SEPTEMBER 2008

Welcome to this my first Presidential diary entry. I was delighted when Downs asked me to write this diary which offers both the firm and its clients a brief glimpse into the life of the President of the Law Society.
 
As President, I am privileged to be given the use of a beautiful Georgian town house which is located in Carey Street, London. The house was originally built in 1731-2 as a business and town house for Richard Foley, an MP and bencher of Lincoln’s Inn. I can clearly recall the first time I ever visited these impressive premises many years ago. I decided I wanted to become a Solicitor.  I was duly summonsed to Carey Street where I was interviewed by 3 very eminent Solicitors who wanted to know why I thought I was suitable Solicitor material.   It always makes me smile to think of that day and I would have loved to be able to ask them now if they thought I was suitable to represent the profession!
 
I took up office on 17 July and life has been as hectic as I imagined but it has been thrilling and has provided me with several global and prestigious platforms on which to fly the flag of the English judicial system and, more importantly, our highly respected and talented English Solicitors.
 
My first 2 major engagements kicked off in August with back to back trips to New York and Quebec. The first event was the American Bar Association’s Annual Conference which was attended by over 1000 eminent legal professionals, including Presidents and Chairs of all the major Bar Associations in the world. It was a wonderful opportunity to meet and chat with our American counterparts and compare the issues they have to deal with, how they manage and service their clients and also how they market their services.   Not surprisingly, their issues and the way they work are not too dissimilar to our own and whilst our profession isn’t glamorised in the same way as American Attorneys, there is no doubting that we are considered to have some of the best legal brains in the world and one of the best and fairest judicial systems.
 
As such, there are huge opportunities to be had overseas by English law firms. It isn’t just for the major London players but for smaller, innovative firms like Downs who are already capitalising on these opportunities by cultivating working relationships abroad. Similarly, foreign companies are very keen to make in-roads into the UK market and capitalise on the benefits our legal expertise can bring to their businesses. An interesting fact I would like to share with you. 10% of English Solicitors work abroad and are represented in 92 countries. 4 out of 6 of the world’s biggest law firms emanate from London and not many people know that!     The reason for this is because foreign countries respect the integrity of our Solicitors and trust in our legal system.
 
One evening during dinner I was in conversation with an American Attorney and we were discussing home and business and when he asked me where I lived and worked, I was pretty sure he wouldn’t have a clue. I was tempted to say London because most people have heard of our capital city but I thought no, I will tell him that I live near Guildford and work for a practice in Dorking, Surrey. I was very surprised to hear that he had actually heard of Guildford and Dorking but stunned when he said he knew of Downs!   A very surreal experience, when you are dining in the wonderful Rainbow Room at the top of the Rockefeller Centre looking out across Manhattan.
 
As I have touched on above, there are significant business opportunities to be had overseas and I have been working with the Foreign Office to promote this. I was recently asked to launch an initiative whereby Indian firms were given an insight into the UK commercial arena with fact finding visits to businesses located in London, Cambridge, Manchester and Birmingham. There was a lot of enthusiasm for the visit and we played host to a total of 28 Indian companies. The plan is to offer similar opportunities to other countries and Korea would be an ideal candidate as there already exists a large Korean community in New Malden.
 
It has also given me great pleasure to host a number of courtesy visits for VIPs. As I write this page, I am due to meet with Jack Straw, the Lord Chancellor, as well as Caroline Flint, the Housing Minister. I have also met with the Master of the Rolls, the Chief Executive of the Council of Mortgage Lenders and the Chief Land Registrar to see what can be done to re-energise our ailing property market. As some of you will know, property issues have always been a passion of mine and the current state of our market causes me real concern, as I know it does you all. I continue to champion for changes to HIPs and whilst the Government’s recent announcement regarding Stamp Duty and loans to assist first time buyers is to be welcomed, I believe it is not enough and much more needs to be done to get the market moving.
 
As I bring this entry to an end and reflect on the last couple of months, there are two things that stand out for me. Firstly, to travel all the way to the US and meet an American Attorney who knows my home town and Downs, and secondly, and I think this has been the highlight for me, is to hear first hand how much English Solicitors are respected on an international level. I have always believed we have the best legal system and the best Solicitors and now that reputation is confirmed. The prestige is extremely uplifting and certainly fires my enthusiasm and passion. To be President of such a valued and valuable commodity is an absolute privilege.
 
Coming next.....
 
Over the next month, I will be attending the International Bar Association Conference in Buenos Aires and the Commonwealth Lawyers Association Conference in Jamaica and I look forward to sharing those experiences with you, as well as bringing you up to date on various other projects and initiatives.
 
Paul Marsh
Downs Solicitors LLP