The Government has approved a legal services initiative to make Ireland a global hub for international litigation and arbitration post-Brexit.
The initiative seeks to position Ireland to fully capitalise on the opportunities that may arise from the UK exiting the European Union, effectively making Ireland the only English-speaking common-law jurisdiction fully integrated into the European legal order.
Minister for Justice, Charlie Flanagan, said it will form a component of the Government's Brexit Strategy.
It has been welcomed by the Council of The Bar of Ireland which led the initiative in conjunction with the Law Society of Ireland and the wider legal community, with support from the IDA.
Chairman of The Council of The Bar of Ireland, Micheál P O'Higgins SC said legal services are already seeing an uptake in international businesses seeking to make Ireland their European base. "It is prudent that there would be a coordinated and strategic approach - across all sectors - to ensure that Ireland capitalises on this in whatever way it can. The legal sector is no different and that is why the Council of The Bar of Ireland has been driving this initiative for the past 18 months and we welcome the formal approval by Government today, which will see the initiative form a component of the Government's overall Brexit Strategy."
The UK is the second largest market for legal services globally and English law is used for commercial contracts across the world. As the UK leaves the EU, the likelihood is that judgements of English courts may not be enforced in EU member states easily. This is just one of the reasons why there is now a real opportunity to increase the market for international legal services in Ireland.
"The growth of international legal services here stands to deliver a very positive knock-on effect because if Ireland becomes a place in which international litigation and arbitration is routinely carried out, it also inevitably enhances the reputation of Ireland as a place to do business," Mr O'Higgins said.
