Background

      The ASEAN Law Association (ALA) is an association of lawyers established according to a resolution made at the conference on “Legal Development in ASEAN Countries” in Jakarta, Indonesia in 1979. It is recognized as an international organization with the objectives of promoting relations, cooperation, and mutual understanding among lawyers in ASEAN countries. According to the ALA Constitution and By-laws, a National Committee has been established in every ASEAN country with each committee being responsible for administering the national associations. Each National Committee is made up of judges, attorneys, lawyers, law professors, legal practitioners, and other individuals. In Thailand, the Cabinet passed a resolution on 26 February 1980 designating representatives from various government agencies to be members of the National Committee. As a result, the National Committee has representatives from the Court of Justice, Office of the Attorney-General, Office of the Council of State, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice, the Lawyer Council of Thailand, and the Thai Bar Association as well as the deans of law schools at Thammasat University, Chulalongkorn University, Ramkhamhaeng University, and Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University.

         Organizational Structure

          The Association is structured into 4 parts, namely:

          1. General Assembly;

          2. Governing Council;

          3. The Secretariat; and

          4. National Committees.

          In addition, the Association has established the following Standing Committees to serve the Governing Council as a counseling body on issues regarding legal cooperation among ASEAN countries:

          1. Legal Information;

          2. Legal Education;

          3. Alternative Dispute Resolution;

          4. Business Law;

          5. International Law;

          6. Legal Profession; and

          7. Trade and Investment.

         Organizational Executives

          1. The Association’s executives are President, Vice-Presidents, and Secretary-General.

       2. The current president of the ASEAN Law Association is Hon. Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Singapore. Secretary-General of the ASEAN Law Association is District Judge Paul Quan, Executive Director of the Singapore Judicial College. Holders of these two positions were elected at the 13^th General Assembly on 28 July 2018. In addition, The Chair of the National Committee of each ASEAN country is ex-officio a Vice President.

          3. The Chair of the National Committee of Thailand is the Honourable Chief Justice Piyakul Boonperm, President of the Supreme Court of Thailand.

          Meetings of the ASEAN Law Association

          The Association has 2 types of meetings, namely;

          1. The General Assembly, which is called once every 3 years and discusses technical matters on laws among the member countries. Host of the assembly is rotated to each member. The Assembly has the following authorities:

                        (1) Designation of general policies;

                        (2) Consideration and approval of meeting minutes;

                        (3) Appointment of officers;

                        (4) Amendment of the Constitution;

                        (5) Withdrawal of rules;

                        (6) Schedule of the General Assembly; and

                        (7) Other duties to promote, prevent, and preserve the interests of the Association.

             Calling of an assembly requires a minimum of 6 countries to attend. Resolutions are reached by majority vote. Since inauguration, the Association has organized a total of 13 assemblies. Thailand has hosted the following two assemblies:

                        (1) 4^th General Assembly, on 15-19 November 1986, at Dusit Thani Hotel, Bangkok

                        (2) 9^th General Assembly, on 22-26 November 2006, at Plaza Athenee Hotel, Bangkok

            2. The Governing Council, which meets annually, is hosted on a rotation basis among members. The Council has held a total of 41 sessions. Thailand has hosted the following seven sessions:

                        (1) 2^nd Governing Council, on 5-8 February 1982, in Chiang Mai

                        (2) 12^th Governing Council, on 23-24 June 1990, in Chonburi

                        (3) 18^th Governing Council, on 23-25 June 1995, in Chiang Mai

                        (4) 24^th Governing Council, on 25-27 June 2004, in Chiang Rai

                        (5) 27^th Governing Council, on 25 November 2006, in Bangkok

                        (6) 33^th Governing Council, on 3-6 March 2011, in Pattaya City

                        (7) 41^th Governing Council, on 19-22 November 2019, in Phuket

              The Council is a platform for reporting the Association’s work progress and discussing the arrangements for the General Assembly. Council meetings are divided into three parts as follows:

                        (1) Part 1: Meeting of the Governing Council to consider the Association’s general affairs;

                        (2) Part 2: Meeting of each Standing Committee to discuss technical activities and cooperation among the member countries;

                        (3) Part 3: Meeting of the Governing Council to summarize the outcomes of the Standing Committee meetings.

          Fee

          There is no fee for applying for membership to the Association but participants in General Assembly and Governing Council meetings are required to cover the following expenses:

            (1) Accommodation;

            (2) Travel expenses; and

            (3) Allowances.

           Activities

           1. ALA Newsletter

               The Association publishes an annual newsletter which is distributed to current and prospective members. The newsletter reports on the Association’s work and mission.

           2. ALA Golf Tournament

               The Association arranges a golf tournament to allow members to develop relationships in a less formal atmosphere. In the past, these tournaments have been arranged each year for members of the Governing Council Meetings.

          Roles of the Administrative Court of Thailand as a member of the National Committee of Thailand

       Mr. Piya Patangta, former President of the Supreme Administrative Court, assigned Mrs. Maneewon Phromnoi, the former President of the Budgetary and Financial Discipline Division of the Supreme Administrative Court, to represent the Administrative Court in Thailand’s ALA National Committee. This appointment provided an opportunity for the Administrative Court to participate in the ASEAN-level international cooperation platform. Mrs. Phromnoi participated in the 1/2020 National Committee meeting on 18 September 2020, at the Supreme Court premises, Bangkok. The aim of the meeting was to compile opinions regarding the draft of the National Committee’s Operational Order and Mrs. Phromnoi was able to propose an amendment to the order so that it better complied with the Association’s constitution and by-laws. The 2020 General Council meeting of the ALA was rescheduled to 2021 because of the COVID pandemic.

          Later, following Mrs. Phromnoi’s retirement in 2021, the former President of the Supreme Administrative Court approved Ms. Saitip Sukatipan, President of the Rayong Administrative Court, as the Administrative Court’s representative in the National Committee and Standing Committee. Consequently, Ms. Sukatipan participated in the 1/2021 National Committee meeting on 29 October 2021 via video-conference and was able to discuss ASEAN cooperation operating under the Standing Committees and Specific Working Groups, as well as prepare the Thai delegation to attend the 42^nd ALA General Council meeting held on 11 November 2021 via video-conference. This meeting was hosted by the ASEAN Law Association of the Kingdom of Cambodia.

        The 42^nd ALA General Council meeting was the first time that the Administrative Court’s representative participated in an ALA meeting. In addition to Ms. Sukatipan, Mr. Wutthichai Thaichareon, Vice-President of the Ubon Ratchathani Administrative Court, temporarily serving as President of the Administrative Court of First Instance, attached to the Supreme Administrative Court, also participated as an observer. The meeting was attended by representatives from all ten ASEAN member countries and participants discussed the Association’s administrative matters as well as expansion of technical collaboration on the law and judicial processes through the Standing Committees and Working Groups. It is hoped that expanded collaboration will lead to concrete cooperative activities in the future.

The 42^nd ALA General Council meeting

       The 43^rd ALA Governing Council Meeting will be hosted by the ASEAN Law Association of the Republic of Indonesia in 2022 via video-conferencing and the 14^th ALA General Assembly meeting will be hosted by the ASEAN Law Association of the Federation of Malaysia during 19-23 September 2023. Discussion points on the agenda for these meetings include Artificial Intelligence (AI), the environment, liberty and human dignity, women’s rights, and indigenous peoples’ rights. As the Administrative Court has expertise in these public law topics it will be able to provide valuable support in work of the Association. It is hoped that these meetings will lead to better cooperation and organizational management in legal and technical matters among prominent courts within ASEAN.

As of January 2022