In May of this year, the government announced an accelerated programme for deregulating the electricity sector, although many lawyers are sceptical over the timetable. The rapid increase in private sector activity has led to a boom for Spain's lawyers, especially international trade lawyers and property litigators. Labour lawyers are also very much in demand, because the employee protection laws are now amongst the strongest in Europe. According to Spanish lawyers, other growth areas include advice on personal injury, medical negligence, immigration, tax, corporate finance, white-collar crime, IT and the 'millennium bug', telecommunications, environmental and family law. It is only now that the legal arms of accountancy firms are taking custom away from traditional firms, after five years of building their base.
Auditors have to audit' was an oft-heard complaint.
I am not sure these firms can give impartial advice to the very same companies they are auditing,' says Frederico Fr hbeck, head of the German-Spanish law firm bearing his name. That said, many argue that a total separation would now be impossible without causing serious disruption to clients. The colegios have been 'up in arms' about auditors providing legal services to their own clients for many years. While amendment 22 in the Spanish constitution says that the professions are 'incompatible', and a Royal Decree looks set to outlaw conflicts of interest, most believe that the big accountancy firms are here to stay. The auditing firms are looking for pedigree.