On 1 September 2026 in Paris, the European Law Institute (ELI) and the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) came together to celebrate two significant milestones: ELI’s 15th anniversary and UNIDROIT’s centenary. Both anniversaries are being celebrated through events and initiatives throughout 2026, with the Paris gathering providing a fitting occasion to reflect on the achievements of the two institutions, their longstanding cooperation and their shared commitment to advancing law through dialogue and international cooperation.
The joint anniversary event provided an opportunity to reflect on the achievements of both institutions, their longstanding cooperation and the challenges that will shape the future development of law. Bringing together leading voices from the judiciary, academia, international organisations and law reform bodies, the discussions highlighted the continuing importance of international legal collaboration in developing coherent, resilient and future-oriented legal frameworks.
The programme opened with remarks by Stéphane Braconnier (President of University Paris-Panthéon-Assas); François Molinié (President of the French Society of Comparative Law (Société de législation comparée)); Teresa Rodríguez de las Heras Ballell (ELI President); and Ignacio Tirado (Secretary General of UNIDROIT).
This was followed by a keynote address by Fernando Restoy (Chair of the Financial Stability Institute), chaired by Sylvaine Poillot Peruzzetto (Member of the ELI Executive Committee and Counsellor at the French Court of Cassation).
Across four substantive panels, participants explored the interplay between global and regional harmonisation in private law; the role of soft law in the harmonisation of contract law; emerging challenges for legal harmonisation in the fields of new technologies and sustainability; and civil procedure and dispute resolution, including a discussion around the UNIDROIT Centenary White Paper and ELI’s work.
The breadth of these discussions reflected both institutions’ longstanding contributions to legal development and the increasingly complex environment in which law must operate. From established questions of private and contract law harmonisation to technological transformation and sustainability, the programme considered how international and comparative legal cooperation can contribute to legal frameworks that are coherent, effective and capable of responding to change.
The anniversary celebration also provided a fitting opening to the ELI Annual Conference 2026, ‘Europe and the Rule of Law: Cultural Engagement and Legal Resilience’, held in Paris under the High Patronage of the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron. Bringing together judges, academics, practitioners, policymakers and representatives of international organisations, the Conference examines how the rule of law and legal institutions can remain resilient in a rapidly changing world (agenda here).
As ELI celebrates 15 years of contributing to better law-making and European legal development, and UNIDROIT celebrates a century of promoting the harmonisation and modernisation of private law worldwide, the Paris gathering brought together two important institutional milestones. More than an anniversary celebration, it provided an opportunity to look ahead and reaffirm the enduring importance of international cooperation, comparative legal expertise and dialogue across legal systems and institutions in responding to the challenges facing law today and in the future.
