A Short History of the ACLI

 In 1997 Professor John Knechtle came to Florida Coastal School of Law (FCSL) to teach and to develop innovative international programs in the Caribbean. Seeking to combine the educational platforms of U.S. and Caribbean law schools with opportunities to study law and social change in different countries, he sought to create programs that listened to cultural diversity, assisted policy makers, furthered business and the legal profession, deepened mutual relationships, increased communication and recognized the common destiny of  the countries in the Caribbean Basin.

 He sought to expand on lessons and models learned at the Central & East European Law Initiative (CEELI) where he previously worked. CEELI is a public service project of the ABA that promotes legal reform and the rule of law in Central Europe and the countries of the former Soviet Union.

 When a former CEELI Advisory Board Member and former Dean at Howard University School of Law, Henry Ramsey, Jr. informed Professor Knechtle and Don Lively, the Dean at FCSL, that he had a contact in the Prime Minister’s Office in Jamaica, a meeting was scheduled and the three flew to Jamaica to meet with Prime Minister P.J. Patterson in June of 2000.

 Based on successful meetings with Prime Minister Patterson, Attorney General A.J. Nicholson, and Principal Keith Sobion of the Norman Manley Law School (NMLS), an agreement was reached in principal to create the Caribbean Law Initiative (later renamed the American and Caribbean Law Initiative). Dean Lively invited Dean Joseph Harbough of Nova Southeastern University Shepard Broad Law Center (NSU) and Dean John Brittain of Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law (TMSL) to join in the founding of the ACLI. On August 29, 2000 deans from these four law schools, Hugh Salmon, Senior Assistant Attorney General of Jamaica, representatives from the City of Jacksonville, along with Henry Ramsey, Jr. and Professor Knechtle participated in a Convocation at FCSL celebrating the creation of the ACLI. Attorney General A.J. Nicholson was the featured speaker to the audience of about 200 people.

 The four deans signed a memorandum of understanding at the Convocation which established the ACLI to advance their respective educational missions, facilitate collaborative growth and relationships, and support the legal development of Caribbean nations.  The agreement and its subsequent evolution contemplated developing:

1. A Caribbean Law Clinic (CLC) in which students from participating institutions would assess legal problems and issues responsive to the needs of the governments of the Caribbean nations.
2. A network among law schools in the Americas and the Caribbean Basin that will be a resource for reviewing and evolving the law of participating nations;
3. Innovative learning and high impact public service opportunities for law students and ACLI members;
4. Interaction with individuals, communities, law firms, businesses and NGOs interested in facilitating trade and economic development;
5. A means for government officials, lawyers, judges, and legal educators to learn from their diverse experiences, share knowledge, and build relations between and among their respective legal systems;
6. Forums that bring experts from participating nations together regularly to address common policy interests and concerns;
7. Publications, such as student law reviews, journals, and newsletters as resources for joint scholarship, assessments of policies concerning the Caribbean Basin and the Americas, and news of interest to the members; and
8. The founding institutions as role models for effective multicultural and international partnering.

Each educational institution member assumes responsibility for building networks in its community that will facilitate interaction with and support for the ACLI. 

 In 2001 the Council of Legal Education, which administers and operates the three professional law schools in the Commonwealth Caribbean, approved the ACLI Memorandum of Understanding to support the relationship the ACLI established with the Norman Manley Law School and to anticipate the involvement of its other two law schools. Also in 2001, the ACLI affiliated with the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

 Keith Sobion, Principal of Norman Manley Law School and former Attorney General of Trinidad & Tobago, played the key role in involving the Council of Legal Education and CARICOM with the ACLI as well as increasing the membership and participation of Caribbean law schools. He was also instrumental in introducing the ACLI to eight attorney generals of the Commonwealth Caribbean.

 Jane Cross, Associate Professor of Law at Nova Southeastern University Shepherd Broad Law Center, has played a leadership role in the development of the Caribbean Law Clinic and the ACLI Law Conference.

 The ACLI supports the development of its member schools in the Caribbean and to that end, uses part of its revenues to enable students and faculty to participate on an equal basis with U.S. law schools in ACLI programs. In 2001 the ACLI donated computers and a printer to NMLS to create a computer lab for students to use to conduct legal research in the Caribbean Law Clinic among other purposes. It is housed in the ground floor of NMLS.

 In 2002 the Eugene Dupuch Law School (EDLS) in Nassau, Bahamas joined the ACLI and began participating in the Caribbean Law Clinic and in 2003, the Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS) in Trinidad & Tobago joined the ACLI and began participating in the Caribbean Law Clinic.

 The ACLI was incorporated in the State of Florida in 2003 and is in the process of gaining its 501(c)(3) status with the Internal Revenue Service. Its by-laws describe how its directors are elected or appointed and sets out its basic governance and membership structure. It is structured so that it may expand to include participation by other nations of the Caribbean and the Americas, educational institutions, law firms, businesses, NGOs, and individuals. Due to their particular educational mission, educational institution members have a controlling interest on the ACLI board.

 The ACLI board of directors seeks to provide for effective coordination of efforts, raising of funds, development of policies, distribution of responsibilities, implementation of programs, and attainment of objectives. The board has met three to four times a year since 2000 and has held its annual meeting during the American Association of Law School’s Annual Meeting in January of each year.

 The ACLI continues to expand. In 2004, Howard University School of Law and Stetson University College of Law joined the ACLI.