This is part two of our latest Topical Talks business roundtable.

Geoff Kermeen raised the question of legal and professional services in the island.

He said he got the sense that there was a need for legal services to be growing in the Isle of Man, especially in specialised legal services.

He said: ‘The legal sector in the island is a growth area.

‘There is a need for more lawyers, we need more expertise. I know that might not be a popular thing to say. But it is true.’

He said the legal services are needed to support the government’s aim of promoting growth areas in business.

‘I think there is a general feeling in the legal community that we are rather in a bit of a bunker at the moment.

‘All sorts of stuff is being thrown in our direction at the moment.

‘And there is not enough appreciation that we are a growth sector and in order for other things to grow legal and professional services need some support.’

Dr Alex Allinson praised the legal sector by saying: ‘You are a big part of the economy and you have very good corporate structures.

‘I agree with you, I do not think there is that recognition in the wider field that legal services are an industry.

‘They contribute to the economy.’

Richard Butt, editor, chairing the gathering, asked Mr Kermeen what type of lawyer was needed.

He replied that commercial contracts are an area that has suffered from not having many lawyers in that area.

‘You contrast that with the City of London and any area that relates to technology and intellectual property.’

Basil Bielich of Browne Craine said if you are going to encourage entrepreneurs to develop here you need intellectual property [IP] lawyers.

threat

Carol Glover said she has picked up a feeling among some of the legal profession that there is a threat from the Attorney General’s department taking more business in-house.

‘The firms need to have the confidence to know that they have a future and it will not be challenged,’ she said.

John Coleman of Microgaming said that for legal advice in the eGaming world companies often go to ‘magic circle’ lawyers in London.

[In the world of commercial law, there is often talk of ‘Magic Circle’ firms. This is an informal term used to describe what are generally regarded as the leading UK-headquartered law firms.]

‘The expertise, perceived or real, isn’t here, to give those opinions.

‘Some opinions we receive, in theory, are reasonably straightforward but there does not appear to be the confidence that you will get the right opinion from here.’

Geoff Kermeen said it was a chicken and egg situation. ‘If those lawyers are here and they are networked in the right way then they will actually bring the work here,’ he said.

Basil Bielich said that with the new substance laws coming in soon there will be the need for good intellectual property lawyers here, ‘that you can go down the road and sit down with to discuss what you should be doing.’

Geoff Kermeen stressed his point was that it was a business opportunity.

‘I’m talking about legal services in the island as a growth area so that you don’t have to go to London.’

He said 75 per cent of the Keystone Law team were lawyers that had come to the Isle of Man and had chosen to live and settle here.

‘It’s about the reasons why they had decided to come here in the first place and then replicating that for the future.’