Allen & Overy (A&O) is advising Rwanda as the once war-torn nation changes from civil to common law to boost foreign direct investment.

A&O currently has a 12-lawyer team on the ground in the country, training its legal community on the common law system and general commercial law as part of the changeover process.

The team's two-week visit has seen lawyers from the magic circle firm carry out training sessions for legal staff in the Supreme Court, the Ministry of Justice, as well as the Rwandan Bar Association.

The ongoing programme will run for at least three years and is part of an A&O pro bono initiative that involved two years of preparation, with the project designed to be transferable to other jurisdictions in the future.

Rwanda currently has around 450 solicitors. Its legal system fell into disrepair after the 1994 genocide that saw the death of an estimated 800,000 people, including the majority of the country's lawyers.

The project is being run by A&O's senior pro bono manager, Chris Marshall, who has been overseeing the programme since its inception two years ago.

It is being co-ordinated on the ground by A&O associate Pallavi Sekhri, but the team also includes City arbitration partner Richard Farnhill and corporate partner Paul Crook, who is also the firm's global head of know-how.

Marshall commented: "An initiative like this is crucial to Rwanda as the genocide left the country without that generation of older lawyers to provide new lawyers with this knowledge. One of the most important factors for foreign direct investors is the certainty that there is a fair and just judicial system."

Allen & Overy on the Legal Week Wiki