On October 26, 2017 the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States and the American Bar Association entered into a Cooperation Agreement that establishes the formal framework under which the OAS and the ABA will work together toward a common goal – promotion of the rule of law and the dissemination and development of international law within the inter-American system. The agreement was signed in Miami during the Annual Fall Meeting of the ABA Section on International Law.

While the OAS Charter recognizes that all peoples of the Americas desire to live in peace and under law, and whereas OAS Member States are committed to furthering development of law, particularly international law, as a way to strengthen relations among states and to foster peace and stability within our hemisphere, similarly, the ABA has as its mission to serve the legal profession and the public by defending liberty and delivering justice. Moreover, OAS Member States have urged the General Secretariat to promote agreements with various entities for the teaching and dissemination of inter-American law under the Inter-American Program for the Development of International Law (AG/RES. 2660 (XLI-O/11)), implementation of which falls under the responsibility of the Department of International Law (Secretariat for Legal Affairs). Thus, the OAS and the ABA are natural partners in these endeavors.

Within the General Secretariat, the Department of International Law will be responsible for coordinating the activities under this Cooperation Agreement. The kinds of activities that are envisioned include the following: legal cooperation projects for the training of lawyers and other legal professionals; various types of legal and comparative research; joint organization and participation in conferences, seminars, roundtable discussions and other events to promote dialogue among lawyers, government officials, diplomats and others; integration of lectures by technical experts into activities organized by the Department under the auspices of the Inter-American Program for the Development of International Law; and, joint meetings on topics of common interest. The Cooperation Agreement provides a formal structure to foster and strengthen the cooperative relationship between the OAS and the American Bar Association.