About the IBA

Overview
Aims and Objectives
Structure
History

Overview

The International Bar Association (IBA), established in 1947, is the world's leading organisation of international legal practitioners, bar associations and law societies. The IBA influences the development of international law reform and shapes the future of the legal profession throughout the world. It has a membership of over 30,000 individual lawyers and more than 195 bar associatons and law societies spanning all continents. It has considerable expertise in providing assistance to the global legal community as well as being a source of distinguished legal commentators for international news outlets.

Grouped into two Divisions – the Legal Practice Division and the Public and Professional Interest Division – the Association covers all practice areas and professional interests. It provides members with access to leading experts and up-to-date information as well as top-level professional development and network-building opportunities through high quality publications and world-class Conferences. The IBA's Human Rights Institute works across the Association, helping to promote, protect and enforce human rights under a just rule of law, and to preserve the independence of the judiciary and the legal profession worldwide.

Aims and Objectives

The principal aims and objectives of the IBA are:

To promote an exchange of information between legal associations worldwide
To support the independence of the judiciary and the right of lawyers to practise their profession without interference
Support of human rights for lawyers worldwide through its Human Rights Institute

The IBA works towards these objectives through three main areas of activity:

Services for individual lawyer members through its Divisions, Committees and Constituents
Support for activities of Bar Associations and in particular, developing bars
Support of human rights for lawyers worldwide

Structure

The IBA is split into two Divisions – the Legal Practice Division (LPD) and the Public and Professional Interest Division (PPID).

The Legal Practice Division consists of over 50 specialist committees which cover all areas of practice. Committees with common interests work together under Sections.

The Public and Professional Interest Division covers the public and professional interest activities of the legal profession throughout the world. These activities are organised in groupings called Constituents. The Division also focuses on the activities and interests of the Association’s Member Organisations.

The Human Rights Institute works across the Association on human rights and rule of law issues.

Legal Practice Division
The Public and Professional Interest Division
The Human Rights Institute

IBA History

Inspired by the vision of the United Nations (UN) and with the aim of supporting the establishment of law and administration of justice worldwide; representatives of 34 national bar associations gathered in New York on 17 February 1947 to create the IBA.

IBA membership grew steadily and in 1970 was accelerated by the admission of individual lawyers to the Association and the formation of the Section on Business Law.
In 1974 the Section on Legal Practice was formed and in 1982 a third Section, the Section on Energy and Natural Resources Law was created.

The Standing Committee on Human Rights and the Just Rule of Law was formed in the 1980s. In 1992 an Action Plan was adopted to establish a Trial Observer Corps and investigate cases where judges and lawyers or the independence of Bar Associations was threatened. In 1995, the formation of the Human Rights Institute expanded this work and gave the opportunity for member organisations and individual members to actively contribute.

The IBA restructured in 2004 and the work of the three long established Sections fell under two new Divisions – the Legal Practice Division which focuses on commercial law and the Public and Professional Interest Division which represents both the public and professional interest activities of the legal profession around the world and the activities and interests of Member Organisations. The Human Rights Institute continues to work across the Association.

For further information on the International Bar Association please contact:

International Bar Association
10th Floor, 1 Stephen Street,
London W1T 1AT, United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0)20 7691 6868
Fax: +44 (0)20 7691 6544

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