The US legal profession is scrutinising the UK’s legal services ‘big bang’ as part of a worldwide review that could lead to its own legal services revolution, the Gazette has learned.

In her first UK interview since taking office, Carolyn Lamm, president of the 400,000-strong American Bar Association and partner at US firm White & Case, told the Gazette the ABA is monitoring regulatory developments in the UK, Australia and France. Clementi-style reforms have been implemented in Australia and are under review in France.

A special ABA commission will file a preliminary report on international legal services markets at the end of this year. It will formulate recommendations in 2010 and publish these at the start of 2011 for dissemination to the 50 US states.