International Programs
The U.S.-Mexico Bar Association
The U.S.-Mexico Bar Association (USMBA), a unique bi-national organization made up of attorneys and law students from both sides of the border, located its permanent office in the UT School of Law in September 2002. On September 30th, 2005 the name of the association was changed from the Texas-Mexico Bar Association (TSMBA).
The organization, which is known in Mexico as the Barra de Abogados Mexico-Estados Unidos, was established in 1994 to promote an understanding of the legal systems and practices of the United States and Mexico, and an exchange of professional information on legal issues of mutual concern. Membership in the association is open to attorneys and law students from Mexico and the United States. One of the most important activities of the USMBA is an annual conference that alternates each year between a location in Mexico and in the U.S. This year's conference was held in Mexico City on September 29, 2005 - October 1, 2005.
"We encourage UT students to join the USMBA and volunteer their time to one or more committees," said Elizabeth Vann, a sole practitioner in El Paso, Texas, who is a past U.S. Chair of the TMBA and a past Chair of the International Law Section of the State Bar of Texas. The USMBA is currently developing a quarterly newsletter for its members that will include legal articles and announcements on U.S. and Mexican legal issues, she said. "We invite UT students and professors to work with us on this project by submitting articles for publication or by serving on our newsletter editorial board," Vann said.
To join or learn more about the USMBA, go to www.usmexicobar.org or contact Consuelo Akin, administrative assistant to the USMBA at UT Law, at 512-232-2791 or USMBA@law.utexas.edu.