The Gazette 1992

JUNE 1992

GAZETTE

N W The Law Society Annual Conference Berlin

Berlin:- the euphoria is over and the hangover has set in - not a comment on the condition of delegates returning from the Law Society's Annual Conference in Berlin but, rather, a theme running through the various speakers' presentations to the conference about the problems and challenges posed by the unification of Germany. The Annual Conference, the first ever to be held outside Ireland, had as its theme "Lawyers in Business in Europe" and was attended by 280 delegates including 21 members of the Irish Bar, lawyers from Australia, England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and, of course, Germany. The conference speakers addressed the position of the unified Germany on the world stage, the problems posed by unification, the structure of the legal profession in Germany and the prospects for foreign lawyers and investors wishing to do business there. Unity a Psychological Process Opening the conference, Doctor Jutta Limbach, Senator for Justice in the Berlin Senate, stated that: "the joy about borders being open has given way to anxieties about an uncertain future. The constitutional unity of Germany has been brought about, but the process of growing together is turning out to be more difficult than at first thought." She continued: "we are now comprehending that German unity poses not only legal and economic problems but psychological problems at the same time. After all, we experienced post war history differently in the two parts of Germany. We cannot demand that we lay our own past to rest without difficulty. In fact, the post war history of Germany is now only coming to an end." Doctor Limbach said that the process of German unity was above

The speakers at the first session of the conference on Friday, 24 April, 1992 L-R Dr. Gunter Schardey, President Deutscher Anwalt Verein; Peter Sutherland S.C.; Adrian Bourke, President Law Society; Prof. Dr. Jutta Limbach, Senator for Justice, Berlin and Dr. Helmut Wolf, Director, Berlin Economic Development Corporation. all burdened by the difficult

and contracts. Staff of the BEDC assist prospective investors in negotiations with city officials, banks etc by providing, if required, a complete interface between the investor and Berlin. Privatising Business Gerd Wachter a director of the TVeuhandanstalt, the organisation charged with the privatisation of state owned industry in the former East Germany, described the work of his organisation, known colloquially as the "Treuhand". He outlined the difficulties that arose in transferring ownership of businesses and property since all property in the former East Germany was State owned. In addition, the function of the TVeuhand was not primarily to make money in the market place by obtaining the maximum price for the industries on sale, but rather to achieve certain so called "soft goals" such as the maintenance of employment. The Legal Framework The President of the Deutscher Anwalt Verein (German Lawyers

economic and social circumstances of people in the new Federal States of Germany. She said that the harmonising of conditions between the former East Berlin and West Berlin was, therefore, the overriding political goal of the Berlin Senate. Berlin Ripe for Investors Helmut Wolf, Director of the Berlin Economic Development Corporation (BEDC), gave a profile of Berlin, a city with a population of 3.5 million, an area of 350 square miles, generating a "gross domestic product" annually of about DM 120 billion. With the unification of Germany, Berlin was once again the German capital and continued to be the major intellectual, cultural and industrial centre of Germany. Interest in investment in Berlin was growing continuously he said. The BEDC, a non-profit organisation, was available to assist investment- seeking firms and individuals by supplying advice on finance, taxes, land, buildings, labour and services and in establishing business plans

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