Debevoise, Boies Schiller and other top firms are advising African mining companies as they increasingly turn to arbitration as African governments impose strict regulations, revoke licenses, and push for local ownership and resource nationalism, creating a surge in disputes.

Canadian gold explorer Barrick and other mining companies logged investor-state arbitrations against Mozambique, Rwanda, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and the Democratic Republic of Congo in the Washington, DC-based International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) in the past 12 months. There were 10 mining-related disputes filed during that timeframe, according to the centre’s website.