Directive 98/5/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 1998 to facilitate practice of the profession of lawyer on a permanent basis in a Member State other than that in which the qualification was obtained
Date: 1998-02-16
Institutions: Council of the European Union, European Parliament
Subjects: EU Member State, approximation of laws, equivalence of diplomas, freedom to provide services, lawyer, right of establishment

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DIRECTIVE 98/5/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE
COUNCIL

of 16 February 1998

to facilitate practice of the profession of lawyer on a permanent basis in a
Member State other than that in which the qualification was obtained

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL
OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 49, Article 57(1)
and the first and third sentences of Article 57(2) thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),

Having regard to the Opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (2),

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in
Article 189b of the Treaty (3),

(1) Whereas, pursuant to Article 7a of the Treaty, the
internal market
is to comprise an area without
internal frontiers; whereas, pursuant to Article 3(c)
of the Treaty, the abolition, as between Member
States, of obstacles to freedom of movement for
persons and services constitutes one of the ob-
jectives of the Community; whereas, for nationals
of the Member States, this means among other
things the possibility of practising a profession,
whether in a self-employed or a salaried capacity,
in a Member State other than that in which they
obtained their professional qualifications;

(2) Whereas, pursuant to Council Directive 89/48/EEC
of 21 December 1988 on a general system for the
recognition of higher-education diplomas awarded
on completion of professional education and
training of at least three years’ duration (4), a lawyer
who is fully qualified in one Member State may
already ask to have his diploma recognised with a
view to establishing himself in another Member
State in order to practise the profession of lawyer
there under the professional title used in that State;
whereas the objective of Directive 89/48/EEC is to
ensure that a lawyer is integrated into the profes-
sion in the host Member State, and the Directive
seeks neither to modifiy the rules regulating the
profession in that State nor to remove such a lawyer
from the ambit of those rules;

(3) Whereas while some lawyers may become quickly
integrated into the profession in the host Member
State, inter alia by passing an aptitude test as
provided for in Directive 89/48/EEC, other fully

(1) OJ C 128, 24. 5. 1995, p. 6 and
OJ C 355, 25. 11. 1996, p. 19.

(2) OJ C 256, 2. 10. 1995, p. 14.
(3) Opinion of the European Parliament of 19 June 1996 (OJ C
198, 8. 7. 1996, p. 85), Council Common Position of 24 July
1997 (OJ C 297, 29. 9. 1997, p. 6), Decision of the European
Parliament of 19 November 1997 (Council Decision of 15
December 1997).

(4) OJ L 19, 24. 1. 1989, p. 16.

qualified lawyers should be able to achieve such
integration after a certain period of professional
practice in the host Member State under their
home-country professional titles or else continue to
practise under
their home-country professional
titles;

(4) Whereas at

the end of

that period the lawyer
should be able to integrate into the profession in
the host Member States after verification that the
possesses professional experience in that Member
State;

(5) Whereas action along these lines is justified at
Community level not only because, compared with
the general system for the recognition of diplomas,
it provides lawyers with an easier means whereby
they can integrate into the profession in a host
Member State, but also because, by enabling
lawyers
their home-country
professional titles on a permanent basis in a host
Member State, it meets the needs of consumers of
legal services who, owing to the increasing trade
flows resulting,
from the internal
market, seek advice when carrying out cross-border
transactions
law,
Community law and domestic laws often overlap;

to practise under

in particular,

international

which

in

(6) Whereas action is also justified at Community level
because only a few Member States already permit in
their territory the pursuit of activities of lawyers,
otherwise than by way of provision of services, by
lawyers from other Member States practising under
their home-country professional
titles; whereas,
however,
in the Member States where this pos-
sibility exists, the practical details concerning, for
example, the area of activity and the obligation to
authorities differ
register with the competent
considerably; whereas such a diversity of situations
leads to inequalities and distortions in competition
between lawyers
from the Member States and
constitutes an obstacle to freedom of movement;
whereas only a directive laying down the condi-
tions governing practice of the profession, other-
wise than by way of provision of services, by
lawyers practising under
their home-country
professional titles is capable of resolving these dif-
ficulties and of affording the same opportunities to
lawyers and consumers of
legal services in all
Member States;

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(7) Whereas,

in keeping with its objective,

this
Directive does not lay down any rules concerning
purely domestic situations, and where it does affect
national rules regulating the legal profession it does
so no more than is necessary to achieve its purpose
effectively; whereas
is without prejudice in
particular to national legislation governing access
to and practice of the profession of lawyer under
the professional
title used in the host Member
State;

it

(8) Whereas lawyers covered by the Directive should
be
competent
required to register with the
authority in the host Member State in order that
that authority may ensure that they comply with
the rules of professional conduct in force in that
State; whereas the effect of such registration as
regards the jurisdictions in which, and the levels
and types of court before which, lawyers may prac-
tise is determined by the law applicable to lawyers
in the host Member State;

(9) Whereas lawyers who are not integrated into the
profession in the host Member State should prac-
tise in that State under their home-country profes-
sional titles so as to ensure that consumers are
properly informed and to distinguish between such
lawyers and lawyers from the host Member State
practising under the professional title used there;

law of

(10) Whereas lawyers covered by this Directive should
be permitted to give legal advice in particular on
the
their home Member States, on
Community law, on international law and on the
law of
the host Member State; whereas this is
already allowed as regards the provision of services
under Council Directive 77/249/EEC of 22 March
1977 to facilitate the effective excercise by lawyers
of freedom to provide services (1); whereas, however,
provision should be made, as in Directive 77/
249/EEC, for the option of excluding from the
activities of lawyers practising under their home-
country professional titles in the United Kingdom
and Ireland the preparation of certain formal docu-
ments in the conveyancing and probate spheres;
whereas this Directive in no way affects the provi-
sions under which, in every Member State, certain
activities are reserved for professions other than the
legal profession; whereas the provision in Directive
77/249/EEC concerning the possibility of the host
Member State to require a lawyer practising under

title to work in
his home-country professional
conjunction with a local lawyer when representing
or defending a client in legal proceedings should
also be incorporated in this Directive; whereas that
requirement must be interpreted in the light of the
case law of the Court of Justice of the European
Communities,
in particular its judgment of 25
February 1988 in Case 427/85, Commission v.
Germany (2);

(11) Whereas to ensure the smooth operation of the
justice system Member States should be allowed, by
means of specific rules, to reserve access to their
highest
lawyers, without
to specialist
hindering the integration of Member States’ lawyers
fulfilling the necessary requirements;

courts

(12) Whereas a lawyer

remain registered with the

registered under his home-
country professional title in the host Member State
competent
must
authority in his home Member State if he is to
retain his status of lawyer and be covered by this
Directive; whereas for that reason close collabora-
tion between the competent authorities is indis-
in particular in connection with any
pensable,
disciplinary proceedings;

(13) Whereas lawyers covered by this Directive, whether
salaried or self-employed in their home Member
States, may practise as salaried lawyers in the host
Member State, where that Member State offers that
possibility to its own lawyers;

title of

(14) Whereas the purpose pursued by this Directive in
enabling lawyers to practise in another Member
State under their home-country professional titles
is also to make it easier for them to obtain the
professional
that host Member State;
whereas under Articles 48 and 52 of the Treaty as
interpreted by the Court of Justice the host
Member State must take into consideration any
professional experience gained in its
territory;
whereas after effectively and regularly pursuing in
the host Member State an activity in the law of that
State including Community law for a period of
three years, a lawyer may reasonably be assumed to
have gained the aptitude necessary to become fully
integrated into the legal profession there; whereas
at the end of that period the lawyer who can,
subject
furnish evidence of his
professional competence in the host Member State
should be able to obtain the professional title of
that Member State; whereas if the period of effec-
least
tive and regular professional activity of at
three years includes a shorter period of practice in

to verification,

(1) OJ L 78, 26. 3. 1977, p. 17. Directive as last amended by the

1994 Act of Accession.

(2)

[1988] ECR 1123.

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the law of the host Member State, the authority
shall also take into consideration any other know-
ledge of that State’s law, which it may verify during
an interview; whereas if evidence of fulfilment of
these conditions is not provided, the decision taken
by the competent authority of the host State not to
grant the State’s professional title under the facilita-
tion arrangements linked to those conditions must
be substantiated and subject
to appeal under
national law;

for

growing

tendency

(15) Whereas, for economic and professional reasons,
lawyers
in the
the
Community to practise jointly,
including in the
form of associations, has become a reality; whereas
the fact that lawyers belong to a grouping in their
home Member State should not be used as a pretext
to prevent or deter them from establishing them-
selves in the host Member State; whereas Member
States should be allowed, however, to take appro-
priate measures with the legitimate aim of safe-
guarding the profession’s independence; whereas
certain guarantees should be provided in those
Member States which permit joint practice,

HAVE ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:

Article 1

Object, scope and definitions

1.
The purpose of this Directive is to facilitate practice
of the profession of lawyer on a permanent basis in a
self-employed or salaried capacity in a Member State
other than that in which the professional qualification
was obtained.

2.

(a)

For the purposes of this Directive:

‘lawyer' means any person who is a national of a
Member State and who is authorised to pursue his
professional activities under one of
the following
professional titles:

Belgium

Denmark

Germany

Greece

Spain

France

Ireland

Italy

Avocat/Advocaat/Rechtsanwalt

Advokat

Rechtsanwalt

Dijgc(cid:149)qor

Abogado/Advocat/Avogado/
Abokatu

Avocat

Barrister/Solicitor

Avvocato

Luxembourg

Avocat

Netherlands

Advocaat

Austria

Rechtsanwalt

Portugal

Finland

Sweden

Advogado

Asianajaja/Advokat

Advokat

United Kingdom Advocate/Barrister/Solicitor

(b)

(c)

(d)

(e)

(f)

‘home Member State' means the Member State in
which a lawyer acquired the right to use one of the
professional titles referred to in (a) before practising
the profession of lawyer in another Member State;

‘host Member State' means the Member State in which
a lawyer practises pursuant to this Directive;

‘home-country professional title' means the profes-
sional title used in the Member State in which a
lawyer acquired the right to use that title before prac-
tising the profession of lawyer in the host Member
State;

‘grouping' means any entity, with or without legal
personality, formed under the law of a Member State,
within which lawyers pursue their professional acti-
vities jointly under a joint name;

‘relevant professional title' or ‘relevant profession'
means the professional title or profession governed by
the competent authority with whom a lawyer has
registered under Article 3, and ‘competent authority'
means that authority.

3.
This Directive shall apply both to lawyers practising
in a self-employed capacity and to lawyers practising in a
salarial capacity in the home Member State and, subject to
Article 8, in the host Member State.

Practice of

lawyer within the
4.
meaning of this Directive shall not include the provision
of services, which is covered by Directive 77/249/EEC.

the profession of

Article 2

Right to practise under the home-country profes-
sional title

Any lawyer shall be entitled to pursue on a permanent
basis, in any other Member State under his home-country
professional title, the activities specified in Article 5.

Integration into the profession of
Member State shall be subject to Article 10.

lawyer in the host

Article 3

Registration with the competent authority

1. A lawyer who wishes to practise in a Member State
other than that in which he obtained his professional
qualification shall register with the competent authority
in that State.

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The competent authority in the host Member State
2.
shall register the lawyer upon presentation of a certificate
attesting to his registration with the competent authority
in the home Member State. It may require that, when
the home
presented by the competent authority of
Member State, the certificate be not more than three
months old. It shall inform the competent authority in
the home Member State of the registration.

3.

For the purpose of applying paragraph 1:

(cid:190) in the United Kingdom and Ireland, lawyers prac-
tising under a professional title other than those used
in the United Kingdom or Ireland shall register either
with the authority responsible for the profession of
barrister or advocate or with the authority responsible
for the profession of solicitor,

(cid:190) in the United Kingdom, the authority responsible for
a barrister from Ireland shall be that responsible for
the profession of barrister or advocate, and the
authority responsible for a solicitor from Ireland shall
be that responsible for the profession of solicitor,

(cid:190) in Ireland, the authority responsible for a barrister or
an advocate from the United Kingdom shall be that
responsible for the profession of barrister, and the
authority responsible for a solicitor from the United
Kingdom shall be that responsible for the profession
of solicitor.

4. Where the relevant competent authority in a host
Member State publishes the names of lawyers registered
with it, it shall also publish the names of lawyers regis-
tered pursuant to this Directive.

Article 4

Practice under the home-country professional title

1. A lawyer practising in a host Member State under his
home-country professional title shall do so under that
title, which must be expressed in the official language or
one of the official languages of his home Member State,
in an intelligible manner and in such a way as to avoid
confusion with the professional title of the host Member
State.

2.
For the purpose of applying paragraph 1, a host
Member State may require a lawyer practising under his
home-country professional title to indicate the profes-
sional body of which he is a member in his home
Member State or the judicial authority before which he is
entitled to practise pursuant to the laws of his home
Member State. A host Member State may also require a
lawyer practising under his home-country professional

title to include a reference to his registration with the
competent authority in that State.

Article 5

Area of activity

1.
Subject to paragraphs 2 and 3, a lawyer practising
under his home-country professional title carries on the
same professional activities as a lawyer practising under
the relevant professional title used in the host Member
State and may, inter alia, give advice on the law of his
home Member State, on Community law, on international
law and on the law of the host Member State. He shall in
any event comply with the rules of procedure applicable
in the national courts.

to prepare deeds

2. Member States which authorise in their territory a
prescribed category of
for
lawyers
obtaining title to administer estates of deceased persons
and for creating or transferring interests in land which, in
other Member States, are reserved for professions other
than that of lawyer may exclude from such activities
lawyers practising under a home-country professional title
conferred in one of the latter Member States.

3.
For the pursuit of activities relating to the represen-
tation or defence of a client in legal proceedings and
insofar as the law of the host Member State reserves such
activities to lawyers practising under the professional title
of that State, the latter may require lawyers practising
under their home-country professional titles to work in
conjunction with a lawyer who practises before the judi-
cial authority in question and who would, where neces-
sary, be answerable to that authority or with an ‘avou(cid:130)'
practising before it.

Nevertheless, in order to ensure the smooth operation of
the justice system, Member States may lay down specific
rules for access to supreme courts, such as the use of
specialist lawyers.

Article 6

Rules of professional conduct applicable

1.
Irrespective of the rules of professional conduct to
which he is subject in his home Member State, a lawyer
practising under his home-country professional title shall
be subject to the same rules of professional conduct as
lawyers practising under the relevant professional title of
the host Member State in respect of all the activities he
pursues in its territory.

2.
Lawyers practising under their home-country profes-
sional titles shall be granted appropriate representation in
the professional associations of the host Member State.

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Such representation shall involve at least the right to vote
in elections to those associations’ governing bodies.

The host Member State may require a lawyer prac-
3.
tising under his home-country professional title either to
take out professional indemnity insurance or to become a
member of a professional guarantee fund in accordance
with the rules which that State lays down for professional
activities pursued in its territory. Nevertheless, a lawyer
practising under his home-country professional title shall
be exempted from that requirement if he can prove that
he is covered by insurance taken out or a guarantee
provided in accordance with the rules of his home
Member State, insofar as such insurance or guarantee is
equivalent in terms of the conditions and extent of cover.
Where the equivalence is only partial, the competent
authority in the host Member State may require that
an additional guarantee be
additional
contracted to cover the elements which are not already
covered by the insurance or guarantee contracted in
accordance with the rules of the home Member State.

insurance or

Article 7

Disciplinary proceedings

1.
In the event of failure by a lawyer practising under
his home-country professional title to fulfil the obliga-
tions in force in the host Member State, the rules of
procedure, penalties and remedies provided for in the
host Member State shall apply.

2.
Before initiating disciplinary proceedings against a
lawyer practising under his home-country professional
title, the competent authority in the host Member State
shall
inform the competent authority in the home
Member State as soon as possible, furnishing it with all
the relevant details.

The first subparagraph shall apply mutatis mutandis
where disciplinary proceedings are initiated by the
competent authority of the home Member State, which
shall inform the competent authority of the host Member
State(s) accordingly.

3. Without prejudice to the decision-making power of
the competent authority in the host Member State, that
authority shall cooperate throughout
the disciplinary
proceedings with the competent authority in the home
Member State. In particular, the host Member State shall
take the measures necessary to ensure that the competent
authority in the home Member State can make submis-
sions to the bodies responsible for hearing any appeal.

The competent authority in the home Member State
4.
shall decide what action to take, under its own procedural
and substantive rules, in the light of a decision of the
competent authority in the host Member State concerning
a lawyer practising under his home-country professional
title.

5. Although it is not a prerequisite for the decision of
the competent authority in the host Member State, the
temporary or permanent withdrawal by the competent
authority in the home Member State of the authorisation
to practise the profession shall automatically lead to the
lawyer concerned being temporarily or permanently
prohibited from practising under his home-country
professional title in the host Member State.

Article 8

Salaried practice

A lawyer registered in a host Member State under his
home-country professional title may practise as a salaried
lawyer in the employ of another lawyer, an association or
firm of lawyers, or a public or private enterprise to the
extent that the host Member State so permits for lawyers
registered under the professional title used in that State.

Article 9

Statement of reasons and remedies

Decisions not to effect the registration referred to in
Article 3 or to cancel such registration and decisions
imposing disciplinary measures shall state the reasons on
which they are based.

A remedy shall be available against such decisions before
a court or tribunal in accordance with the provisions of
domestic law.

Article 10

Like treatment as a lawyer of the host Member
State

1. A lawyer practising under his home-country profes-
sional title who has effectively and regularly pursued for a
period of at least three years an activitiy in the host
Member State in the law of
that State including
Community law shall, with a view to gaining admission to
the profession of lawyer in the host Member State, be
exempted from the conditions set out in Article 4(1)(b) of
‘Effective and regular pursuit'
Directive 89/48/EEC,
means actual exercise of the activity without any interrup-
tion other than that resulting from the events of everyday
life.

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It shall be for the lawyer concerned to furnish the
competent authority in the host Member State with proof
of such effective regular pursuit for a period of at least
three years of an activity in the law of the host Member
State. To that end:

(a)

the lawyer shall provide the competent authority in
the host Member State with any relevant information
and documentation, notably on the number of matters
he has dealt with and their nature;

(b) the competent authority of the host Member State
may verify the effective and regular nature of the
the
activity pursued and may,
lawyer to provide, orally or in writing, clarification of
or further details on the information and documenta-
tion mentioned in point (a).

if need be, request

Reasons shall be given for a decision by the competent
authority in the host Member State not
to grant an
exemption where proof is not provided that the require-
ments laid down in the first subparagraph have been
fulfilled, and the decision shall be subject to appeal under
domestic law.

has pursued there shall be carried out by means of an
interview with the competent authority of the host
Member State in order to verify the regular and ef-
fective nature of the activity pursued.

Reasons shall be given for a decision by the competent
authority in the host Member State not to grant authorisa-
tion where proof is not provided that the requirements
laid down in the first subparagraph have been fulfilled,
and the decision shall be subject
to appeal under
domestic law.

The competent authority of the host Member State
4.
may, by reasoned decision subject
to appeal under
domestic law, refuse to allow the lawyer the benefit of the
provisions of this Article if it considers that this would be
against public policy,
in a particular because of dis-
ciplinary proceedings, complaints or incidents of any
kind.

5.
The representatives of
the competent authority
the application shall
entrusted with consideration of
preserve the confidentiality of any information received.

2. A lawyer practising under his home-country profes-
sional title in a host Member State may, at any time, apply
to have his diploma recognised in accordance with
Directive 89/48/EEC with a view to gaining admission to
the profession of lawyer in the host Member State and
practising it under the professional title corresponding to
the profession in that Member State.

6. A lawyer who gains admission to the profession of
lawyer in the host Member State in accordance with para-
graphs 1, 2 and 3 shall be entitled to use his home-
country professional
title, expressed in the official
language or one of the official languages of his home
title corre-
Member State, alongside the professional
sponding to the profession of lawyer in the host Member
State.

3. A lawyer practising under his home-country profes-
sional title who has effectively and regularly pursued a
professional activity in the host Member State for a period
of at least three years but for a lesser period in the law of
that Member State may obtain from the competent
authority of that State admission to the profession of
lawyer in the host Member State and the right to practise
it under the professional title corresponding to the profes-
sion in that Member State, without having to meet the
conditions referred to in Article 4(1)(b) of Directive 89/
48/EEC, under the conditions and in accordance with the
procedures set out below:

take into account

(a) The competent authority of the host Member State
shall
the effective and regular
professional activity pursued during the abovemen-
tioned period and any knowledge and professional
experience of the law of the host Member State, and
any attendance at lectures or seminars on the law of
the host Member State, including the rules regulating
professional practice and conduct.

(b) The lawyer shall provide the competent authority of
the host Member State with any relevant information
and documentation, in particular on the matters he
has dealt with. Assessment of the lawyer’s effective
and regular activity in the host Member State and
assessment of his capacity to continue the activity he

Article 11

Joint practice

Where joint practise is authorised in respect of lawyers
carrying on their activities under the relevant professional
title in the host Member State, the following provisions
shall apply in respect of lawyers wishing to carry on
activities under
registering with the
title or
competent authority:

that

(1) One or more lawyers who belong to the same
grouping in their home Member State and who prac-
tise under their home-country professional title in a
host Member State may pursue their professional
activities in a branch or agency of their grouping in
the host Member State. However, where the funda-
mental rules governing that grouping in the home
Member State are incompatible with the fundamental
rules laid down by law, regulation or administrative
action in the host Member State, the latter rules shall
prevail insofar as compliance therewith is justified by
the public interest
in protecting clients and third
parties.

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(2) Each Member State shall afford two or more lawyers
from the same grouping or the same home Member
State who practise in its territory under their home-
country professional titles access to a form of joint
practice. If the host Member State gives its lawyers a
choice between several forms of joint practice, those
same forms shall also be made available to the afore-
mentioned lawyers. The manner
in which such
lawyers practise jointly in the host Member State shall
be governed by the laws, regulations and adminis-
trative provisions of that State.

(3) The host Member State shall take the measures neces-

sary to permit joint practice also between:

(a) several lawyers from different Member States prac-
tising under their home-country professional titles;

(b) one or more lawyers covered by point (a) and one
or more lawyers from the host Member State.

The manner in which such lawyers practice jointly in
the host Member State shall be governed by the laws,
regulations and administrative provisions of that State.

(4) A lawyer who wishes to practise under his home-
country professional title shall inform the competent
authority in the host Member State of the fact that he
is a member of a grouping in his home Member State
information on that
and furnish any
grouping.

relevant

(5) Notwithstanding points 1 to 4, a host Member State,
insofar as it prohibits lawyers practising under its own
relevant professional title from practising the profes-
sion of
lawyer within a grouping in which some
persons are not members of the profession, may refuse
to allow a lawyer registered under his home-country
professional title to practice in its territory in his
capacity as a member of his grouping. The grouping is
deemed to include persons who are not members of
the profession if

State, they may employ the name of any grouping to
which they belong in their home Member State.

The host Member State may require that, in addition to
the name referred to in the first subparagraph, mention
be made of the legal form of the grouping in the home
Member State and/or of the names of any members of the
grouping practising in the host Member State.

Article 13

Cooperation between the competent authorities in
the home and host Member States and confiden-
tiality

In order to facilitate the application of this Directive and
to prevent its provisions from being misapplied for the
sole purpose of circumventing the rules applicable in the
host Member State, the competent authority in the host
Member State and the competent authority in the home
Member State shall collaborate closely and afford each
other mutual assistance.

They shall preserve the confidentiality of the information
they exchange.

Article 14

Designation of the competent authorities

Member States shall designate the competent authorities
empowered to receive the applications and to take the
decisions referred to in this Directive by 14 March 2000.
They shall communicate this information to the other
Member States and to the Commission.

Article 15

(cid:190) the capital of
partly, or

the grouping is held entirely or

Report by the Commission

(cid:190) the name under which it practises is used, or
(cid:190) the decision-making power in that grouping is

exercised, de facto or de jure,

by persons who do not have the status of lawyer within
the meaning of Article 1(2).

Where the fundamental rules governing a grouping of
lawyers in the home Member State are incompatible
with the rules in force in the host Member State or
with the provisions of the first subparagraph, the host
Member State may oppose the opening of a branch or
agency within its territory wihtout the restrictions laid
down in point (1).

Ten years at the latest from the entry into force of this
Directive, the Commsision shall report to the European
Parliament and to the Council on progress in the imple-
mentation of the Directive.

After having held all the necessary consultations, it shall
on that occasion present its conclusions and any amend-
ments which could be made to the existing system.

Article 16

Implementation

Article 12

Name of the grouping

Whatever the manner in which lawyers practise under
their home-country professional titles in the host Member

1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regula-
tions and administrative provisions necessary to comply
with this Directive by 14 March 2000. They shall forth-
with inform the Commission thereof.

When Member States adopt these measures, they shall
contain a reference to this Directive or shall be accompa-
nied by such reference on the occasion of their official

14. 3. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 77/43

publication. The methods of making such reference shall
be adopted by Member States.

2. Member States shall communicate to the Commis-
sion the texts of the main provisions of domestic law
which they adopt in the field covered by this Directive.

Article 18

Addressees

This Directive is addressed to the Member States.

Done at Brussels, 16 February 1998.

Article 17

This Directive shall enter into force on the date of its
publication in the Official Journal of the European
Communities.

For the European Parliament

For the Council

The President

J. M. GIL-ROBLES

The President

J. CUNNINGHAM