It is the wide range of nationalities and expertise amongst its membership on which the ILA can draw which allows the committees their unique status on the international stage.
The subject for any committee's work is selected by the Executive Council on the advice of the Director of Studies.
Committees are established with a mandate in the first instance for four years. The EC may renew the mandate, in its original form or with amendments, for further periods of up to four years.
Nominations for committee membership are made by branches and passed to the relevant Committee Chair and Director of Studies for their approval before being considered by the Executive Council.
The Committee reports are published with the proceedings of each conference. The individual committee reports and conference resolutions published since 2000 are available for downloading on this website (see under relevant committee on List of Current Committees).
Further information regarding the establishment and running of the ILA Committees:
Rules for Membership of International Committees (2007) (32KB)
Guidelines for Officers of International Committees (2005) (45KB)
Revised Procedures for Establishing International Committees and Study Groups (1997) (21KB)
Study Groups
ILA study groups differ from ILA committees. Study groups consist of smaller groups of recognised experts working on a discrete issue of international law. Study groups comment on particular proposals or draft texts (for example from the International Law Commission), or survey a particular topic to determine whether it is suitable for further study. Study groups are established by the Executive Council. The membership of a study group is a maximum of ten to twelve people. The members are appointed by the Executive Council upon nomination by the Director of Studies in consultation with the Chair of the study group.
There are two principal categories of study groups: those that carry out research for possible topics for new ILA committees; and those that seek to contribute to the ongoing work of other international organisations. The less formal approach of a study group may also be preferred where the object is to carry out a detailed study of a relatively limited area of international law within a short period of time without intending to develop the work further through a committee. The results of the work of a study group (for example reports, recommendations, principles, declarations) can be published under the auspices of the ILA on its website on the sub-site for study groups. Although study groups may hold workshops at the biennial conferences (and indeed are encouraged to do so), their reports are not to be formally adopted by ILA Conferences. The study groups should provide opportunities for younger members to be involved in the academic work of the Association.
The normal length of mandate for a study group is three years and it may be renewed.