ABA Presidential Initiatives

The Task Force on Rule of Law Symposia is responsible for planning two international rule of law conferences during the 2006-2007 bar year and assisting with working groups between the symposia.

The first conference will be a two-day event in Chicago, in conjunction with the IBA's annual fall meeting and the ABA's Section Officers Conference. "The International Rule of Law Symposium: a Plan for Action" will bring American bar leaders together with their peers from more than 100 nations to examine how the rule of law is increasingly considered essential to meeting global challenges, from promoting economic development, to fighting corruption, to protecting the environment and the rights of vulnerable populations. Promoting an independent judiciary, encouraging corporate responsibility, and establishing a culture for respect for the rule of law are just some of the mechanisms for rule of law promotion that will be discussed.

Following the symposium, several working groups drawn from ABA entities will continue to examine these issues and develop white papers, as a prelude to a second conference that will take place in New York City during the spring, 2007. To be held in conjunction with the Section of International Law’s ABA Day at the United Nations, it will further the work and discussion of these ABA working groups. It is anticipated that the spring meeting will result in policy recommendations on rule of law issues which will be presented to the ABA House of Delegates in August 2007.

The September 2006 symposium is the second in a series designed to advance the rule of law. The first took place in November 2005 in Washington, D.C. and brought the rule of law issue to a diverse group to explore the notion that the rule of law is fundamental to fighting poverty, war, disease and terrorism. The “International Rule of Law Symposium: a Plan for Action” continues that effort by bringing together bar leaders, members of the business community, academics and others to tackle real-world issues relating to the rule of law.

Robert Stein, outgoing Executive Director of the ABA, and Dianna Kempe, a longtime ABA member and the first woman president of the IBA, are co-chairing the Task Force. The co-chair of the planning committee for the 2006 symposium from the International Bar Association is Mark Ellis, Executive Director of the IBA.

For more information, visit the Rule of Law Symposium Web site.