If a life spent on both sides of the tracks is an asset to someone in the parliamentary lobbying game then London firm Moon Beever -- the UK branch of transatlantic practice ShawnCoulson -- could have done a lot worse than hire Lord Peter Temple-Morris.Lord Temple-Morris has worked as a barrister, a solicitor, a Tory MP, an independent MP, a Labour MP, and now -- as of two weeks ago -- a peer.Lobbying is not the word that Lord Temple-Morris prefers to use for his department at ShawnCoulson.

It is, he insists, a public affairs department.

'It wouldn't be proper for me to lobby personally ', he says, referring to his role as a peer.However, lawyers at ShawnCoulson can carry out lobbying tasks, he says, such as creating briefing papers and making submissions on legislative changes to appropriate civil servants on behalf of clients.Lord Temple-Morris does not shy away from the issue of lobbying.

He says that in the same way that 'lawyers have lost out tremendously to accountants in many spheres of business that they wouldn't have in the US', with lobbying, lawyers should seize the initiative back from 'public relations consultancies which have been making most of the running for the past ten years in the UK'.Over at City firm DLA, the head of the firm's lobbying section -- another solicitor peer, former Liberal Party chairman Lord Clement-Jones -- is much more gung-ho about what the firm is trying to achieve.

'Lobbying gets tarnished by the foolishness of one or two individuals, but it has cleared up its act a lot in the last ten years,' he says, adding that there is no shame in the word.He says DLA was the first firm to seize the initiative 'US style' with its practice, based in London and Brussels.

DLA Upstream has 15 staff, all of whom, except Lord Clement Morris himself, are not legally qualified.

But he agrees with Lord Temple-Morris that it is an area ripe for lawyers.

'The advantage for us is that we have access to lawyers of so many different specialist areas who understand the legislative points.'Undoubtedly, DLA Upstream represented something of a first, with its separate branding from the firm, but few could deny that City giant Clifford Chance was the first English firm to set up a dedicated practice to public policy and lobbying.Richard Thomas, the partner who heads up the department, says: 'Whereas most lawyers advise on what the law is, we are advising on what it's going to be .

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lawyers can no longer afford not to be aware of what's in the pipeline.'He says the role of the department involves preparing guides about the machinery of government for clients, an annual guide to the Queen's speech, an on-line public policy service on European and UK legislation, and advising firms about areas of practice -- such as public private partnerships -- where there are government issues.Mr Thomas suggests that one reason for increased interest in the field is the fact that 'government is becoming far more open'.

The increasing transparency of process gives more scope for lawyers such as him to identify the correct time and place for suggesting changes to legislation.One Bill the firm lobbied on last year -- he prefers not to specify which -had a whole clause dropped at the instigation of the firm's efforts.

But Mr Thomas acknowledges that the lobbying is usually targeted at smaller amendments to clauses.He is also pleased by the announcement last week by the new leader of the Commons -- former Foreign Secretary Robin Cook -- that the government intends to use draft Bills more widely, as these enable more professional lobbying input.It is tempting to assume that- with the examples of Lords Temple-Morris and Clement-Jones -- it is a prerequisite to have at least one ermine-lined consultant on the payroll of a successful lobbying outfit.But most of the players agree that it is far more important to have an understanding of, and good contacts with, the civil service, rather than parliament.Lord Clement-Jones says: 'It's entirely coincidental with my role as head of Upstream that I also sit in the House of Lords.

I have been involved in this area for many years before that happened.'This woul d explain why Lord Temple-Morris works with a foreign office civil servant Nicholas Hall and thatMr Thomas was an under-secretary in the Office of Fair Trading during the Thatcher and Major years before his arrival at Clifford Chance in 1992, when he set up the first public policy department in the City.Mr Thomas says Clifford Chance would not appoint someone within parliament to represent its interests in this way, because it would be afraid that partisanship might impede the advice.

Instead, he says, 'we find our expertise with civil servants and regulators more often than government officers'.There is no ethical issue thrown up by Lords being involved in lobbying, say Lords Temple-Morris and Clement-Jones, who both insist that the Lords' systems for declaring interests are more rigorous than the Commons.The important thing, so far as Lord Temple-Morris is concerned, is to distinguish between the lobbying functions.

'What lawyers should not under any circumstances be doing is influence-peddling,' he says.

'To have lawyers hanging around bars at night in parliament does not befit a solicitor.'However, as the quantity of firms involved in lobbying rises -- as he predicts it will -- this is something that the Law Society should keep an eye on, and he adds that some codification of legal lobbyists' roles might need to be considered.Lord Clement-Jones agrees that regulation is currently unnecessary because of the 'rigorous effects of the Neill report' -- which redefined the extent to which politicians declare their interests -- and also because regulation of solicitors generally is so rigorous.However, he says DLA Upstream has its own code of conduct to deal with the extent to which authorities may be contacted, to prevent anyone accepting financial inducements or attempting to put people onto retainers to gain influence.He says there are too few players in the lobbying game to justify regulation, though he agrees that -- if there is a marked increase in lawyers in the market -- it might be appropriate to adopt a voluntary code.ShawnCoulson's ultimate plan, Lord Temple-Morris explains, is to co-ordinate its lobbying efforts over several jurisdictions, and build an international lobbying capacity across different jurisdictions.

He explains: 'We already have dedicated staff in Brussels, Rome, Washington, Paris and Canada.' He predicts the increase in global transactions means that ShawnCoulson will be on cue to step in with this capability for corporate clients, seeking advice across many different jurisdictions.Although Upstream has dedicated staff in Brussels, Lord Clement-Jones says the plan is to use DLA's international network, D&P, to spread its influence, though the importance of cross-border business should not be overplayed.

He adds: 'We take things on a country-by-country basis.'Mr Thomas backs this up, explaining that the public policy role in different countries varies enormously.Of ShawnCoulson's bold step into the market, Lord Clement-Jones says: 'It demonstrates that these departments are strong and beneficial to firms .

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there's nothing like a bit of competition to stir up the market.'Whether lawyers really strike gold in the lobbying market remains to be seen, but those who don't get stuck in now look like being left behind.