IADC pride: the global connection.

• Author: Craig, Molly H.
• Position: International Ass'n of Defense Counsel, International Corporate Counsel College - President's page

While attending the recent 2013 International Corporate Counsel College ("ICCC") in Paris, I enjoyed a post-dinner conversation with ICCC attendees and colleagues in our host hotel. It was approaching midnight and the end of the night was drawing near, or so I thought. The time in Charleston was six hours behind the time in Paris, of course, so I began receiving text messages from my daughter regarding her social plans for the night. Thirty minutes and about thirty text messages later, we had solved all of the pending issues in her plans. Still, it struck me how instantly she and I were able to cure a host of competing issues from two separate continents six time zones apart. At times like this, the significance of the IADC's Global Connection becomes crystal clear.

Today, with the help of instant communication, teleconferencing and enhanced travel options, the international legal landscape is interconnected and essentially flat. The IADC's international footprint now covers thirty-seven countries and is growing at a pace similar to that of international commerce in general. As time and communication continue to speed up, the IADC's Global Connection becomes a more vital part of our organization's culture and our individual legal practices.

The 2013 ICCC in Paris demonstrated the growing influence of a world economy on our practices. Fifty-six attorneys hosted sixty-three in-house counsel from Belgium, Portugal, Spain, Canada, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Switzerland, England, Italy, Norway, Australia, China, France, Turkey and the United States. Indeed, the total attendance at the 2013 ICCC of 146 represents our largest ICCC to date.

Through the dedicated efforts and leadership of ICCC Director Emmanuele Lutfalla and the members of the Advisory Board, attendees of the ICCC benefited from exceptional quality programming. During the conference, attendees participated in two days of education and discussion on the latest legal issues and challenges affecting global companies. Presentations were of the highest caliber with prestigious speakers who shared their expertise on a variety of pertinent international issues. Additionally, we heard from the Chairman and Executive Director of the European Justice Forum, a representative of the U.S. Chamber, the U.S. representative for the German Chamber of Commerce and the Chair of the Autorite des Marches Financiers. In the words of Alexandre Lamoure, General Counsel for Ricoh, France:

I was struck...