Why the Commonwealth matters

The recent Melbourne CLA conference has been a reminder of the value of shared legal experience and resources, writes Alison Hook

The Commonwealth Lawyers Association held its conference in Melbourne in the run up to Easter, following a break of nearly four years since its last conference in Kuala Lumpur (see [2003] Gazette, 17 April, 1; 24 April, 6).

You might be forgiven for concluding that a four-year interlude suggests that the Commonwealth is a dispensable concept to lawyers.

But this attitude not only underestimates the ongoing attraction of the Commonwealth in the rest of the world, it also undersells the importance of this organisation to English and Welsh solicitors.

There is perhaps no better starting point for understanding what the Commonwealth means for solicitors than by reference to the strapline used for the Melbourne meeting: 'Common Law.

Common Good.

Common Wealth'.

First and foremost, the Commonwealth, through its role in preserving and promoting the common law, represents a huge commercial advantage for English solicitors.

Of course, the more jurisdictions that use a law that is based on ours, the easier it will be for our lawyers to work abroad and for the legal market back home to prosper.

It is no coincidence that the most successful exporters of legal services, the US, the UK and Australia, are all common law jurisdictions.

Some of the world's most exciting emerging markets, such as India, Malaysia, South Africa, as well as more established regions such as Singapore, are common law and Commonwealth countries.

As the Law Society's international department seeks to open markets for English and Welsh solicitors abroad, the Commonwealth - which accounts for 23% of the world's trade and 20% of its inward investment - is a card that can be played to our advantage.

But before getting carried away by the potential commercial value of the Commonwealth, we should not forget what the word itself means.

Derived from the term 'common weal' or common good, it implies some kind of solidarity between its members.

The Commonwealth must play a role in working for better standards of governance and human rights in all of its member countries, if it is to have any meaning at all.

Solicitors from the richer countries of the Commonwealth have both the responsibility and the capacity to help to tackle the problems facing their colleagues in less developed areas.

The international department receives regular requests from law societies in poorer countries which are seeking friendly relations with their UK counterparts, looking for books to build their law libraries, asking for expert input into the creation of everything from free legal advice networks to the establishment of a free and independent legal profession.

But perhaps what is most important for solicitors, and where the real wealth of the Commonwealth lies, is in its networking potential.

The 54 countries of the Commonwealth contain 1.7 billion people, or 30% of the world's population.

One-quarter of the G8 is Commonwealth.

This extended networking potential holds good for lawyers too.

By participating actively in Commonwealth lawyers' networks, we can access people and places that would otherwise be out of reach.

Australian and New Zealand bar leaders hold high office in LAWASIA, the Canadian Bars and Law Societies are in the thick of North American Free Trade Agreement discussions on lawyers' mobility, and our Singaporean and Malaysian colleagues give us access to relevant ASEAN discussions.

The next Commonwealth Lawyers Association conference will take place in London in 2005.

If this is to be more than a biennial jamboree, lawyers from all over the Commonwealth, but English solicitors in particular, must recognise the potential of this organisation.

Perhaps then we could make 'common law, common good, commonwealth' more than just an advertising strapline.

Alison Hook is director of the Law Society's international department