European Bar Leaders Express Concerns Over Third Money Laundering Directive

by Ulrika Lomas, for LawAndTax-News.com, Brussels

14 February 2005

According to a report from the UK Law Society's Law Gazette news service last week, the heads of European bar and legal associations have called on the EC to slow the progress of the proposed third money laundering directive in order to properly assess the ramifications of its predecessor.

The Law Gazette revealed that in an open letter sent to the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers, the bar leaders explained that:

"There is growing evidence of the disparate ways in which the second directive has been implemented, leading to more severe reporting and due diligence burdens in some member states than in others, and to consequent administrative burdens in cross-border matters."

The forthcoming introduction of the third directive, which confirms and tightens various aspects of the previous legislation, is of especial concern to the UK's legal profession, which already faces among the toughest money laundering reporting requirements in the EU.

Speaking with regard to the letter, Law Society president, Edward Nally announced that:

"We recognise the need for a pan-European approach to this issue. But there should be a full assessment of how recent reporting obligations have altered the solicitor-client relationship, the justice system and whether they have helped identify money laundering."

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