal due diligence for mergers, acquisitions and investments, covering corporate records, contracts, compliance status and potential liabilities, so that clients can make informed decisions and confirm the legal integrity of a transaction.
Somalia has no single searchable register that answers whether a company exists, who owns it, what it owes and whether it is in litigation. Diligence here is built from primary documents, enquiries at the registries and courts, and interviews. Our reports state what was verified, what could not be verified, and what the gap means for the decision.
Instructing the firm on this
Bring the documents you already hold. The first meeting produces a written note of the position and the options, not an immediate filing.
What we do
- Corporate records: registration, licences, shareholding, directors and constitutional documents
- Contract review: obligations, termination rights, change-of-control provisions and exposure
- Compliance status with regulatory, tax and employment requirements
- Potential liabilities, including litigation, security interests and outstanding obligations
- Procurement and supply chain diligence, including suppliers in other jurisdictions
- Counterparty and partner verification before contracts, sub-awards or joint ventures
- Red-flag reports with a remediation plan where issues are found
Who we act for
- Investors and buyers in mergers, acquisitions and investments
- Financial institutions assessing a borrower or counterparty
- NGOs and development partners vetting local partners and vendors
- Companies entering supply, distribution or joint venture arrangements
Legal framework
The rules this work is measured against.
Somali law is being rebuilt in several of these areas at once. We tell clients where the current requirement ends and where a proposed reform begins.
- Scope
- Corporate records, contracts, compliance status, liabilities
- Method
- Document verification, registry and court enquiries, interviews
- Output
- Written report: verified, unverified, and the risk each gap creates
- Use
- Transaction decisions, pricing, warranties and conditions to closing