EC acts on lawyer law

France, Ireland and Spain are to face legal action over their failure to implement the European rights of establishment directive for lawyers.The European Commission has referred the three countries to the European Court of Justice after their unsatisfactory response to notices sent in February asking them to detail their implementation plans.Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Portugal - which all received similar notices - have not been referred as they are implementing the directive.This will come as especially good news to two solicitors advising ex-pats in the Algarve, who have been threatened by police with shutting their offices.

This would not happen under the directive.The directive - implemented in the UK last year - entitles lawyers to practise permanently and without restriction, under their home professional title, in another member state on the same basis as that country's own lawyers.

The directive also makes it easier to requalify.The deadline for implementation was 14 March 2000.

'The fact that these member states have not implemented the directive constitutes a potential barrier to lawyers wishing to establish themselves in these countries,' the commission said.Meanwhile, the Law Society has expressed concern over a commission working paper on harmonising the law on the cross-border recognition of professional qualifications.This could lose the hard-won exception that allows national law societies to demand an aptitude test before foreign lawyers requalify.Neil Rose