International and Transnational Legal Frameworks Conference: AMINZ at the Forefront of Thought Leadership and Dispute Resolution Practice

24 Mar

Written By AMINZ

AMINZ was proud to support the inaugural Christchurch Conference on International and Transnational Legal Frameworks (CCITLF). The conference took place on Thursday 12 and Friday 13 March and brought together leading international voices from academia, legal practice, and policy making.

The conference’s key topics addressed important and highly relevant issues in Aotearoa New Zealand and Oceania. Discussions covered dispute resolution, private law, artificial intelligence, and emerging legal frameworks.

Presenters included leading international and domestic experts, including AMINZ Vice President Dr Anna Kirk and AMINZ Deputy Director of Professional Studies Lauren Lindsay.

“[Their] perspectives are essential to shaping legal frameworks that are inclusive, responsive, and capable of addressing global challenges such as international trade, dispute resolution, agriculture, climate change, and sustainable development,” said Dr Petra Butler, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Canterbury and AMINZ Fellow.

The conference was inspired by a growing recognition that academics, practitioners, policymakers, and businesses in New Zealand and across Oceania have limited awareness of the three organisations shaping the legal frameworks for global trade, commerce, dispute resolution and cross-border cooperation: UNCITRAL, UNIDROIT and the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH).

The COVID‑19 pandemic exposed how vulnerable global and regional supply chains are, especially for island nations dependent on stable flows of goods and services. The economic disruptions highlighted the importance of resilient legal frameworks governing trade, logistics, finance, and cross‑border contracting.

“AMINZ’s involvement in forums such as CCITLF is part of our commitment to ensuring AMINZ members remain at the forefront of thought leadership and practice in dispute resolution,” said AMINZ Executive Director Monique Pearson.