ID Cards For All Lawyers

The national bars and law societies of the member States of the European Union, the three members of the European Economic Area (Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland) and Switzerland are members of the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe (CCBE). Bars and law societies from other European countries are associate members (Council of Europe countries in official negotiations for accession to the European Union) or observer members (other Council of Europe countries).

The CCBE develops policies in response to current issues through a combination of specialist committees, the Standing Committee, Plenary Sessions, the presidency and the secretariat. Until 2008, the specialist IT law committee did not have a representative of the three bars and three law societies comprising the United Kingdom, but the first representative was agreed in 2008. This article is to alert the reader to an important development on the current agenda that will affect many lawyers in the United Kingdom.

Identity Cards

The CCBE began to issue an identity card in 1978. The card has proved to be very useful for lawyers that need to obtain access to courts and institutions outside their own jurisdiction. For instance, the European Court of Justice and Court of First Instance recognise the card. Although the card is produced by the CCBE, the national bar or law society issues the card in the name of the CCBE. The national bar or law society carries out the verification procedure to ensure that the applicant is a lawyer currently authorised and registered with it. Until recently, the card was in paper format, but more recently, a plastic version has become available.

Although identity cards tend not to be used in the United Kingdom, nevertheless, certain categories of lawyer, namely those with a criminal practice, tend to need to produce evidence of identity to gain entry to prisons to visit their clients. At present a passport suffices, but a passport is only a travel document, and to replace it with an 'identity' card may prove to be very useful in the future - leaving the passport in relative safety at home, free from risk of loss. There are also plans to incorporate a digital signature on the card, partly because a number of bars and law societies mandate the use of an identity card and the use of secure means of sending and receiving e-mail. For instance, the Spanish bar has offered to demonstrate the identity card system it operates in the forthcoming Plenary Session that takes place in Budapest in May 2008.

The current view of the IT Panel of the Bar of England and Wales is to agree that the continued use of the identity card may be beneficial to some lawyers, although it should not be compulsory. In addition, the inclusion of a digital signature, whilst of benefit to some lawyers in Europe, may not be necessary in England and Wales, although that should not preclude individual lawyers from opting in to have a digital signature. However, it is not certain whether a barrister in England and Wales will be able to have a digital signature included on a CCBE identity card issued by the Bar. Much will depend on how the infrastructure of the digital signature is developed, and whether the Bar may be required to be a Certification Authority. This is for the future, because the structure and procurement of the system have yet to be agreed.

ABA Joint Meeting

Members of the American Bar Association are intending to visit Europe in 2009 to discuss IT law in general, and it was generally thought to be a good idea by the members of the CCBE IT Committee to discuss issues of mutual interest whilst the experts from the USA were in Europe. The proposed meeting is seen as an opportunity to exchange ideas and experiences in relation to authentication between lawyers and courts and compare the proposed CCBE ID Card with the systems in the USA. The proposed topics, which are open to any suggestions at this stage, include e-filing, the practical use of digital signatures, data retention, cross-border transfers of electronically stored information and instructing digital evidence specialists when gathering evidence (criminal and civil proceedings).

Stephen Mason, 2008