France

International Association of Lawyers

Established in 1927, and with members in 110 countries, the UIA (International Association of Lawyers) is a global and multi-cultural organization for the legal profession that facilitates professional development, stimulates learning and networking, and promotes the Rule of Law.

UIA is open to all the world’s lawyers, both general practitioners and specialists. The UIA’s members have extensive legal expertise, which is reflected in high-level legal debates within its technical commissions and working groups, as well as in resolutions adopted regarding current problems faced by the legal profession throughout the world.

UIA enjoys special consultative status with ECOSOC and participative status with the Council of Europe.

In 2003, UIA was the first international association of lawyers to adopt a firm stance in favour of the abolition of the death penalty, and it continues to unceasingly campaign against capital punishment.

Since 2015, the UIA Institute for the Rule of Law (UIA-IROL) has assumed the task of promoting the Rule of Law and supporting and defending, in particular lawyers, judges and human rights defenders who are harassed, threatened and/or persecuted in the exercise of their professions, the independence of the legal and judicial professions, and the Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, especially in defense of human rights. UIA-IROL also ensures UIA’s longstanding commitment to the abolition of the death penalty.

Date founded

1927

Structure type

NGO