UK Law Society Reduces Red Tape For Foreign Firms

by Robin Pilgrim, LawAndTax-News.com, London

05 March 2004

The UK's Law Society last week announced plans to liberalise its regime for foreign law firms employing UK-qualified lawyers.

According to a report from the Legal Week news service, the Society's policy-making council has voted to allow foreign law firms to employ English solicitors without having to seek regulation by the Law Society as a foreign practice.

Previously, overseas firms employing just one English lawyer were obliged to do this, whether or not they had a presence in the United Kingdom.

Under the new rules, only firms with more than half of their practice staffed by lawyers from outside their home bar will need to register with the Law Society.

English lawyers will also, henceforth, be permitted to join foreign firms with non-lawyer principals. However, overseas lawyers wishing to practise in the UK will still need to register with the Law Society.

Explaining the reasoning behind the changes, council member Andrew Holroyd told Legal Week that:

"The only benefit of the status quo is that it increases Chancery Lane's coffers, and that is not a good enough reason."

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