The notion of a global economy is a reality. Long-standing barriers have fallen. Traditional national borders are less and less an impediment to trade and commerce. The United States has become an important exporter of not only goods and services, but of a philosophy of government based on the rule of law. At a time of transition – when new alliances are forming and new democracies are attempting to blossom – the role of lawyers becomes increasingly important to the international business community.

Through its Institute for International and Comparative Law (IICL), The Center for American and International Law has a prominent place in international continuing legal education.

Established in 1963, the Institute for International and Comparative Law offers annual programs that focus on international business transactions and private investments abroad.

The current Chair of the Institute is Anton Maurer of CMS Hasche Sigle in Stuttgart, Germany.

The 2009 Academy for American and International Law.

The Institute's premier annual event is the Academy of American and International Law. Since 1963, this multi-week program has attracted participants from more than 120 countries. Among its alumni are many who have gone on to serve on national Supreme courts, as Ministers of Justice and Attorneys General, and as lead counsel to major enterprises. In addition to an extraordinary classroom and extracurricular schedule, the Academy offers opportunities to forge valuable international relationships that last a lifetime.

The 2009 International Corporate Compliance.

The newest of the Institute's educational programs is a practical session on International Corporate Compliance. This unique annual program focuses on a wide variety of international regulatory regimes. It addresses customs controls, economic sanctions, import controls, anti-corruption, and money-laundering compliance and explores "best practices".

The 2009 Symposium – Making International Business Work in Distressed Markets

In declining markets, the legal questions confronting international business lawyers become even more challenging. Join corporate counsel and private firm lawyers from more than 25 countries for this frank discussion about financing and structuring international deals, insolvency, D and O liability, ethics and the future of international law. One of the featured sessions will be a roundtable discussion by general counsel from Texas instruments, Kimberly Clark Corporation, Marathon Oil Corporation and Perot Systems.