What Is the Establishment Directive?
Establishment Directive 98/5/EC
The Establishment Directive 98/5/EC allows a lawyer who is qualified in one EU Member State (and who is an EU national) to practice on a permanent basis in another Member State under their home professional title.
“Lawyers” covered by the Establishment Directive are defined in article 2 of the Directive. Lawyers wishing to make use of their rights under this Directive must register with the competent body (usually the local bar) in the Member State in which they wish to practice, and be bound by the relevant local rules of professional conduct and insurance and guarantee fund regimes.
Once registered, a European lawyer is able to advise on the law of their home state, international and European law, and also the law of the host state (subject to certain restrictions).
Practice under the Directive must be either on a permanent basis or a temporary provision of services under the Services Directive of 1977.
The two states are mutually exclusive. Whether activities are “permanent” or “temporary” is a question of law on which anyone who may be covered by the Establishment Directive may wish to take advice.
It should be remembered that the Directive only affects lawyers wishing to practise in a Member State other than their own. For European purposes, the UK constitutes one Member State, so the Directive does not affect transfers between Scotland, Northern Ireland and England and Wales.
The Law Society of Northern Ireland is one of the two "competent authorities” in Northern Ireland. The other is the General Council of the Bar of Northern Ireland.
For more information please visit - https://www.gov.uk/
ESTABLISHMENT DIRECTIVE AND BREXIT
Following the decision of the UK to withdraw from the European
Union, the REL process will no longer be open to EU lawyers wishing to
establish in Northern Ireland once the UK leaves the EU. Should the UK
leave the EU with a negotiated deal in place, under current terms in
this area the Establishment Directive would continue to apply until the
end of the transitional period (31 December 2020).
In
the event of a ‘no deal’ Brexit, the UK Government has put in place
legislation (this includes Northern Ireland and England and Wales, with
equivalent legislation introduced in Scotland) to unilaterally offer EU
lawyers registered in the UK a grace period until December 2020 to
either transfer to UK title, or to alter their business model
accordingly. However, the process will close to new applicants on exit day.
The
Services of Lawyers and Lawyer’s Practice (Revocation etc.) (EU Exit)
Regulations 2019 can be found by clicking here
Under the terms of The Services of Lawyers and Lawyers
Practice (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, which implement the UK-Swiss
Separation Agreement, the rights of existing Swiss Lawyers registered as RELs
in Northern Ireland, England and Wales before Exit Day will not be revoked and the Regulations
also provide for a longer transitional period for Swiss Lawyers seeking to
register and initiate the application to transfer to the host profession for a
period of four years from the date of Exit Day.
The Regulations can be found by clicking here.