Abstract. Current global models of the carbon (C) cycle consider only vertical gas exchanges between terrestrial or oceanic reservoirs and the atmosphere, thus not considering lateral transport of carbon from the continents to the oceans. Therefore, those models implicitly consider that all the C which is not respired to the atmosphere is stored on land, hence overestimating the land C sink capability. A model that represents the whole continuum from atmosphere to land and into the ocean would provide better understanding of the Earth's C cycle and hence more reliable historical or future projections. We present an original representation of Dissolved Organic C (DOC) processes in the Joint UK Land Environment Simulator (JULES-DOCM). The standard version of JULES represents energy, water and carbon dynamics between vegetation, soil and atmosphere, while lateral fluxes only account for water run-off. Here we integrate a representation of DOC production in terrestrial ecosystems based on incomplete decomposition of organic matter, DOC decomposition within the soil column, and DOC export to the river network via leaching. The model performance is evaluated in five specific sites for which observations of soil DOC concentration are available. Results show that the model is able to reproduce the DOC concentration and controlling processes including leaching to the riverine system which is fundamental for integrating terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.