Chandigarh, May 2
British law firms are keen on setting up their offices in India, says Baroness Ashton, parliamentary under secretary of state for the department of constitutional affairs, maintaining that nine Indian law firms have their offices in Great Britain.

Baroness Ashton, who arrived here this morning, told The Tribune that the only hitch in British law firms opening their offices was a Mumbai high court order passed in the late 90s.

This judgment needed to be reviewed by either some other court or a constitutional bench or some new legislation could solve the problem to pave the way for British law firms to enter India. “I must clarify that British lawyers or law firms are not going to appear in any Indian court, but they would be handling issues of mutual or international concern.

“All we insist on is a level playing field for both lawyers of India and Great Britain. Once it is permissible, it will open new vistas for young and promising lawyers of both India and Britain. We have a long history of working together and British law firms can be helpful in matters in which the old British law is still applicable and used.

“The issue has to be resolved at different levels, especially the bar council of India. In pursuance of this plan, I plan to visit Chennai and Bangalore also. Once it is permitted, lawyers of both countries will benefit by business that could be worth several million pounds.”

The issue of cooperation between the legal services of the two countries, she said, provided an opportunity of working together in view of the competitive global economy.

Other items on her agenda for the current trip, she said, were concerns over human trafficking, forced marriages and simplifying procedures to facilitate the movement of people across the two nations.

On an average, a little more than half a million people from India visited the UK every year. Of the 4.42 lakh applications for visas made last year, 83 per cent were successful.

For immigration, she said, a new online point system was now available where applicants could assess their chances. In several areas, procedures had been simplified and the processing time reduced so that the grant of visas, both temporary and immigrant, was quicker.

With concerns here over human trafficking and forced marriages, the British government was taking steps to handle these problems. "We welcome people in the UK coming through the proper and legalised channels, but not through clandestine or illegal ways,” said Baroness Ashton. Before coming to Chandigarh, she met law minister H. R. Bhardwaj and top officials of the ministry for overseas Indian affairs . In Chandigarh she went to the Panjab University law department, the Punjab and Haryana high court, the bar council and the Punjab and Haryana high court bar association.

Human trafficking had been a major concern and the British high commission had been in constant touch with the Indian authorities, she said.

Baroness Ashton also promised the taking of the necessary steps in cases where Britain-based NRIs cheated Indian girls through marriage.

Last year, “we got 10 girls back in Britain” after they had been forced into marriage against their choice. As many as 5,000 calls of forced marriage were received in Britain last year and 342 cases were currently being pursued.