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The draft directive of 17th April 1969 was not ap-
proved by the European Parliament and a new draft
was submitted with a number of amendments to meet
the objections raised and this was accepted by the
European Parliament on 21st September 1972. The
main features of the original draft are preserved. The
next step will be the submission of the draft by the
European Parliament to the Council of the E.E.C.
which may accept or reject it. The draft directive has
been received in the French version only but an
English translation is in course of preparation and will
be published in the Gazette.
(c)
Consequences
Although the original draft directive was by its terms
applicable to advocates as such this was partly due to
difficulties of translation and there is little doubt that
the position of solicitors will have to be considered and
any necessary additional directives or amendments of
the present directive to authorise foreign lawyers to
carry on the practice of solicitor in the Republic will
no doubt be made. Its effect on members of the In-
corporated Law Society of Ireland would appear to be
as follows.
Foreign lawyers might become entitled to engage in
the following activities :
Formation of companies,
Conveyancing and property transactions,
Probate, Administration and trust work,
General commercial practice.
The main significance of these provisions would be
the opening of the door to foreign lawyers engaged by
clients having business transactions in Dublin and else-
where. This might have a serious effect on conveyancing
and commercial work as it is well known that substan-
tial outside interests are at present involved in much of
the development work in Dublin and elsewhere.
It must be remembered however that the Treaty of
Rome and the various conventions following it are not
the result of negotiations between professional or other
interests in the various states. They are inter-state
agreements and the professional and other interests
have no influence except insofar as they may be able
to impress their views on their own governments.
Respective rights of solicitors and counsel of Britain
and Ireland in the representation of clients before
the European Courts and corresponding rights of
Continental Lawyers in British and Irish Courts
There are two matters to be considered viz. (1) the
right of audience before the E.E.C. Court and (2)
appearances before the ordinary Courts of the member
countries (municipal Courts).
The Court of Justice of the E.E.C. is the subject of a
protocol of the Rome Treaty. The jurisdiction con-
ferred upon the Court by the Treaty (and it has
no other) falls under four main heads.
Proceedings against institutions of the Community,
Proceedings against States,
Reference from National Courts or tribunals for
interpretation of provisions of the Treaty applic-
able to proceedings in the National Courts of
member States under Article 177 of the Treaty.
Cases between the Community and its employees.
Article 17 of the Protocol deals with the right of
audience before the E.E.C. Court. The rules of pro-
cedure of the E.E.C. Court prescribe three stages, viz.
(1) the written procedure consisting of the pleadings
and written arguments lodged by each party,
(2) the procedure of inquiry under which the Court
itself may interview witnesses but in which
apparently the parties take only a minor part,
(3) the oral procedure where the advocates submit
arguments on behalf of their clients.
In the official French translation of Article 17 of the
Protocol the reference to advocat is "un avocat inscrit á
un barreau de l'un des Etats membres". In the official
English translation the Article provides that the States
and institutions of the Community shall be represented
before the Court by an agent appointed for each case
and that the agent may be assisted by an adviser or by
a lawyer entitled to practise before a Court of a
member State. Other parties must be represented by a
lawyer entitled to practise before a Court of a member
State. Such agents, advisers and lawyers when they
appear before the Court enjoy the rights and immuni-
ties necessary to the independent exercise of their duties
under conditions laid down in the rules of procedure.
University teachers being nationals of a member states
whose law accord them a right of audience shall have
the same rights before the Court as are accorded by the
article to lawyers entitled to practise before a Court of
a member state. There has been a difference of opinion
in England as to whether solicitors have a right of
audience before the European Court. The matter has
been resolved by a compromise reached between the
Law Society and the Bar. The term lawyer is wide
enough to include both counsel and solicitor.
These matters however are no longer relevant in the
Republic. Section 17 of the Courts Act 1971 enacted
that a solicitor qualified to practise in the Republic
acting for a party in any Court has a right of audience
in that Court. Solicitors are therefore advocates in the
full sense in all Courts in the Republic and should
therefore have the same right of audience as Irish
counsel in the European Court. Where the rules of
European domestic courts permit foreign lawyers to
appear Irish solicitors and counsel would also have the
same status.
Resolutions of Consultative Commissions
of European Bars
Resolutions passed at Edinburgh on 29th April 1972
relating to the practice of the profession of lawyer
in foreign countries
The First Resolution
expressed the common doctrines
of the Bars of the European Community on the ques-
tion of liberalisation of the services of lawyers upon a
t port made by the rapporteur Maitre Louis Pettiti.
The Consultative Commission, having brought to
the notice and confirmed its previous resolution taken
in Milan on 7th October 1971 and in Amsterdam on
the 25th April 1970 has decided :
That the liberalisation of non-contentious activities
including that of consultation of all lawyers of the
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