octubre 5, 2023

Navigating Global Legal Waters: Insights from the IBA Annual Conference in Paris

As part of our commitment to engaging in high-level international legal developments, our VTZ partner, Emilio Arteaga, will attend and participate in the prestigious International Bar Association (IBA) Annual Conference, held this year in the heart of Paris. The IBA Annual Conference is a global gathering of legal professionals, offering a unique opportunity to engage with experts, share insights, and gain fresh perspectives on the ever-evolving legal landscape.

Key Takeaways from the IBA Conference

Cross border collaboration
Emerging legal trends: labor and trade

Cross Border Collaboration

The conference provides a platform for legal practitioners from around the world to come together and discuss the challenges and opportunities associated with cross-border legal matters. Our team engaged in discussions on international arbitration, trade law, global compliance, and labor standards in cross-border supply chains, among other topics.

Emerging Legal Trends: Labor & Trade

In this year’s annual conference, the International Trade and Customs Committee and the Employment and Industrial Relations Law Comittee are organizing the “Labor standards in cross border supply chains: emerging trends in trade agreements and unilateral measures to advance labor and gender rights.” The session delved into the intricacies of international trade agreements and their impact on labor rights, unions, and gender equality, specifically:

The recently introduced USMCA rapid response mechanism and its effectiveness in protecting labor rights.
A comparison between the measures in the recent EU-Vietnam FTA meant to protect labor rights.
Examination of the UFLPA and similar efforts concerning China.
Critical issues surrounding supply chains and their impact on labor rights, including the use of forced labor.
Ways in which jurisdictions and companies intend to ensure that global trade respects human dignity.
The role of gender in international trade and ways to ensure that trade measures are gender snsitive and promote gender equality.

The session will have high-level experts that will provide different insights and trends on specific topics and jurisdictions. The panel will be composed by the following individuals:

Kathleen Claussen from Georgetown University, USA, and former Associate General Counsel at the USTR, bringing insightful comments on the problems and practice of international trade & labor rules in new FTAs like USMCA.
Selvamalar Alagaratnam from SKRINE, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, sharing the labor trends in Southeast Asia with companies in the supply chains in light of international trade or labor treaties.
Professor Rakesh Raj Kumar Bhala from University of Kansas Law School, USA, who will be discussing developments regarding gender rights in Free Trade Agreements, such as CPTPP and USMCA.
Oscar De La Vega Gómez from De La Vega & Martinez Rojas, Mexico, commenting on his experience when companies in the supply chain are facing with special international labor procedures that may impact their trade preferences.
Emilio Arteaga from VTZ, Mexico, will moderate and engaging the panel.
Yves Melin from Reed Smith, Belgium, will chair the panel and share the conclusions.

Let's Meet in Paris

Attending the IBA Annual Conference in Paris is always an enriching experience, and we hope that you can meet our partner Emilio Arteaga. If you wish, do not hesitate to book an appointment and meet with Mr. Arteaga during the IBA annual conference to discuss possible cross-border projects.