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Apr 28, 2023
A recent ruling of the United States District Court in Sarcuni v bZx DAO, No 22-cv-0618 (S.D. Cal. March 27, 2023), has raised more than an eyebrow amongst many in the decentralised finance community who, until now, largely believed that decentralised autonomous organisations (DAO), and those that sit behind them, were outside of the traditional legal system and as such, not exposed to corresponding liabilities.
This panel will cover the main activism trends and how targets and their boards can prepare and respond to the changing and at times conflicting investor demands. These include: the “swarming” phenomenon, where a number of activist shareholders pursue the same target with the same or differing agendas; M&A related activism including opposition to transactions, calling for break-ups or divestitures; demands for board changes; leveraging ESG.
8th Annual Corporate Governance Conference
Speaker
18th Annual Bar Leaders' Conference
Oct 30, 2024
Baroness Helena Kennedy LT KC has been appointed to serve as the new Chair of the High Level Panel of Legal Experts on Media Freedom. She succeeds The Rt Hon the Lord Neuberger of Abbotsbury after his five-year tenure as the expert body’s inaugural Chair.
Key topics:
1. Commercial courts in the Middle East: Onshore vs. offshore courts
Comparison of jurisdiction, procedural differences, and case suitability in the region's onshore and offshore courts.
2. Compulsory ADR: A growing trend?
The increasing importance of ADR in resolving commercial disputes and its efficiency.
3. The role of dispute boards in commercial disputes
Discussion on how dispute boards function and their rising role in international construction and commercial disputes.
Litigating in the Middle East
Oct 25, 2024
Recent allegations that gagging clauses contributed to the cover-up of decades of sexual abuse by former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed have once again led to calls to ban them in the U
Panelists will discuss trends including the role and perspectives of institutional investors, shareholder activism, ESG and stakeholderism, and the headwinds and tailwinds for sustainability and long-term investment, both in the US and globally.
20th Annual International Mergers & Acquisitions Conference
Jul 28, 2017
Comunicado de prensa: viernes 28 de julio de 2017. A medida que se profundiza la crisis política en Venezuela, el International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute [Instituto de Derechos Humanos de la Asociación Internacional de Abogados o IBAHRI] pide al gobierno venezolano que proteja los derechos humanos y la independencia del poder judicial, mantenga el estado de derecho y garantice acceso a la justicia a todos los venezolanos.
Thriving through law school and beyond: wellbeing in legal education
Oct 07, 2021
La International Bar Association (IBA) ha recibido el premio Aptissimi 2021 por su contribución al sector legal y a la sociedad.
Panelists will discuss trends including the role and perspectives of institutional investors, shareholder activism, ESG and stakeholderism, and the headwinds and tailwinds for sustainability and long-term investment, both in the U.S. and globally.
21st Annual International Mergers & Acquisitions Conference
El International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) reitera su preocupación sobre las continuadas violaciones al debido proceso en el juicio a la Jueza Maria Lourdes Afiuni. El pasado 21 de febrero la Jueza Afiuni recibió una citación para una audiencia judicial que tendría lugar al día siguiente.
18th Annual IBA Competition Mid-Year Conference
Feb 08, 2022
The International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) calls on Sudan’s self-appointed Ruling Council leader, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and the Sudanese military to cease immediately the use of lethal force against peaceful demonstrators...
As Prime Minister of Denmark from 2011-2015, Helle steered Denmark through a difficult financial crisis while reducing child poverty and increasing spending on education. She also served as leader of the country’s Social Democrat party for a decade, and was the first woman to hold both positions.
Following her term as PM, Helle was the Chief Executive of Save the Children, overseeing the work of 17,000 staff in 120 countries to reach around 50 million children every year in some of the most difficult and challenging contexts.
She was deeply engaged in highlighting the humanitarian crises in Yemen and Syria, and the Rohingya refugee crisis and remains deeply engaged in these geopolitical issues as a member of several foreign policy think tanks. This includes the US Council on Foreign Relations, the European Council for Foreign Relations, the International Crisis Group and the Atlantic Council International Advisory Board.
Helle is also a member of the Berggruen 21st Century Council. In 2017, Helle was a co-chair of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, and is on the board of the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship.
Today Helle uses her deep political and international expertise to advise a range of businesses and not-for-profit groups.
Helle is non – Executive Director for a number of Boards - Vestas, one of the world’s leaders in sustainable energy; DJE Holdings, a global communications firm that partners with businesses and organisations to evolve, promote and protect their brands and reputations; Safelane, a global leader in clearing landmines and the explosive remnants of war; Carsøe, a leading manufacturer of retail, customised, and OEM solutions for key suppliers of food processing equipment across the world; and VISTA Equity Partners, an American investment firm focused on financing and forwarding software, data and technology-enabled startup businesses.
In 2020 Helle was appointed Co-Chair of The Oversight Board created to help Facebook answer some of the most difficult questions around freedom of expression online; as well as Chairman for the Danish Football Union’s Governance Committee.
Also in 2020, Thorning-Schmidt was appointed by the World Health Organization's Regional Office for Europe to serve as a member of the Pan-European Commission on Health and Sustainable Development. Helle devotes much of her time to defending and renewing progress, social justice, and democracy.
As a strong champion of women and girls’ rights throughout her time in government and at Save the Children, she remains passionate about women’s empowerment. Helle was previously a member of the European Parliament.
Helle Thorning-Schmidt can use her extensive background in politics, international relations and business to deliver inspirational and impactful talks.
IBA Annual Conference Paris 2023
Apr 09, 2020
En una carta abierta al Presidente de El Salvador, el Sr. Nayib Bukele, el Instituto de Derechos Humanos de la Asociación Internacional de Abogados (IBAHRI) lo llamó a tomar medidas para defender el estado de derecho y respetar los derechos humanos fundamentales mientras se toman medidas para prevenir la propagación del Covid-19.
One of the greatest threats to democracy in Latin America is no longer the old-fashioned coup. The new way to autocracy is more subtle, with lawfully elected leaders systematically eroding key safeguards to the separation of powers. They do so by chipping away at judicial independence, fair trial standards, electoral fairness, civic space, freedom of expression and freedom of the press. This is coupled with persistent and pervasive levels of corruption. It leads to governments stacking courts and undermining the autonomy of the judiciary, with the aim of limiting the checks on executive power.
Against this backdrop, the critical importance of a robust, independent judiciary cannot be overstated. A strong judiciary has proven to be a bulwark against democratic backsliding in many Latin American countries like Brazil, when the federal justice system upheld the electoral results in 2022; or Mexico, where the Supreme Court is resisting the government’s attempts to introduce unconstitutional reforms that would bolster executive power; or Guatemala, whose Constitutional Court ensured the transfer of power to the duly elected candidate Bernardo Arévalo, despite attempts to overturn the electoral result.
This session will explore the intricacies of a complex vision of the rule of law in Latin American countries. On one side, the pragmatic need to tackle the plagues of corruption and organised crime. On the other, the necessity to build a system of checks and balances with a specific focus on the role of judges and prosecutors.
IBA Annual Conference Mexico City 2024
Jun 12, 2024
The new Foreign State Immunity Law 2023 of the People’s Republic of China came into force on 1 January 2024. This shifts the country (as well as its special administrative regions, Hong Kong and Macau) away from absolute state immunity to restrictive state immunity, bringing it more in line with the relatively prevalent practice among the international community. This article discusses the status of state immunity in public international law, analyses the new law’s provisions and examines practical challenges that will be faced by those seeking to utilise this law to enforce judgments or awards against foreign states and state entities, and the new law’s innovations that go beyond the United Nations Convention on Jurisdictional Immunities of States and Their Property of 2004 and the UK State Immunity Act 1978.
Accountability for Nagorno-Karabakh
Jan 12, 2024
In this session at the IBA Annual Conference in Paris, a group of experts from various backgrounds addressed topics such as doping, bribery, governance and social responsibility, and offered a comprehensive examination of the complex issues plaguing the world of sport.
Captive – hostage taking as state policy
Nov 14, 2024
A session report from the diversity and inclusion session at the IBA Annual Conference in Mexico City.
Inadmissibility of torture-tainted evidence: the role of the legal profession
Jan 27, 2025
A report on the panel session ‘To list, to sell or to flip to the US: sucessful exist methods in Europe’. Participants discussed recent challenges in the initial public offerings market, the ‘dual-track’ strategy and the role of legal advisors among other interesting points.
Apr 22, 2022
This article discusses the recent SEC case involving PwC and highlights the wider implications for intermediary institutions providing professional services in a tightened regulatory and enforcement regime in China’s banking and financial sector.
The rule of law and media freedom: a symbiotic relationship
May 21, 2024
The 26th Transnational Crime Conference, which took place between 8–10 May 2024 in Milan, Italy, was a resounding success. In fact, it has become the most well-attended international criminal law conference in the IBA’s history!
One of the core pillars of democracy and the rule of law is the separation of powers. Around the world, one branch – the judiciary – is under increased pressure. While the independence of the judiciary has been a long-understood concept, perhaps less attention has been paid to the independence of the legislature. As executive branches around the world increasingly need to act quickly, and look to justify actions under law, the tension between who makes the law, who has what mandate to act and who provides the check on legality becomes more urgent. This panel discusses this issue in the context of the role of lawyers and bar associations.
IBA Annual Conference Mexico City 2024
Sep 27, 2023
The rise in popularity of generative artificial intelligence (‘generative AI’) has ignited the discussion on whether junior employees can be replaced by it. Some have gone to the extent of questioning whether professionals, such as lawyers, can also be replaced by generative AI. Is it wise to replace junior employees or lawyers with generative AI? What factors should be considered before deploying generative AI tools in your business? To consider these questions, we first need to understand the basic workings of generative AI and what it can offer. Fundamentally, AI is intelligence that is not biological. The general understanding is that machines will be ascribed with this intelligence. These machines have the ability to interpret, learn from and process external data in a way that is similar to the capabilities of the human mind. Generative AI is a type of AI program that generates content from a data set. It uses deep learning, a type of machine learning system that behaves like a neural network to simulate the functions of a human brain. In other words, it can mimic human intelligence by exhibiting analytical skills to create new content. Not only can generative AI be utilised in chatbot programs to create text, but it can also be used in programs that can create images, sound or videos. This article will consider two major forms of generative AI, in the context of risks to businesses: chatbots using generative pre-trained transformer technology programs; and image generating programs.
The right of persons to seek asylum from persecution in other countries is grounded in Article 14 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (the ‘Convention), adopted in 1951, consolidated previous international instruments and provides a comprehensive codification of the rights of refugees at an international level. Non-discrimination, non-penalisation and non-refoulement (ie, the forced return of people to their places of origin) are three of the most important principles on which the Convention is based.
However, the influx of migrants to many countries is causing economic problems and leading to divisive political responses. Many are asking whether these laws have had their day and need to adjust to a different world with a new set of challenges.
IBA Annual Conference Mexico City 2024
Apr 23, 2025
The 5th European Automotive and Mobility Services Conference, held on 26–27 March 2025, at Upside East in Munich, Germany, brought together industry leaders, experts and stakeholders to address the pressing challenges and opportunities within the automotive and mobility services sector. The conference provided a platform for in-depth discussions on supply chain issues, the transition to electric vehicles, the role of artificial intelligence and the evolving regulatory frameworks impacting the automotive industry.
Continuing the IBA Rule of Law Forums theme of ‘law not war’ we consider how legal systems can be protected and re-established during times of conflict. This will include transitional justice for recently occupied territories.
IBA Annual Conference Mexico City 2024
Nov 14, 2024
A session report from the joint session of the IBA Regional Fora at the IBA Annual Conference 2024 in Mexico City.
This session will explore: the current issues in defending and protecting the rule of law in the Americas and the status of this battle around world; the problem of regressing; rethinking colonial influences and powers in Caribbean courts and impact on human rights; and the role of the lawyers and law firms in rule of law matters.
The territory of the Americas suffered five-hundred years of European colonisation mostly from the Spanish, Portuguese and English, and to a lesser extent from the French and Dutch. They brought their culture and legislation to a new continent, and some of the laws were cruel, inhumane and degrading. This panel will debate the rule of law in the Americas with a focus on Latin America and the Caribbean. The discussion will touch upon four topics which are topical in the Americas today: the regression of the rule of law in Venezuela and Mexico; the role of British colonial powers in hindering the development of the rule of law in the Caribbean; the status and impact of these problems around the world; and the role of lawyers and law firms in these matters.
IBA Annual Conference Mexico City 2024
As the rules-based order comes under intensifying threat, international lawyers stand at the frontline. The War Crimes Committee will examine the importance of defending this order and the impact of atrophying respect for international law on affected populations as well as the political and economic stability of the world. Serious violations of International Humanitarian Law are continuing unabated, while dominant actors in the international community fail to strengthen the international infrastructure designed to uphold international law and hold accountable those who commit the worst atrocities. Simultaneously, mounting pressure for accountability on the ground stems from both affected communities and the wider public. In the context of these linked but apparently countervailing dynamics, we ask what this means for the future of international humanitarian norms and the fate of civilians caught in the cross-fire.
Our expert panel will speak to the broader geopolitical issues and highlight the many on-going on the ground efforts and the stark consequences of bombing, starving, and targeting civilians. We examine the threats facing the fundamental principles of IHL, and how credible evidence can be gathered in the fog of war.
IBA Annual Conference Mexico City 2024
Jul 09, 2024
With the world’s largest displaced population of 11 million, the world should not look away.
HumanRightsConfession-driven criminal justice systems incur a higher risk of torture and coercion during investigations and other information gathering processes. The Principles on Effective Interviewing for Investigations and Information Gathering, officially launched in June 2021, offer a solution-oriented approach to moving away from confession-based interrogations, towards rapport-based interviewing alongside the implementation of legal and procedural safeguards. What advances have been made in their implementation from legal, institutional, and practical perspectives? What challenges have been faced? And how can legal professionals best prevent coercive interrogation techniques, forced confessions and resulting miscarriages of justice? This session will explore these and related questions through insights and reflections from national, regional and international experts.
IBA Annual Conference Miami 2022
Many dispute resolution clauses today are multi-tiered, setting out a consultation process that includes an amicable settlement of disputes prior to commencement of arbitration or litigation. The consultation process may be relatively informal (for instance, between designated representatives of the parties) or more formal (for instance, with a third-party mediator/dispute resolution board).
DiversityInclusionHumanRightsRuleOfLawIn 1857, in the case of Dred Scott v Sandford 60 US 393, a majority of the United States Supreme Court delivered one of the clearest examples of a judiciary breaching the rule of law. In this notorious case, it was held that coloured people were property and, as chattels, were not entitled to citizenship of the United States and the protection of its Constitution. A bloody civil war followed this decision, which ultimately led to an end of slavery in the United States. However, progress towards any form of racial equality was hindered by the United States Supreme Court. In Plessy v Ferguson 163 US 537 (1896) a majority of the court held that racial segregation did not breach the equal protection clause of the Constitution, bringing about the infamous doctrine of “separate but equal”. Racial segregation did not end until 1954, when a unanimous Supreme Court held in Brown v Board of Education 347 US 483 that the equal protection clause applied to everyone, regardless of race.
On the other side of the Atlantic, a majority of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council – comprised of judges also sitting at the Supreme Court of the UK – held, in Boyce v the Queen [2004] UKPC 32, that colonial laws dating from the time of the British Empire, regardless of their being “inhumane or degrading”, cannot be held to be inconsistent with the declaration of fundamental rights and freedoms of the written constitution. Immunity was said to be “complete”, i.e. absolute in perpetuity. Such interpretation of a codified declaration of fundamental rights and freedoms obviously feels wrong and may be argued to as defying any basic sense of human dignity or understanding of what the rule of law means. The implications are profound and broad-ranging. The decision’s precedential value has consequences beyond the case in which it was decided in that many Caribbean laws that discriminate against LGBTI people, or even still criminalise consensual sexual intercourse between two adults of the same sex, are also untouchable colonial laws as a result.
The Diversity and Inclusion Council along with [x] call for a special panel discussion to consider the implications of wrong judicial decisions what mechanisms can be employed to mitigate against such eventualities (e.g. such as not representing governments that wish to perpetuate errors of law) and if there are means to hold the judiciary to account for clearly erroneous decisions.
IBA Annual Conference Miami 2022
Jan 13, 2022
A report on a survey created by the Diversity and Inclusion Working Party of the IBA European Regional Forum to understand how Diversity & Inclusion is perceived by European law firms and to try to learn from each other’s experience.
In Afghanistan and Iran, being a woman translates to a life of bans and barriers, from education to public spaces and most forms of employment. It's a reality of being a perpetual second-class citizen. While international law defines apartheid (Afrikaans: “apartness”) with reference to institutionalised racial segregation, the systematic gender-based discrimination faced by women lacks a comparable legal framework. The moment has arrived to stretch the boundaries of apartheid, encompassing the realm of gender hierarchies.
IBA Annual Conference Paris 2023
Dec 01, 2021
With the increased focus on climate change, a series of initiatives have been introduced to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the shipping industry. A combination of already existing requirements and new short, medium and long-term measurements will be implemented to achieve the International Maritime Organization's (IMO's) goal of halving GHG emissions by 2050.
Political upheaval on multiple continents, disasters, economic challenges, and, of course, war, are forcing more people than ever to leave their homes. We will discuss developments since the last IBA Annual Conference.
IBA Annual Conference Paris 2023
By Yi-An (Ann) Lai. Alipay and the impact of e-payment systems resulting in new regulations in China and other jurisdictions.
This session will look at the way in which lawyers, NGOs civil society and lawmakers dealt with two major crises-the Taliban takeover and Afghan airlift in September 2021 and the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. To what extend did the later crises put the earlier one it’s in shadow? How have lawyers navigated the complexities of assisting refugees to leave where there are no safe and legal routes, and how does the treatment of Afghan refugees differ from the temporary protection instruments available to Ukrainians at EU and national level?
10th Biennial IBA Global Immigration Conference
Sep 07, 2023
With the increased focus on climate change, a series of initiatives have been introduced by the IMO and the EU to reduce greenhouse gas emission in the shipping industry. One measure, the Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII), may have a significant impact on valuation of vessels. BIMCO has released a CII Clause, which allocates the contractual responsibility for compliance under time char-ters – but questions may validly be raised about it.
Discuss and analyse different situations where the rule of law fully or partly has collapsed. What kind of action should be set in motion and how can Bars in other jurisdictions give support? We will discuss situations that originated in some jurisdictions to see if there are lessons to be learned on how to handle future crisis.
16th Annual Bar Leaders' Conference
Jul 18, 2023
A report of the 25th Transnational Crime Conference, held 3–5 May 2023 in Boston, Massachusetts.
The independence of the legal profession is a critical requirement for maintaining the rule of law. An important subset of the independence of the legal profession is the independence of the judiciary. One particularly invidious form of attack is the subtle and non-obvious approach of undermining or hijacking the judicial appointments process. Where the judicial appointments process is unduly influenced or controlled, it results in the appointment of judicial officers who have lost their independence even before they get onto the bench, as they are beholden to those who facilitate their appointments. These facilitators could be members of the executive arm of government, influential politicians or businessmen, or sitting or past judicial officers.
This approach to undermining judicial independence is coming to a head now in Israel, where the Executive arm of government is no longer relying on subtlety but is seeking to take absolute control of the judicial appointments process and to arrogate powers to itself to overrule judicial decisions.
Please note that even if you are unable to join the Annual Conference, you can still register for the Rule of Law Symposium for free. If you are NOT already registered for the Annual Conference and would like to attend the Rule of Law Symposium, you must pre-register by Wednesday 1 November by completing the Rule of Law Symposium registration form. There is no registration fee to attend the Symposium.
IBA Annual Conference Paris 2023
The article explores how far South Africa has come in providing protection for LGBTQIA+ individuals. South Africa has made noteworthy progressions in LGBTQIA+ rights since 1996. From prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, to the numerous cases in which courts have taken steps to provide protection to same-sex life partners, and the birth of the Civil Union Act, which provides for same-sex partners to get married.
The proliferation of disinformation and its impact on democracy and the international rules-based order is a critical challenge of our time. Enabled by the rapid development and deployment of digital technology, state-sponsored disinformation campaigns are being used in the guise of protecting national security and ensuring peace and prosperity whilst successfully creating distrust in democratic systems and institutions.
In reality, the right to freedom of expression and media freedoms, among other fundamental rights, are being severely curtailed. Human rights defenders, including journalists and media workers as well as media and civil society organisations across the world have been subjected to restrictive laws and punitive measures in the pretext of addressing disinformation. This often creates a chilling effect and intimidates individuals into silence or censorship.
Join members of the High Level Panel of Legal Experts on Media Freedom and special guests to discuss the role of international law in the face of the threat to disinformation and identify solutions to combat this global challenge effectively.
IBA Annual Conference Paris 2023
Apr 23, 2025
Arriving in Budapest, I was excited to join my first IBA European Regional Forum (ERF) retreat as a council member. Bringing together over 50 officers, council members and Advisory Board members, this was a great (and slightly daunting!) opportunity to immerse myself in the ERF and find out more about their current and upcoming projects.
This session will look at gender-related killings (femicide), the most brutal and extreme manifestation of violence against women and girls.
Despite decades of activism from women’s rights organisations and global awareness raising, evidence shows that progress in stopping such violence has been deeply inadequate. Femicide has become a social crisis. Gender-based killings are prevalent in every country – the UN has reported data from every continent. Women in the public eye, particularly women human rights defenders, politicians and journalists are often targets of intentional violence on and offline. Femicide is not inevitable and can be prevented by tackling social norms, engaging with communities and supporting the police to adopt gender-responsive policing. The implementation of such initiatives must happen now, to prevent the femicide crisis intensifying.
IBA Annual Conference Mexico City 2024
Jan 12, 2024
On the afternoon of Thursday 2 November 2023, at the IBA Annual Conference in Paris, the European Regional Forum lead the organisation of the automotive session titled ‘The European automotive and mobility service industry: transformation and revolution’. Contrary to its title the panellists came from different areas of the world, including Europe, India, Mexico and South Korea. During the session, panellists discussed issues relating to data privacy, developments concerning autonomous vehicles, the future of electric vehicles and more.
2024 has seen business travel resume at pre COVID Pandemc levels and employers value the impact of in person meetings, and work experience overseas. However , costs are a significant concern to business and with visa fees and processing times rising more business travellers are sent on short term trips. With more digitalised and integrated Government systems and more stringent border control this is creating a perfect storm for compliance which global mobility leaders must navigate. In addition remote and hybrid working are also creating new challenges as well as the current geopolitical landscape. The panel of speakers include some of the world’s leading global mobility and HR professionals. They will explain their current challenges and opportunities. We will also hear from experts and challenges impacting those seeing asylum and the war on talent.
11th Biennial IBA Global Immigration Conference
Aug 19, 2024
On 1 January 2024, shipping was included into the existing Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) regulation – also known as the ‘cap and trade’ system. This article provides an overview of the most important aspects and insight into how the regulation will be administered in Denmark.
Many bar associations have human rights entities as components. Who sets the policy for the bar? What levels of autonomy do such entities have? Importantly, organized bars are often looked to by government actors for guidance on international law issues and conventions. With the release from the UN 6th Committee of the draft Crimes Against Humanity Convention, Bars as representatives and voices of the legal community have an opportunity to help shape international human rights law. This is of concern to not only public interest lawyers but commercial lawyers as well, since increasing hard law concerning human rights is developing from soft law instruments. The IBA’s own BHR Guidance for Bar Associations will also be discussed as part of this debate.
18th Annual Bar Leaders' Conference
Feb 04, 2025
Donald Trump’s second term as president may well represent a turning point in the international role of the US. Global Insight assesses the implications.
How successful are our systems and principles for securing justice both nationally and internationally, in peace and in conflict? Are the outcomes just? Are there novel routes to justice?
IBA Annual Conference Paris 2023
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