ELA – The members
Established for more than 30 years, the British Council’s European Young Lawyers' Scheme enables young lawyers from all over Europe to spend 6 months in England or Scotland and to familiarise themselves with either the laws of England and Wales at the College of Law in London or Scots law at the University of Edinburgh.

On completion of the European Young Lawyers’ Scheme, participants are automatically invited to join the ELA. Since 1985 the ELA has grown substantially both in number and geographically. The Association now boasts around 600 members from 27 European countries and the numbers continue to increase, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe and the Baltic States.

ELA – The concept
The European Lawyers Association is probably the only real multidisciplinary lawyers’ association in Europe in the sense that its members comprise not only private practitioners, but also in-house lawyers, lawyers in government practice, judges and lawyers working for international institutions.

The ELA aims to consolidate and expand the network established by the Scheme and through that network to promote a greater mutual understanding of the legal systems of present and potential member countries in order that members can provide a more comprehensive legal service. In particular, the Association seeks to continue, strengthen and improve the links with practitioners in the Uk.

ELA – The activities
To this end, the Association holds a 4-day Annual Meeting in one of the member countries. The Meeting combines a legal conference comprising lectures and talks on topical legal and political issues from high profile speakers, with the Annual General Meeting, a Board Meeting and other social events offering the chance to renew existing contacts and to further widen the ELA network.

ELA – The organisation
The ELA is headed by an elected board of 7 voting members. In addition, the bi-annual Board Meetings are customarily attended by the national representatives, who co-ordinate national activities in their respective countries.

The ELA website www.european-lawyers.org is an important tool for giving information on the Association’s activities and facilitating communication between members. The Association also produces a bi-annual newsletter which includes articles of general interest as well as on the various activities and initiatives of the ELA. Contributions to the newsletter are welcome from all practitioners connected with the Association.