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  International Trade and Business Law Seminar held May 17; order the seminar book while supplies last: CLICK HERE

    MISSION:  To enhance understanding of international law principles that undergird the new global economy, to educate the membership in better serving their clients by conducting educational programs in international law and treaties, international trade and commercial transactions, immigration and nationality law, international human rights law and refugee policy, and admiralty law, to increase the level of professionalism of the international Bar, and to improve the delivery of legal services to our clients.

Welcome

    As Chair of the International Law Section (ILS) of the Alabama State Bar, I welcome you to the Section's home page.  ILS held its first meeting in 1996 with the goal of fostering the study of international law among members of the Alabama State Bar and to educate the public about matters concerning international law.  International law practitioners engage in the fields of private international law, international trade and commercial transactions, international arbitration and dispute resolution, public international law, bilateral and international treaties, and international human rights accords.  But domestic practitioners engage in the fields of contractual agreements, construction, arbitration, insurance and liability matters, taxation, admiralty law, Customs and Patents, intellectual property, constitutional law, immigration and nationality law, and civil law notarial services, which have international components.
    ILS has been active in drafting legislation to implement the Civil Law Notaries Act and has cooperated with the National Association of Civil Law Notaries (NACLN) in arranging training for civil law notaries in Alabama and Florida.  These two states are currently the only states that have passed legislation authorizing their respective Secretaries of State to appoint civil law notaries.  [CLICK HERE to go to "News"]
    As the Alabama economy becomes more integrated globally, it behooves us as international law practitioners to look for means to enable international business transactions and to promote sound business practices.  As more and more international companies come to Alabama, the Section's members have been at the forefront of providing the necessary legal services required to make their transition to Alabama as easy as possible.
    Alabama family and criminal lawyers have come to find that, increasingly, there are international aspects to their cases that did not exist a scant 10 to 15 years ago.  Families are sometimes split apart geographically not only by states, but by oceans and countries.  Child support becomes hinged to international treaties.  Criminals have never respected borders; thus a criminal lawyer's practice can become increasingly international in scope.  Admiralty lawyers are finding that their practices now involve much more than shipments, Customs, and insurance.
    A further complication internationally is defining what the term "lawyer" means.  Some nations divide their legal professions into an array of categories and branches. The legal traditions of some countries differ substantially from others.  In other countries, even the term "lawyer," as it is understood in the United States, is unknown.  The legal professions have widely divergent requirements for education and training, as well as for entrance examinations, around the world.  For example, the United Kingdom requires law students to successfully complete three years of university training, while Spain and Portugal each require five.  Postgraduate legal programs, which in most countries are normally offered by the Bar and law societies -- not colleges and universities -- are focused less on theoretical issues and more on the day-to-day questions a lawyer must face.  The United Kingdom, for example, requires different educational backgrounds for each branch of the legal profession.  Germany requires at least two years of practical experience working for a prosecutor, a family lawyer, a court, etc.  And some countries do not require any type of university law degree as a prerequisite to enter the legal profession.
    The explosive growth and prevalence of multinational corporations during the past quarter century and the introduction of digital commerce during the past 10 years have made the legal services provided by international lawyers more vital to individuals, domestic and international business, and foreign states.  The International Law Section seeks to address the unique problems that these two revolutions have brought to a rapidly expanding global economy.
    If you are a member of the Alabama State Bar, I invite you to join us.  (See below.)  It is truly an exciting time to be an international lawyer!

Boyd F. Campbell
Section Chair

How to become a member of the International Law Section

    An initial dues payment for membership in the International Law Section of the Alabama State Bar is $30.00.  Members who wish to renew their membership pay $45.00 annually.  The annual meeting of the International Law Section is held at the Annual Conference of the Alabama State Bar.  For information about the currently scheduled Annual Conference and how to register, CLICK HERE.
    To become a member of the International Law Section, you must be a member in good standing of the Alabama State Bar.  You are invited to send your dues check, made payable to "International Law Section," to:

Kaufman & Rothfeder, P.C.
ATTN:  Debra Ann Johnson
P.O. Drawer 4540
Montgomery, AL  36103-4540
Tel.  (334) 409-2221

    For more general information about the Section, contact:

International Law Section
ATTN:  Boyd F. Campbell
P.O. Box 11032
Montgomery, AL  36111-0032

Or call us at (334) 832-9090, or send e-mail:  CLICK HERE

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