IBA marks 75th anniversary of Association’s inaugural meeting

Simon Fuller, IBA Managing EditorThursday 17 February 2022

Banquet of the First International Conference of the Legal Profession, Hotel Plaza, October 21 1947

Thursday 17 February 2022 marked the 75th anniversary of the inaugural meeting of the International Bar Association (IBA), held at the University Club, New York City, in 1947.

The IBA was formed in the aftermath of the Second World War from the conviction that an organisation made up of the world’s bar associations could contribute to global stability and peace through the administration of justice, and with the goal of promoting the principles and aims of the United Nations.

The dream of bringing together bar associations in this way was not a new one in 1947. In fact, as Robert Nelson Anderson, IBA Council Member 1947–1976, remarks in his essay on ‘The Formulation of the IBA’, which was published in the International Bar Journal May 1972. ‘The creation of the Association was the fruition of a dream which had its origin almost a decade and a half before its formation.’

The Second World War stood in the way of that dream, but in 1944, a Special Committee consisting of American lawyers and jurists was put together by the American Bar Association to look at whether an ‘international bar association’ might work. By the end of 1945 this Committee had established a draft constitution for such an organisation, and in October 1946, representatives from bar associations from 21 countries gathered in New York to discuss the purpose of an international bar association and its draft constitution.

At the October 1946 meeting, Willis Smith, who was then President of the American Bar Association, set out the stall for such an association’s aims, by quoting the saying ‘where law ends, tyranny begins’ and adding that ‘it will be a noble objective for this conference and the organization which we hope will grow out of this conference that we keep the law supreme in our various nations, and thus keep tyranny from the earth’.

An invitation was then sent to 52 bar associations around the world, to join the to-be-newly formed International Bar Association, and 17 February 1947 was set as the date for the inaugural meeting.

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‘As the global voice of the legal profession, the IBA’s next 75 years are assured. We will embrace whatever challenges come our way and continue to speak out on issues affecting both the legal profession and society at large

Dr Mark Ellis
IBA Executive Director

At that meeting, the IBA was made reality with the formal adoption of the Constitution. A number of positions within the IBA structure, such as the Secretary General and Treasurer, saw their first incumbents elected. Nine people were elected to the IBA’s first Executive Council.

Represented at the meeting were 24 national bar associations, across five continents, from Austria to Venezuela.

Robert Nelson Anderson was Chair of the inaugural meeting. He said at the time: ‘The lawyers are looked upon by the peoples of the world as leaders, and by contributing ourselves and our time, we can undertake to accomplish the things that they hold dear, such as the improvement of the administration of justice under the law. By devoting ourselves to the principles and aims of the United Nations we can make a real contribution to world peace and neighbourliness. These are high objectives which we have set out for ourselves.’

Other highlights of the inaugural meeting included the reading of messages of congratulations from the US President Harry Truman, as well as from Tom C Clark, the US Attorney-General. During lunch, the General Counsel and Director of the Legal Department of the UN, Mr A H Feller, spoke to the meeting’s attendees about the legal aspects of some of the problems confronting the UN. The groundwork was also laid for the first IBA conference. Given the role of American lawyers in the creation of the IBA, the host city for what became the First International Conference of the Legal Profession was chosen as New York. The Conference was held in October 1947.

‘The IBA’s 75th anniversary marks a momentous time for us,’ explains Dr Mark Ellis, the IBA’s Executive Director. ‘Born out of the ashes of World War II, the Association was established to “promote justice under the rule of law.” In so many ways this aspirational goal is even more important today as we face the rise of nationalism and populism – both direct threats to the rule of law.’

‘As the global voice of the legal profession, the IBA’s next 75 years are assured’, says Dr Ellis. ‘We will embrace whatever challenges come our way and continue to speak out on issues affecting both the legal profession and society at large.’

‘Robert Nelson Anderson’s comment at the time, that by contributing themselves and their time, lawyers can accomplish the things that they hold dear, remains true today,’ adds the IBA President, Sternford Moyo. ‘The IBA continues to make a substantial contribution to the rule of law and to furthering the principles and aims of the United Nations.’

Image:Banquet of the First International Conference of the Legal Profession, Hotel Plaza, October 21 1947

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