International Bar Association
Dr. Thomas Kaiser-Stockmann, LL.M.
Thomas has been participating actively in the work of the International Bar Association (IBA) in London for more than 20 years. He is the former Chair of the Closely Held Enterprises Committee, which focuses on corporate law questions regarding start-ups, privately owned companies, and family enterprises.
Currently, Thomas serves as member of the Advisory Boards for the Closely Held Enterprises Committee of the Corporate Law Section of the IBA Legal Practice Division (LPD) as well as the Professional Ethics Committee. His work as liaison officer in the LPD Council until 2022 included the participation in the Strategic Plan Implementation Group, as well as the special support for the Indigenous Peoples Committee of the Law and Individual Rights Section of the Association.
At present Thomas also represents the LPD in the Bar Issues Commission (BIC) of the Association and serves as a member of the overall IBA Nominations Committee.
Recent Annual Conferences
The International Bar Association annual conference took place in Paris this year late October. Starting even before the IBA, Thomas attended the Professional Ethics Committee (PEC) retreat, where amongst others committee business plan and governance were discussed.
At the Paris Annual Conference Thomas participated as a representative to the Bar Issues Commission (BIC) for the Legal Practice Division (LPD) in the LPD Council meetings. Also, Thomas has become a co-chair of the recently established working group on the Artificial Intelligence project of the IBA President for LPD.
For his university, the London School of Economics (LSE) Thomas moderated the traditional annual LSE Alumni breakfast event. For the Closely Held Companies Committee (CHCC), where Thomas acts as member of the Advisory Board, he initiated a joint session with the Real Estate Committee for the upcoming Annual Conference in September 2024 in Mexico City. Due to the continued growth all over the world of working home office after the pandemic, the session will investigate the possibilities of „Conversion of excess office space after covid 19 into student and social housing “. As a hub for multinational business and a significant financial center in Latin America, Mexio City will be a great location for the next IBA Annual Conference in 2024.
After two years of pandemic-related online communication, Thomas and the some 7000 other participants from around the world were happy to attend the Annual Conference in early November in Miami as one of the premier global gatherings of the profession in person again. As member of the IBA Legal Practice Division (LPD) Council, Thomas served as liaison officer in Miami for the together six Committees of the Criminal Law Section and the Section on Law and Individual Rights. In doing so, his particular focus has been on the development and governance of the Indigenous Peoples Committee. Here Thomas arranged for the first Open Meeting for colleagues interested in matters of indigenous communities and helped to bring about the Committee session on the so-called Nagoya (Japan) protocol of biodiversity. Thomas also supported in the administration of the LPD General Meeting.
This year the annual conference of the IBA took place in Rom in early October. As an advisory member of the Professional Ethics Committee (PEC) Thomas helped to bring about the first PEC retreat in Capalbio the weekend before the annual conference together with Carlo Pavesio from Pavesio e Associati in Turin. The retreat was open to all committee members. As key note speaker Vincenzo Petrone, former Italian ambassador in Tokyo and Sao Paulo and former chairman of Fincantieri adressed members on the challenges of the new Italian government towards the EU.
The traditional round table breakfast for alumni of the London School of Economics during the annual conference this year was kindly supported by alumnus Rino Caiazzo, Founding Partner of CDP & Associati. Professor Angello Cardani, Chairman of Italian Electronic Communication Authority adressed some 30 alumni from all over the world on “The regulator intervention on Big Data between competitive dynamics and information pluralism”. As in the past Thomas moderated the event.
The next Annual Conference in 2019 will take place in the high-tech metropole Seoul, connecting tradition and innovation. We look forward informing you about the latest developments taking place there.
During this years’ IBA Annual Conference in Sydney Dr Thomas Kaiser-Stockmann was panelist representing the Professional Ethnic Committee (PEC) of a working session hold on the 12th of October, dealing with the topic of whether and under which conditions e-mail communication (in the context of business activities) may constitute fraudulent actions.
Generally presented by the Banking Law Committee and the Cybercrime Subcommitee, the main question was how one could react to a situation where someone acts as if he/she was the CEO of one company in order to invoke a payment from another one. Besides general training of employees and an emplacement of a sufficient security system the focus lied on possible ways to deal with such a situation with regards to a disposition of responsibilities between the companies or other parties involved (such as service providers) if the aforementioned measures are not met. Another point of interest was the question of reimbursement regarding the loss of money in relation to the acting banks.
The discussion can be seen as a contribution to the ongoing disputes about cyber security and the resulting risks for companies potentially leading to sufficient guidelines to prevent own liability. Thomas is therefore glad to have had the opportunity to be part of the discussion and the IBA Conference giving the overall framework.
The next Annual Conference in 2018 will take place in Rome. Thomas will also participate in the first retreat of the Professional Ethnic Committee (PEC) kindly supported by Carlo Pavesio from Pavesio e Associati based in Turin.
Impressions from the IBA Annual Conference 2017 in Sydney – Working session: “Business E-mail Compromise Fraud"
Thomas invites colleagues and friends to the 2nd IBA Global Entrepreneurship Conference on 23 - 25 May 2016 in Barcelona, Spain. Thomas will be co-chairing the conference.
More information and registration can be accessed at a later date here.