Some countries grant licenses to non-resident lawyers, who may then appear regularly on behalf of foreign clients. Others require all lawyers to live in the jurisdiction or to even hold national citizenship as a prerequisite for receiving a license to practice. But the trend in industrialized countries since the 1970s has been to abolish citizenship and residency restrictions. For example, the Supreme Court of Canada struck down a citizenship requirement on equality rights grounds in 1989,Andrews v Law Society of British Columbia [1989] 1 SCR 143. and similarly, American citizenship and residency requirements were struck down as unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973 and 1985, respectively.Abel, American Lawyers, 68. The European Court of Justice made similar decisions in 1974 and 1977 striking down citizenship restrictions in Belgium and France.Mary C. Daly, "Ethical and Liability Issues in International Legal Practice", in Comparative Law Yearbook of International Business, vol. 17, eds. Dennis Campbell and Susan Cotter, 223–268 (London: Kluwer Law International, 1995), 233.
Some countries grant licenses to non-resident lawyers, who may then appear regularly on behalf of foreign clients. Others require all lawyers to live in the jurisdiction or to even hold national citizenship as a prerequisite for receiving a license to practice. But the trend in industrialized countries since the 1970s has been to abolish citizenship and residency restrictions. For example, the Supreme Court of Canada struck down a citizenship requirement on equality rights grounds in 1989,Andrews v Law Society of British Columbia [1989] 1 SCR 143. and similarly, American citizenship and residency requirements were struck down as unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973 and 1985, respectively.Abel, American Lawyers, 68. The European Court of Justice made similar decisions in 1974 and 1977 striking down citizenship restrictions in Belgium and France.Mary C. Daly "Ethical and Liability Issues in International Legal Practice", in Comparative Law Yearbook of In,ternational Business, vol. 17, eds. Dennis Campbell and Susan Cotter, 223–268 (London: Kluwer Law International, 1995), 233.