WTO spotlights lawyers

The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is rethinking the classifications system that divides the professions according to sector, in a move that could see its professional codes governing accountants applied to lawyers.

The WTO plans to launch a consultation on legal services in January, its representative Hamid Mamdouh told the IBA conference.

Mr Mamdouh said legal services will be scrutinised by the WTO with the ultimate goal of ensuring domestic regulations do not operate in a discriminatory way.

The WTO has already developed codes for accountants and the talks are expected to give audit and other professional organisations a global forum to debate multi-disciplinary partnerships.'The object now is that something needs to be done to facilitate the cross-border movement of professionals.

The questions have to be asked: what should be done? What do lawyers actually need in this respect to facilitate their cross-border movement? How do we make sure that qualification requirements do not constitute organised barriers to trade?' said Mr Mamdouh.

The WTO has been using the United Nations' sector-based classification system, but Mr Mamdouh said it was not working.

The IBA has long feared that the WTO might simply apply the principles established in an earlier investigation of the accountancy sector to the legal profession, without taking account of the unique characteristics of lawyers.

However, this fear is tempered by the feeling that the rules established by the WTO for accountants do not pose much threat to the integrity of the legal profession.

Anne Mizzi