As you will hopefully already know, Nottinghamshire Law Society is twinned with the Law Societies of Ghent (Belgium) and Karlsruhe (Germany). Pre covid, we gathered with colleagues from the other societies for a weekend of networking, exchange of knowledge and ideas and a good dose of socialising.
After a long hiatus, we are finally getting things back on track and this year Ghent will be hosting the twinning weekend which will run from the evening of Thursday 30th May 2024 to the evening of Saturday 1st June 2024. Thursday evening will be an informal reception/ dinner (circa) 7pm with the main programme to start first thing on Friday running into Saturday. We often travel back Sunday to extend the break a little and to make sure we don’t miss any of the fun the host city has to offer. Therefore the Saturday evening will be for you to spend as you wish, or otherwise we will make arrangements for the evening.
The provisional programme so far includes a culinary walk through the city of Ghent alongside plenty of food and drink. On the Friday, we will also be taking part in a comparison of cross border issues in the field of family law applicable to each participating country which I hope will be of interest to all members, regardless of your specialism. In previous years a variety of topics have been covered, costs, employment law, data protection and environmental law and (surprising as it might sound), all attendees found it interesting because the speakers are aware that attendees do not necessarily practice in the chosen area. It’s probably also worth mentioning that our hosts are aware we don’t speak Flemish so they will ensure that we are only involved in the English speaking part of what will be for the local lawyers, a full day conference. We have been promised an entertaining alternative for the rest of the day!
In terms of costs, members are expected to sort and pay for their own travel and accommodation. The cost of activities throughout the weekend is generously met by our hosts so in terms of a fun packed break in a beautiful city it works out as a good deal.
In terms of accommodation, we have previously stayed in the Ibis hotels a number of times (both the “Centrum Opera” and “Centrum St Baafs Kathedraal are equally convenient) with a double room at the “Centrum Opera” costing circa £100 a night at the moment room only. I will also be speaking to our hosts to see if they have any suggestions on accommodation (they can sometimes sort a good deal) and will pass on that information as soon as we have it. Usually we are happy to block book rooms once we know numbers.
As far as travel goes, we have attendees who fly (into Brussels then train to Ghent), Eurostar (your ticket also covers your train into Ghent if you select Ghent as your destination) or drive (Channel Tunnel or Ferry). Prices vary depending on when you book but travel is generally fairly cheap, particularly if you share a car travelling via ferry because at the moment, a return ferry crossing for up to four people in one car is £98. Flying in theory is quicker but the cheapest flights (£50 return at the moment) are from Manchester with Ryanair so you need to factor in travel to the airport and any additional baggage charges.
More information will be circulated as soon as we have it. If you are keen to attend but not sure about travel, particularly if you are interested in going by car, feel free to get in touch, we can often co-ordinate car sharing which keeps costs down and makes the journey more entertaining! In addition we can pair people up who wish to travel by train / fly as appropriate.
Therefore in you are interested in attending please can you give us an indication by 25 April that would be really helpful. It does not commit you to attending, equally if you decide later to join you are more than welcome. Our Belgian and German colleagues will be attending the NLS Annual Dinner on 26 April and it would be great if you make your way to the international table to meet our guests.
If you have any questions generally, please feel free to contact myself at daniel.harley@johnpye.com or my Co-Chair, Kathryn Meir at kmeir@abg-law.com. For those who do book their travel /accommodation I would be grateful if you could let me know so that I can confirm numbers to our hosts.
