History of the International Law Association of Thailand (ILAT)

ILAT History

The International Law Association of Thailand was established on 8 June 1984.  Primarily, the idea of establishing an international law association in Thailand had been voiced on various occasions prior to 1984 but, despite various attempts to concretise proposals for such association, the seeds were never fully sown until 1981.

Initiating from a representative talk of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on “The Work and Role of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in relation to Refugees and Displaced Persons” at Faculty of Law, Chulalongkorn University, on 23 July 1981, several Thai lawyers took to setting up the association which was officially registered on 8 June 1984 as The International Law Association of Thailand or ILAT.

ILAT is a non-profit organisation with the aim to promote the study, clarification and development of public and private international law as well as to support the study of comparative law, the making of proposals for solution to conflicts of laws and to encourage the unification of law, including the furthering of international understanding and goodwill.  The objectives and work of ILAT are very much inspired by the global association known as The International Law Association or ILA, founded in Brussels in 1873 with various activities organised and participated by its members throughout the world, currently up to 3,700, and having around 50 branches operating around the world.

ILAT is located at 175 Sathorn City Tower, South Sathorn Road, Bangkok, Thailand.