Whatever one’s opinion of Tony Blair – and, granted, his name elicits robust reactions – the European legal profession can perhaps take some pride in the fact that one of their own could assume the historic position as the first president of the European Union.

And there is some irony in the fact that his prospects depend on several million voters in the Republic of Ireland, bearing in mind one of the early highlights of his tenure as UK Prime Minister was the Good Friday Agreement of 1998 that saw the creation of the Northern Ireland Assembly. If the Irish south of the boarder approve the Lisbon Treaty at the second time of asking, then it is suggested that provisions for the creation of a presidential post could be accelerated. Mr Blair – who was PM for a decade from 1997 – is understood to have wide spread support among Europe’s most influential leaders, meaning he could slip into a virginal presidential office within weeks.

However, the Poles and Czechs could throw a spanner in the works, as their leaders still technically have to sign the treaty. Nontheless, much to Mr Blair’s undoubted joy, the qualified English barrister looks to be odds-on for the job.

Is that good news for Europe’s lawyers? The response lies in a brief analysis of how friendly his Labour government was to the domestic legal profession. And the answer to that point depends on which sector is being discussed.

Practitioners at leading commercial law firms will have had little to complain about in relation to Mr Blair’s approach. His government adopted a restrained stance towards financial regulation that allowed the City of London to boom and business lawyers to expand dramatically on the back of the deals done. Specific legislation aimed at the legal profession also created greater liberalisation – barristers and solicitors will soon be allowed to form partnerships and law firms are to be free to seek outside investment.

However, smaller law firms will have a different impression of the Blair years. They see little more than an era blighted by the rise of claims management companies that drove down fees in personal injury cases and a programme of cuts to the legal aid budget that have slashed eligibility levels. International law specialists also suggest that the Blair government played fast and loose with the legalities of going to war in Iraq.

Ultimately, Tony Blair is a consummate pragmatist – as British lawyers will be well aware and Europe’s lawyers might soon discover.

The denizens of Madrid may not yet be aware of what is to befall them next week, but by Sunday evening the floodgates will open and more than 4,000 lawyers from around the world will cascade onto the Spanish capital.

That is good news for the inn-keepers and barmen of the city perched on the banks of the river Manzanares, as the city becomes the latest venue for the legal profession’s version of global fashion weeks — the International Bar Association’s annual conference is coming to town.

Just as London, Paris, Milan and New York spruce themselves up for the annual arrival of hordes of fashionistas, Madrid law firms will be replete with a palpable sense of anticipation as the cream of the international commercial legal profession moves in for a week. Yes, there will be worthy and intellectual conference sessions a-plenty – as always the IBA staff and committees assemble a programme that covers nearly every conceivable issue of international legal importance – but what will mostly put the local lawyers into a flutter is the prospect of business. The increasingly international nature of commercial law means that global lawyers lead to the potential for global referrals.

It has been accepted for years that delegates need two vital possessions for a successful IBA conference: a lorry-load of business cards and a liver of Trojan strength. It is often suggested that the real conference doesn’t begin each day until about six o’clock in the evening when the last lecture hall microphone has been switched off and the party canapé trays are unveiled and hundreds of bottles of fizzy wine are uncorked.

Indeed, IBA watchers of many years’ standing will be intrigued by one crucial factor at the Madrid event – how large and lavish will the law firm receptions be? This conference is the first held in harsh economic times for nearly a generation. Over the last 20 years globalisation has seemed like an inexorable force in the legal profession and the IBA has reflected that. Every year there have been more parties and increasingly elaborate receptions. Indeed, it is perhaps only slight exaggeration to suggest that the IBA annual conference party circuit acts as a bell-weather, indicating the overall health of the global legal marketplace.

And already this year, there are signs that discretion will be the order of the day in Madrid. A managing partner at one of the largest global law firms has categorically told me that belts will be tightened at the Madrid bash. His firm’s party will be a considerably more modest affair compared with previous years. It would be, he said, inappropriate to host a no holds barred knees up so soon after his firm and others have had to go through the painful experience of making significant numbers of lawyers and other staff redundant.

The global recession has sobered up quite a few people around the world. It will be interesting to see how jolly the IBA delegates in Madrid are and what their mood bodes for the future of globalisation.