I. Establishment of the Prize

Art. 1

A fund is hereby established for the awarding of the Grand Prize of the International Academy of Comparative Law.

Art. 2

The Grand Prize of the Academy is intended to recognize an original legal work, written in French or English, in which the common law and civil law systems are the subject of a critical comparative study in a field of private or public law, although other legal systems may also figure in the study. The work should be of a high scientific quality, suitable for publication in monograph form.

Art. 3

The Grand Prize of the Academy will be awarded every four years at the International Congress of Comparative Law, which is held under the aegis of the Academy.

Art. 4

The Grand Prize of the Academy is currently in the amount of ten thousands Canadian dollars ($ 10,000).

II. Awarding the Prize

Art. 5

A competition shall be held every four years, under the direction of the Officers of the Academy, opening in the year following the International Congress of Comparative Law.

Art. 6

The competition shall be open to all individuals who hold a law degree recognized by the relevant authorities in the country of which the candidate is a citizen or habitual resident.

Art. 7

Officers of the Academy are not eligible to enter the competition.

Art. 8 (Modified in 2021)

Candidates shall submit, published or unpublished, an electronic version of their work to the Secretary General of the Academy (secretariat@aidc-iacl.org), by December 31 of the year preceding the International Congress of Comparative law organized by the Academy. en format électronique, au Secrétaire général de l’Académie (secretariat@aidc-iacl.org), au plus tard le 31 décembre de l’année qui précède celle de la tenue du Congrès international de droit comparé organisé sous l’égide de l’Académie. 

Art. 9

The application, in the form of a simple letter, must include the name, email address and full postal address of the candidate, together with a signed statement of the candidate that the manuscript was completed during the four years preceding the year of the Academy’s congress, even in cases where it is published at some other time. Each submission should include a brief biography, list of degrees held by the candidate and a list of publications.

Art. 10

The prize shall be awarded by the Academy on the recommendation of a panel assembled by the Academy for that specific purpose, based on the entries in the competition.

Art. 11

The panel shall comprise three internationally recognized jurists, who may or may not be members of the Academy, one of whom shall be appointed Chairperson.

Art. 12

The Chairman shall establish the procedure for the deliberations of the panel.

Art. 13

The panel shall submit its recommendations to the Secretary General of the Academy by May 31 of the year in which the Congress is held.

Art. 14

The panel may decide to abstain from making any recommendations regarding the awarding of the prize.

Art. 15

The name of the prize winner shall be announced at the International Congress of Comparative Law following the competition.

Art. 16

The prize may be presented on behalf of the Academy by the Canadian ambassador to the country in which the Congress is held, or by an authorized representative of the federal Department of Justice.

Art. 17

Publication of the prize winning work shall include a specific mention of the fact that the work has been recognized by the International Academy of Comparative Law. The author shall also, as directed by the Officers of the Academy, mention the initial grant from the Government of Canada and the grants from any other person or agency having made a subsequent contribution.

III. Funding for the Prize

Art. 18

The prize shall be funded from revenues produced by the $ 40,000 capital donation made by the federal Department of Justice to the Wainwright Foundation of the McGill University Faculty of Law.

Art. 19

The capital of the donation shall be administered by the Wainwright Foundation in accordance with McGill University’s endowment investment program so as to maintain the value of the capital at a constant level.

Art. 20

The Wainwright Foundation shall submit to the Treasurer of the Academy on an annual basis audited financial statements showing revenues produced by the capital, any revenues that eventually remain unused, and expenditures involved in the awarding of the prize.

Art. 21

The annual budget required for the fundings of the prize shall be established by the Officers of the Academy basis of financial statements produced by the Wainwright Foundation.

IV. Further Provisions

Art. 22

The prize shall be administered by the Secretary general of the Academy, who shall report to the Officers of the Academy.

Art. 23

Copies of the present By-law, duly adopted by the Officers of the Academy, shall be sent to the federal Department of Justice and to McGill University.

Art. 24

The present By-law may be amended by the Officers of the Academy upon request of any two Officers of the Academy, or of the Wainwright Foundation Committee.