Restrictions to a notarial profession here in Malta, currently rendering it exclusive to Maltese nationals, is set to change following a recent ECJ (European Court of Justice) ruling, and subsequent press release on May 24, 2011. Infringement procedures against Malta were commenced by Brussels back in 2006, citing a breach of establishment rules due to such restrictions, however the commission had refrained from taking further action, pending this ECJ ruling. The right to notarial exclusivity to nationals in their respective countries was also argued by Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg and Portugal, on the basis that notaries were public officials and therefore exempt from anti-discrimination laws. However the ECJ countered that the binding nature of legal contracts is derived from their basis in law, and not from any power devolved to notaries, who are solely authenticators of the legal documents. The Sunday Times of Malta, June 5, 2011 , also reports an E