New UIA President Jean-Jacques Uettwiller: a passionate advocate of the rule of law

Jean-Jacques Uettwiller, a lawyer at the Paris (France) and Brussels (Belgium) bars and a joint founder of UGGC Avocats, took over the presidency of the UIA at the close of the association’s congress on 31 October in Valencia (Spain). He succeeds the Uruguayan Miguel Loinaz in this position.
 
In his investiture speech, the new UIA President stated that the association would be stepping up its commitment to defend the rule of law and thus to defend the legal profession, which has come under severe threat in recent times in various countries throughout the world. This move will continue the work of his predecessors, in particular Stephen Dreyfuss and Miguel Loinaz.
 
“Human rights cannot be upheld unless there is an independent, strong and respected legal profession and unless the rules in force in each State ensure that lawyers and their institutions can practise their profession freely, without being troubled or threatened due to the defence of the interests that are entrusted to them,” Mr Uettwiller declared to the 1,000 lawyers in attendance.  
 
For Jean-Jacques Uettwiller, “the purpose of the UIA is to assist the institutions of the legal profession and all lawyers in embracing the rapid, structuring changes that we have undergone, without losing sight of our values and while remaining true to our fundamental mission, in the service of freedoms and the rule of law”.
 
To this end, during this ceremony Jean-Jacques Uettwiller announced the creation of the UIA Institute for the Rule of Law (UIA-IROL) the role of which, under the leadership of a former Chairman of the Geneva Bar, Pascal Maurer, is to coordinate and multiply the actions of the UIA’s working groups and commissions that campaign on behalf of human rights and defence of the defence “in all places where lawyers are in danger and the rule of law is faltering”.
 
Before taking up this position, Jean-Jacques Uettwiller was an active member of the UIA, of which he has been a member since 1987. He has held various positions within the organisation: President of the Foreign Investments Commission from 1996 to 2002, Assistant Finance Director from 2002 to 2004 then Finance Director from 2004 to 2011, and Congress Director from 2011 to 2013, at which time he was designated to take over the presidency in Valencia.
 
Jean-Jacques Uettwiller primarily practises company law and private equity law in the field of national and international mergers and acquisitions. He also practises banking and finance law, litigation and arbitration law (national and international), as well as tax law, and has a private clients practice.