The European Court of Justice has paved the way for UK solicitors to practise as notaries across the European Union.

It ruled yesterday that six member states - Belgium, France, Luxembourg, Germany, Austria and Greece - had breached the law by restricting access to the notary profession to their own nationals.

The judgment means that those member states can no longer prevent solicitors who qualified in England and Wales from training to become notaries in their jurisdictions.

The Law Society said the judgement is good news for both the legal sector and the public.

Read Jonathan Goldsmith's take on the decision

Society president Linda Lee commented: ‘The Law Society supports the principle of free movement, in particular freedom of establishment, and welcomes the court's judgments as upholding those principles.’

She said it would have been inconsistent to maintain a system where it was possible to train as a lawyer in a member state, but not be able to train as a notary.

‘This judgment is a step forward for the EU and helps to eradicate what was discrimination on grounds of nationality,’ she said.