Board member Raúl Ochoa analyzes the situation of legal education in Europe at the Intermediary Congress of the FBE
The Board member responsible for Legal Education at the Madrid Bar, Raúl Ochoa Marco, has been leading the Legal Education Commission of the European Bars Federation (FBE), on the occasion of its 52nd Congress which took place in Warsaw on 20-22 September 2018.

The FBE has 250 Bar members, representing approximately 800.000 lawyers, and holds a Congress twice a year in a European city. The Federation is organized in various work commissions, the Madrid Bar holding the presidency of the legal education commission for this year 2018.

During the meeting of the Legal Education Commission, Raúl Ochoa reflected with the other members of the commission, representatives of various European Bars, on topics that are particularly relevant for the profession of lawyer, such as the legal education provided by law firms; the various models of access to the profession of lawyer in Europe and the non-existent but necessary harmonization of the criteria; continuous legal education, in particular for Legal aid lawyers; or legal education for self-employment.

The objective of this exchange of ideas and experiences is to have a more global approach on legal education in Europe, to highlight the most efficient practices and to design future projects, in order to facilitate the practise of Law by legal professionals and to offer the best service to the citizen.

Therefore, it was decided to proceed to the study of the principal legal issues that each Bar Association is facing in their own country in order to find solutions together, to organize a third edition of the International Contract Competition for young lawyers, as well as to contemplate the possibility of organizing a competition to strengthen lawyers' Court skills and being able to offer internships in law firms abroad with the help of the Commission. These conclusions were presented by Raúl Ochoa to all the members of the Federation during its General Assembly, which took place last Saturday, the 22nd.

In addition, the Congress was also the occasion to sign a cooperation agreement with the District Chamber of Legal Adviser in Poznan (Poland), represented by its Board Member Sergiusz Foltynowicz, for the purpose of strengthening the relationships between the two institutions and their members.