Media release
For immediate release
Thursday 21 February 2008
Malcolm Webb Appointed Chair of Communications Law Committee
Malcolm Webb has been appointed Chair of the International Bar Association’s (IBA) Communications Law Committee.
The IBA, established in 1947, is the world’s leading organisation of international legal practitioners. It has a
membership of 30,000 individual lawyers and more than 195 bar associations and law societies spanning all continents.
The Communications Law committee of the IBA comprises over 500 international lawyers and focuses on legal and regulatory
issues arising from the telecommunications and media sectors.
Malcolm Webb, partner at the specialist law firm MGF Webb, says New Zealand lawyers involved in issues surrounding the
communications sector here, are finding their expertise highly sought after as other markets begin to face similar
problems.
“A number of the critical issues that we are grappling with in New Zealand are also playing out around the world at the
moment, such as functional separation and roll-out of next generation fibre networks. New Zealand communications lawyers
are at or near the forefront of thinking internationally on these issues.”
“New Zealand communications lawyers are in high demand oversees because of this. Our firm advised telecoms and media
clients in over ten countries in the Asia Pacific region last year.”
Malcolm believes the communications industry provides lawyers with a highly rewarding practice experience.
“It is one of the most exciting areas of the law to practice in. Technological, commercial and regulatory changes are
occurring so rapidly in the telecommunications and media industries that lawyers need to sprint just to keep up.”
“It is great to be part of a group of international lawyers that are leading the debate on the new legal and regulatory
issues in these sectors”.
ENDS