A Message From the President

Join The Worldwide Legal Ethics Community
IAOLE is now well into its second decade of existence. What began as a small meeting of legal ethics scholars predominantly from common law countries at a conference at the University of Exeter in 2004 quickly evolved into a worldwide network of legal ethicists. In 2010, this informal network established the International Association of Legal Ethics (IAOLE) under the leadership of its founding president, the late Deborah Rhode.

IAOLE, through its membership, is committed to the teaching, research, and vocational training of legal ethics, as well as policy initiatives for better legal ethics globally. The Association brings together all those with an academic interest in the legal profession from a theoretical, dogmatic, or socio-legal perspective – be they legal scholars, professionals, regulators, or policymakers.

We are now past the fledgling stage and on our way to becoming a truly international Association. It is my great pleasure to serve the Association as its first President from Europe, following in the footsteps of my predecessors from the US, Australia, Canada, and Japan.

One goal of my presidency is to broaden the basis of the Association and reach out to regions that are hitherto underrepresented in the membership, e.g., continental Europe or Central and South America. I also hope to be able to welcome more younger academics as an Association that is now well past its infancy can only prosper and flourish with the help of new ideas, initiatives, and projects of younger academic talent.

The arrival of legal technology and artificial intelligence in the legal world, the emergence of alternatives to traditional legal service providers and dispute resolution mechanisms, but also changing demographics have created new challenges for legal ethics and the regulation of legal professionals. Global events like a worldwide pandemic, military conflicts, and an economic crisis have had a serious impact on the provision of legal services and the environment in which legal professionals practice. As a result, the legal ethics community is busier than ever.