The Law Society has been granted unprecedented access to the United Nations.
This special consultative status provides the representative body for solicitors in England and Wales with unprecedented access to member states and the United Nations system.
The Society will have scope to collaborate with member states on issues including human rights and the rule of law, as well as have input into discussions on the Council’s agenda on an international and domestic level.
Consultative status for an organisation allows it to actively engage with the Economic and Social Council of the UN, and its subsidiary bodies, as well as with the United Nations Secretariat, programmes, funds and agencies in a number of ways. The Law Society will be able to:
- provide expert information and advice to the UN
- be informed about the provisional agenda of the Economic and Social Council
- make suggestions for the provisional agenda
- designate official representatives to the United Nations Headquarters in New York and the United Nations offices in Geneva and Vienna.
Law Society president Andrew Caplen said:
‘We are thrilled to have been granted special consultative status at the UN. The recognition of the Law Society as an organisation that can provide insight and expertise will further our work upholding the independence of the legal profession, the rule of law, and human rights on a domestic and international level.’