Standards: lawyers should consider social responsibility


A group of 35 leading international law firms has drawn up a code of best practice on how firms should be run.



The draft code addresses governance issues ranging from recruitment and career development of members of staff to regulatory compliance and social responsibility.



It says many firms believe the legal profession needs to reinforce its ethical and professional standards in order to meet - 'from a position of greater strength' - the various challenges facing lawyers around the world. Depending on the location of the firm, these could include the increasing power of governments, the increasing complexity and intrusiveness of regulation, and weakness in the processes of justice.



'An important element of [meeting these challenges] will involve adapting the way law firms are run,' the code says.



The document was prepared by representatives from City firms including Allen & Overy, Clifford Chance and Slaughter and May, as well as smaller practices in Romania, Poland, Bermuda and Australia.



Stephen Denyer, Allen & Overy's regional managing partner for Europe and principal draftsman of the guidelines, said the code was intended to share best practice and provide benchmarks of good governance that could be used by firms to direct their thinking on the various aspects of law firm management.



'We have provided generic principles and don't anticipate that firms will adopt the entire document. It is more of a checklist and is intended to get people thinking about the topics they should consider in relation to good governance.



'I hope it is going to be a living document that will evolve over time based on the feedback we receive.'



Catherine Baksi