As international human rights work at the Law Society is given a new lease of life, Tony Fisher calls on lawyers to show corporate responsibility


'Justice and the rule of law - You must uphold the rule of law and the proper administration of justice' (rule 1.01 of the new Solicitors Code of Conduct).



Lawyers have a paramount duty to uphold the rule of law and protect fundamental freedoms. At a time when changes are proposed to 'deprofessionalise' some areas of work traditionally undertaken by solicitors, it is these core values that will separate solicitors from other legal providers in the future.



In 2006, following publication of the White Paper on future regulation of the profession and the Law Society's 'Have Your Say' survey, international human rights work at the Law Society effectively ceased as resources were withdrawn. As the new chairman of the international human rights committee, I was asked to lead a review group to look at future activities.



The group started with a clean sheet of paper, and made a series of recommendations identifying core activities which should be

re-instated. We looked at the work done in the past via the committee and international department, and considered what could and should be done in the future.



The department is in many ways the unsung hero of the Law Society. With limited resources, massive support has been made available to lawyers in other countries who face hostile opposition and outright persecution while working to defend fundamental rights and the rule of law. This work has helped develop the international 'brand' of the Law Society, and has had beneficial effects on the commercial interests of the profession in England and Wales. Yet little is known about this work among the profession as a whole. It is time for the Law Society to become more communicative in relation to the work that is being done, and more facilitative of human rights work being undertaken by others.



The first step in terms of 'restarting' human rights at the Law Society has been the re-instatement of interventions on behalf of lawyers and other human rights defenders whose rights are being violated in other countries. Training courses will be held for solicitors who want to acquire the skills necessary to draft effective interventions, and individual follow-up on particular cases will be encouraged. Steps are also under way to design and deliver seminars, training and other activities to provide evidence of the Society's support for international human rights standards. The third strand of this renaissance will be the development of additional project work, providing support for lawyers overseas who need assistance in securing adherence to the rule of law in their own countries.



The committee is keen to work with solicitors in other organisations, be they individual firms or groups of solicitors already engaged in human rights activities. As the work develops, it is hoped that a membership group will also be formed, which engages in domestic and international human rights issues. This would be a group to provide an anchor around which human rights initiatives for solicitors could develop and which could work with existing groups involved in human rights.



It is time for all of us to engage, at some level, with this work. Whether we are legal aid practitioners or City lawyers, we can all make a contribution. In an age of increasing enthusiasm for corporate social responsibility among commercial undertakings, it is time for solicitors to show that they can take a lead in securing respect for human rights and the rule of law everywhere.



l For more information, email internationalhumanrights@lawsociety.org.uk.



Tony Fisher is a partner at Colchester firm Fisher Jones Greenwood and chairman of the Law Society's international human rights committee