Latest updates:
Legal Policy & Research Unit
The IBA Legal Projects Director oversees the Legal Policy & Research Unit (LPRU) and the Bar Issues Commission project lawyers. The team undertakes research, and develops and implements innovative strategies, projects and initiatives that are relevant to business and the rule of law, the global legal profession and the broader global community.
Sara Carnegie speaks on a panel at the IBA ESG conference in Paris: ESG in Evolution: the legal imperatives of tomorrow
LPRU and colleagues at team dinner, March 2026
UNFCCC COP30 side event co-convened by the IBA, American Bar Association and Brazilian Bar Association
LPRU staff and colleagues at the IBA 2025 Annual Conference in Toronto
Anurag Bana attends the Standing International Forum of Commercial Courts (SIFoCC) in Delhi, November 2025
LPRU co-hosts anti-money laundering initiative in the Cayman Islands, the first in a series of capacity building initiatives jointly convened by the IBA, the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)
Sara Carnegie and George Artley at the IBA midyear meetings and Bar Leaders’ Conference, alongside Christina Blacklaws and IBA President Jaime Carey and his wife
George Artley contributed to a session at the 2025 OCED Global Anti-Corruption & Integrity Forum
Flagship projects
Ethics and Anti-Corruption
Examining the professional role of lawyers as ethical gatekeepers within wider society and to help clarify their ethical responsibilities and obligations.
View projectRaising the Bar: Women in Law Project
The IBA’s multi-year project explores women’s representation at all levels of the profession, with a focus on senior positions, and the impact of workplace initiatives.
View projectClimate Crisis
The increase in global temperatures and rising sea levels represents an urgent and potentially irreversible threat to humanity and life on the planet.
View projectMental Wellbeing
The IBA has embarked on a global campaign to address the mental health crisis in the legal profession, bringing together research and resources from around the world.
View project
News and recent releases
IBA report launch: Phase 2 of the Raising the Bar: Women in Law project
| 10 February 2026
Inspirational Legal Women podcast series launched by the IBA
| 03 March 2025
In 2025 the LPRU:
Produced 18 podcasts on sustainability, ESG and inspiring legal women
Supported committees in 18 sessions during the annual conference
Participated in 35 international events
Co-convened 4 official side events at COP30 and the UNCAC CoSP11
Supported committees in producing multiple webinars across climate, environmental law, ESG, sustainability, wellbeing and AI
Supported committees in responding to 4 consultations
Produced 19 reports/articles/toolkits
Attended 6 UN events
Our areas of work
Select an area of work to see all relevant projects.
Digital Disruptive Innovation
Bar related project work
Future Trends and Focus
Business and Ethics
Reports
The LPRU have created and contributed to a number of legal reports, articles and guidance documents.
Legal Internship Programme
Intern positions are available for undergraduate law students, postgraduate law students, and newly qualified lawyers.
How to applyProject Proposal Process
Could your project benefit from the support of the IBA Legal Policy & Research Unit?
Find out moreExternal engagement
LPRU and UN Engagement in 2025
In 2025 the LPRU continued with its global engagement and advocacy on critical policy priorities including climate change, anti-corruption and legal ethics. Our commitment to amplify the IBA's voice on the international stage is evidenced in our multilateral interactions with the United Nations and affiliated organisations, including recent attendance at COP30 and CoSP.
Upcoming events
28
APR
Sara Carnegie named as judge on Women & Diversity in Law Awards
LPRU's Sara Carnegie has been named as one of the judges on the 2026 Women & Diversity in Law Awards. As a previous recipient of the awards - the IBA won Gender Equality Initiative of the Year in 2024, and was highly commended in the Not for Profit Organisation of the Year category - Sara is delighted to return as a member of the judging panel. If you would like to book a table to attend the ceremony you can find more information here.
6
MAY
Anurag Bana speaks at International Financial Law Young Lawyers Programme
Anurag Bana travels to Madrid where he will speak on the panel at the 41st International Financial Law Young Lawyers Programme. Presented by the Banking & Financial Law Committee and the Securities and Capital Markets Committee, sessions include the rise of GenAI and the challenges it poses, Acquisition Finance and Cross-border Skills. The programme is followed by the now sold out 41st International Financial Law Conference.
20-23
MAY
LPRU travels to Prague for Bar Leaders' Conference and IBA Mid-Year Meetings
Sara Carnegie, George Artley and Anurag Bana travel to Prague for the 19th Annual Bar Leaders' Conference, organised by the Bar Issues Commission. Topics will include issues affecting bars, such as AI, the independence of lawyers and judges, anti-corruption, well-being in the profession, business and human rights, and more. Thereafter they will attend the IBA Mid-Year Leadership Meetings.
10-12
JUN
Sara Carnegie speaks at Professional Ethics Symposium in Lisbon
Sara Carnegie travels to Portugal for the 3rd IBA Global Professional Ethics Symposium, held at Católica Global School of Law. A conference presented by the IBA Professional Ethics Committee and supported by the IBA Young Lawyers' Committee, African Regional Forum and the Católica Global School of Law, Sara will speak on a panel on ‘Lawyers or Prompt Engineers? Ethics and Identity in the Age of AI’. Register here.
23-24
JUN
Sara Carnegie attends Illicit Finance Summit 2026
Sara attends the UK HMG Illicit Finance Summit in London, following engagement on the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office-led Advisory Panel. The illicit finance summit will convene a coalition of international partners to scale up global enforcement against illicit finance. The summit will forge new partnerships to combat this shared threat, including illicit gold, money laundering in the property sector and the abuse of cryptoassets.
25-26
JUN
Sara Carnegie invited to speak at World Women Lawyers Conference in Lisbon
Sara speaks on a panel about ‘The Gender Gap in Mental Health – Challenges for Women Lawyers’ at the 11th IBA World Women Lawyers Conference. She will also discuss ideas, recommendations and next steps resulting from the Raising the Bar: Women in Law Phase 2 report. Register here.
Recent events
6
APR
LPD Vice Chair Pascale Lagesse is interviewed for Inspirational Legal Women podcast
The Inspirational Legal Women podcast has returned with its second series, with the second episode, released the week commencing 6 April, featuring renowned employment lawyer Pascale Lagesse. A partner at Bredin Prat, where she founded the firm's Employment Law Practice, Ms Lagesse discusses the challenges she's faced in her career and how she's been able to overcome them. Listen to the first episode, featuring Fiona McLeod AO KC here.
27
MAR
Sara Carnegie speaks at IBA ESG conference in Paris
LPRU's Sara Carnegie travels to Paris where she will speak on a panel at ESG in Evolution: the legal imperatives of tomorrow. Presented by the IBA European Regional Forum, the IBA North American Regional Forum, the IBA Energy, Environment, Natural Resources and Infrastructure Law Section (SEERIL), the IBA Business Human Rights Committee and the IBA Law Firm Management Committee, this conference brings together senior in-house counsel and leading private practice lawyers to examine the legal imperatives shaping ESG’s future. Sara will discuss soft law and hard law and their relevance to ESG, referencing the IBA's work on ethics and its recent Business & Human Rights guidance. Register here.
26
MAR
LPRU supports webinar Courts, codes and clouds: AI’s impact on legal work, from chambers to corporate counsel
The LPRU is pleased to support this practical webinar presented by the IBA Section on Public and Professional Interest AI Working Group. The session will examine how AI is reshaping legal work across courts, law firms, public bodies and in-house teams, addressing opportunities, risks and responsible implementation – from reducing court backlogs to managing vendors, data and IP. See more here.
24-27
MAR
LPRU attends OECD Global Anti-Corruption & Integrity Forum in Paris
LPRU Director Sara Carnegie and Legal Manager George Artley are attending a number of sessions at the 2026 OECD Global Anti-Corruption & Integrity Forum both online and in person. The conference, held each year at the OECD’s headquarters in Paris, is a week-long gathering of anti-corruption specialists and stakeholders from around the world. The IBA has always played an important role in the event: in 2025, George and members of the IBA’s Anti-Corruption Committee (ACC) launched the IBA’s Anti-Corruption Survey Report. This year, alongside officers from the ACC, Sara and George will spread the word and build interest in the IBA’s ongoing work with the FATF and IFAC in relation to AML capacity building training for bar associations.
24
MAR
LPRU supports webinar launching IBA BIC Climate Change Working Group
Following its launch in 2025, this webinar brings together bar association leaders to highlight the activities of the new Bar Issues Commission Climate Change Working Group and its priorities for the future. It will discuss capacity building initiatives for bar associations and law societies engaging in climate related work and help their members advise on climate change in an informed and competent manner, sharing innovative climate initiatives from around the world. Register here.
13-15
MAR
LPRU supports BIC retreat in London
BIC Lawyer George Artley attends the BIC retreat in London, where he joins Chair Steven Richman and colleagues for annual strategy discussions on issues that affect the legal profession globally, and how the IBA supports its member bar associations and law societies around the world.
12
MAR
IBA launches Raising the Bar: Women in Law Phase 2 report
Hosted by Debevoise and Plimpton LLP in London, the IBA launches the Phase 2 report of its Raising the Bar: Women in Law Project. Unlike Phase 1, which focused on country-specific research across key legal sectors (law firms, in-house legal teams, public sector institutions and the judiciary, examining the number of women lawyers across each sector and country), Phase 2 explored women's individual experiences of working in the profession, and aimed to enhance our understanding of what is and what isn't working for women pursuing legal careers. The survey, which attracted over 5,000 responses, was open to women working across all legal sectors, including academia and non-governmental organisations, as well as those who had left the legal profession within the last five years.