Globalisation: lawyers should be open-minded about strengths of other legal systems

Greater liberalisation of legal services markets in Europe and the US is 'critical' to their 'long-term success and prosperity', Lord Brittan, the former European Commissioner and home secretary, said last week.


Lord Brittan, a consultant at City firm Herbert Smith, told delegates at the New York State Bar Association conference - hosted by the Law Society in London - that further legal services liberalisation should be considered at the World Trade Organisation's Doha round of talks.


He said: 'Such liberalisation is crucial - and you can be sure that the degree of liberalisation achieved [at the talks] will still leave plenty more to do. Europe and the US have got to get together if the world as a whole is to advance. Legal practitioners will be working in a world in which the march of globalisation is inexorable. Law is critical to this.'


Lord Brittan argued that competition in legal markets is increasing rapidly, as legal services providers strive to secure market share 'because they recognise the enormous potential that exists'. He also pointed to the trend for transatlantic mergers, as well as the fact that there are nearly 90 US firms with offices in London, and some 65 with offices in Brussels.


He said: 'National distinctions are being eroded all the time, and the law itself is becoming ever more international. Take for example the growth in international arbitration, and the convergence of competition and financial reporting laws. Competition regulators are co-operating internationally, and so are regulators in the financial services area.


'But lawyers need to go beyond recognising opportunities that arise from access to other markets as a consequence of globalisation. They need to support the convergence of those legal principles that enable international trade to develop and, in doing so, be open-minded about the strengths of other legal systems or concepts against their own - which is hard for lawyers whose tradition is as strong as the common law.'


Lord Brittan added that lawyers can be facilitators of global change by breaking down restrictive practices - for example, through the changes contained in the White Paper following the Clementi review - by promoting internationally accepted legal concepts, as in arbitration, and by adhering to generally accepted ethical principles such as the rule of law, to promote confidence in emerging markets.