With the presence of the Assistant Secretary General of the OAS, Ambassador Nestor Méndez, the CJI concluded its one hundred third regular session, held at its headquarters in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

During the session, the CJI adopted a Guide to Best Practices in Jurisdictional Cooperation for the Americas, which recommends mechanisms to make cooperation procedures under the inter-American conventions in force more effective through the use of information and communication technologies. The CJI also adopted a resolution recognizing the UNIDROIT/UNCITRAL draft Model Law on Warehouse Receipts, an instrument that contributes to access to credit in the agricultural sector, a topic addressed by the CJI in 2016. Likewise, the CJI paid posthumous tribute to Dr. João Baena Soares, former Chair of the CJI and erstwhile Secretary General of the OAS, who passed away in June. Finally, the CJI added three new topics to its agenda: Updating of the 2020 Model Inter-American Law 2.0 on Access to Public Information; Impact of artificial intelligence-based technologies on human rights, with a special focus on children and adolescents; and Recognition and enforcement of foreign judgements and awards. All these documents will be made available on the CJI website in the coming days.

In the course of its session the CJI held its Ninth joint meeting with legal advisors of the ministries of foreign affairs of 11 OAS member states, during which various topics on the CJI agenda were discussed, as were other issues (link to the agenda of the Ninth Joint Meeting). Likewise, members of the CJI participated in the XVI Conference of the American Association of Private International Law (ASADIP), at which they gave presentations on important topics on the CJI agenda (link to the program of the meeting organized by ASADIP - only available in Spanish).

At the same time, the Forty-eighth Course on International Law, organized by the CJI and its Technical Secretariat, the Department of International Law of the Secretariat for Legal Affairs of the OAS, was successfully held, bringing together 44 students and more than 10 professors from different countries in the Americas and Europe (link to Course program).

Before concluding its session, the CJI elected its new officers: Dr. George Bandeira Galindo as Chair and Dr. Cecilia Fresnedo de Aguirre as Vice Chair. Both will take office on January 1, 2024, for a two-year term. The next regular session of the CJI will be held in Panama City, Panama, from March 11 to 15, 2024, at the invitation of the Government of Panama.

As part of the Secretariat for Legal Affairs, the Department of Internacional Law acts as technical secretariat of the CJI.

The CJI serves as advisory body on juridical matters to the OAS. Its main duty involves the promotions of the progressive development and codification of international law.   

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