The European Communities (Lawyer’s Practice) (Amendment) Regulations 2004

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the European Communities (Lawyer’s Practice) Regulations 2000 (S.I. 2000/1119) (“the 2000 Regulations”). The 2000 Regulations implemented Council Directive No. 98/5/EC, dated 16th February 1998, to facilitate practice of the profession of lawyer on a permanent basis in certain States other than the State in which the professional qualification was obtained (“the Directive”).

The amendments made by these Regulations are consequential on changes to the effect of the Directive resulting from—

(a) the Agreement between the European Community and its Member States, and the Swiss Confederation, on the free movement of persons, signed at Brussels on 21st June 1999 (which was designated a Community Treaty by the European Communities (Definition of Treaties) (Agreement between the European Community and its Member States and the Swiss Confederation on the Free Movement of Persons) Order 2000 (S.I. 2000/3269); and

(b) Annex VIIB to the Agreement on the European Economic Area (by which Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway joined the EEA) which came into force as it relates to the Directive on 1st March 2003;

(c) the treaty concerning the accession of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia to the European Union, signed at Athens on 16th April 2003.

Those changes confer certain rights to practice on a permanent basis as a lawyer on nationals of the affected countries.

Regulation 3 extends the definition of “European lawyer” in the 2000 Regulations to refer to those countries, and the national designations of lawyers in those countries.

Regulation 2 makes transitional provision as to the application of the 2000 Regulations to lawyers from the countries added to the definition of “European lawyer”.

Regulations 12 and 13 of the 2000 Regulations are amended so that the prohibition on registered European lawyers conducting certain work related to property and executries does not apply to lawyers from the affected countries (regulations 4 and 5).

Regulation 7 makes the following two minor amendments to the 2000 Regulations consequential on the original Directive—

(i) section 32(4) of the Solicitors Act 1974, which permits the Law Society to disclose certain information about a solicitor’s accounts in relation to a criminal investigation, is extended to apply to registered European lawyers; and

(ii) the reference to a solicitor in paragraph 11 of Schedule 2 to the Administration of Justice Act 1985 is modified so as to refer also to a registered European lawyer. The effect of this is to preclude an order under section 43 of the Solicitors Act 1974 being made against a registered European lawyer who is employed or remunerated by a recognised body.