Where is ISDLS located?
ISDLS is headquartered in The Presidio of San Francisco, California. Our affiliates work primarily in the San Francisco Bay Area, San Diego, and Los Angeles, California; Washington, D.C; Greenbelt, Maryland; and Seattle, Washington. ISDLS is in the process of opening three international offices in Cairo, Egypt; Mumbai, India; and New Delhi, India.

What is ISDLS’ methodology for legal reform?
For each project, ISDLS collaborates with the partner government to form a host country Legal Study Group comprised of respected, influential and reform-minded legal professionals. This six to eight person study group is paired with an American Legal Study Group, comprised of attorneys and judges sharing expertise relevant to the specific project goals. (ISDLS has a large network of 83 consulting judges, lawyers and legal professionals who volunteer their services to its programs).

The foreign and American Legal Study Groups work in close consultation in both the US and the host country in four broad phases: (1) assessment of the host country’s legal system, including needs and potential solutions; (2) education, through observation and demonstration, of selected mechanisms and procedures; (3) design of mechanisms to be implemented in the host country, based on host country needs and legal culture, and with reference to the California models; and (4) implementation of the designed mechanisms via pilot project, including training and education in the pilot location.

How does ISDLS decide in which countries to work?
ISDLS works in countries where the California experience in legal modernization is potentially applicable to the situation and needs of the host country, and where there exists sufficient political will to design and implement legal reform. ISDLS has worked with countries in both the developed and developing world, with both common and civil law systems.

Does ISDLS work in the United States?
No, ISDLS as an institution does not work to reform current legal practices and procedures in the United States. However, many of ISDLS’ representatives have been and continue to be involved in major domestic legal reform efforts.

Are ISDLS’ events open to the public?
ISDLS’ conferences are free and open to the public; ISDLS fundraising events are open to the public for a fee. For more information on upcoming events, please see our Conferences page. ISDLS discussions and meetings between the American and host country Legal Study Groups are not open to the public; however, interns may be invited to attend selected meetings and sessions.

How is ISDLS funded?
ISDLS receives funding from a wide range of sources, including grants and donations from U.S. government agencies (the U.S. Department of State and USAID), international governmental agencies (including the World Bank) private foundations, private individual and corporate donations.

Is ISDLS a government organization?
No, ISDLS is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, non-governmental organization. Some of its work is funded on an individual project basis by grants from the U.S. government; these grants are awarded to fund a specific project proposal submitted by ISDLS. Grants are awarded in open competition based on a request for proposals, publicly posted by the Department of State.

How can I get involved with ISDLS?
ISDLS welcomes tax deductible donations from individuals or corporations, to support a specific project or general operations.

If you are a student or recent graduate, we have full or part-time unpaid internships available throughout the academic year and summer in San Francisco. For application information, or for information on full time staff openings, please see our Employment/Internships page.

ISDLS legal representatives are selected by invitation only from among the senior legal professionals in the state of California. Representatives are selected based on their extensive professional experience, their demonstrated legal innovation, and their ability to commit to pro bono work with foreign study groups in the US and abroad.

How can I contact ISDLS?
Please send us an email at info@isdls.org or call (415) 561-2191. Email inquiries are preferred.