It is with enormous pride that, on behalf of the International Bar Association, I introduce the IBA report on the social and economic impact of the legal profession.
When I was preparing my Presidency of the International Bar Association for years 2023-2024, I asked myself how I could bring something of real value not only for the Association, its members, and the legal profession, but also for society.
I have always been convinced that what we lawyers contribute through our professional lives, in our everyday work, goes beyond going to court, drafting and closing agreements, or advising our clients in so many different ways. Being in touch with members of the legal profession from all over the planet, I realized that our work weaves a tapestry of trust that significantly contributes to the daily lives of citizens and businesses, the relations between them and the state, the good functioning of justice, and the strengthening of the Rule of Law, allowing modern democracies to function at their best.
I therefore focused on how the IBA, as the voice of the global legal profession, the world’s largest and most influential association of legal practitioners, could demonstrate and highlight those positive contributions. How could we prove the intangible value of lawyers’ work for the good operation of society? How could we render tribute to so many invisible legal professionals who participate in what may appear as small legal matters- which they are not- and to others who gain greater visibility because of the type of the cases on which they work? How could we also rectify a sometimes unfair and negative perception of lawyers? Finally, how could we shed light on why the Rule of Law is indispensable, especially nowadays when the Rule of Law is deteriorating in almost 60% of the world jurisdictions?
These thoughts describe the origin of the idea of measuring, for the first time, the social and economic impact of the legal profession in society. The resulting facts are now clear: the work of the over twelve million lawyers across the globe impacts, directly or indirectly, the lives, health and well-being of citizens throughout the world. Our contribution to the Rule of Law generates wealth, promotes innovation and education, limits the overreach of the governments, levels inequality and upgrades environmental sustainability.
Having the measurements, we then identified those areas that deserve more attention and action: increased access to legal representation, advocacy on critical issues to further peace and progress,
education and communication on the Rule of Law and the role of lawyers, and ethical stewardship. This call for action encompasses us all – bar associations, law societies, law firms, law departments, and other stakeholders – to preserve and strengthen the profession’s impact.
This Report is the result of more than a year of sustained collective effort at the IBA. Its achievement would have been impossible without the invaluable work of David W. Rivkin, who has co-chaired with me the Impact Task Force leading this ambitious project. David is former President of the IBA, one of the best legal brains I have come across and a delight to work with. The IBA and I, personally, owe David a debt impossible to quantify and pay back as he would deserve.
This outcome would also not have been attainable without the great work of the Impact Task Force, the continued support of the Management Board, and the contributions from the interviewees who accepted providing us with their opinions and unique experiences. The names of all these remarkable contributors appear in page 125. My acknowledgement also goes to the IBA staff who have paved the way to allow us finishing this work. Finally, our recognition goes to the McKinsey team, who have contributed to the collection and analysis of the data. We could not have had better companions for this journey.
The IBA has taken this important first step, which highlights a now undeniable reality: the role of the legal profession is crucial for all of us and for the better world we aspire to continue building, which improvement is nowadays being challenged.
Our ambition at this point must be to make a collective endeavor to sustain and increase our positive impact, collaborating in the above priority areas. The IBA is already committed to doing so. I sincerely hope that you may join us in bringing this effort to its next level.
Almudena Arpón de MendÃvil Aldama
IBA President 2023-2024.
Download full report at the following URL: https://www.ibanet.org/document?id=The-IBA-report-on-the-social-and-economic-impact-of-the-legal-profession
