What's on

With around 2,000 lawyers from 100 countries attending the IBA's Section on Business Law conference in Paris this month, the organisers have put together a diverse programme.

The conference will be opened by Robert Badinter, president du Conseil Constitutionnel, and followed by a plenary session on cross cultural co-operation and communication. The Channel Tunnel project will be used as a case study of this, introduced by Sir Alistair Morton, co-chair of Eurotunnel, followed by a discussion of lawyers from civil and common law jurisdictions.

A workshop focusing on new trends affecting legal practice, Globalisation of the legal profession, will be held at the end of the conference, chaired by the section vice-chair Willem Calkoen from Rotterdam. The session will be a round-up of discussions held during the year at four workshops in Amsterdam, London, New York and Singapore and will concentrate on the concept of a global legal service from the point of view of firms seeking to provide it and the client receiving it.

The conference will also include a one-day training course, held in French, on international business practice which will be held at Unesco headquarters on 16 September.

The course is open to all young lawyers in France and will see the launch of a 25th anniversary initiative which will be the prototype for future courses to be held in different languages throughout the world.

A regional seminar for officials of French-speaking Bar associations will be held on 17 September covering subjects such as access to justice, international arbitration and professional Immunity.

Other events include:

Monday 18 September

ndemnity insurance for the legal profession. This session will look at the results of a global survey undertaken by the IBA. The meeting aims to produce draft guidelines on the subject of liability of lawyers and their indemnity insurance.

Litigation involving States. The session will examine the particular problems of litigation against States and State-owned enterprises; sovereign immunity; acts of State as force majeure for State-owned enterprises.

The role of corporate counsel and the interrelationship with management in the 21st century.

Tuesday 19 September

Utility privatisations/independent power and pipeline projects; lessons learned and issues outstanding.

Towards the global securities market in Europe. Is there a market in Europe offering and trading in securities?

Consumer claims against travel companies. An examination of small claims litigation against travel companies from a number of perspectives, including the consumer, the in-house lawyer and the lawyer in private practice.

Wednesday 20 September

Presenting arguments before the European Courts.

Video on demand services, network publishing and teleshopping.

Thursday 21 September

Multidisciplinary service firms

Corporate legal developments in Asia.

Marketing and disclosing the risks of derivatives investment.

Regulation of the information superhighway; sessions on the Internet and Internet litigation worldwide.