The President of the UINL, David Figueroa Marquez, and Mexican notary Marco Antonio Ruiz Aguirre travelled to The Hague this week to attend the Council on General Affairs and Policy (CGAP 2026) of the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH).
The UINL has observer status within the HCCH. In this capacity, and within the framework of their Cooperation Agreement (2018), it participates in all projects or revisions of Conventions in which the notariat may have an interest or provide added value. The two organisations also cooperate on scientific topics and joint work relating, for example, to the protection of adults, the protection of children and the cross‑border circulation of their status, apostille, commerce and transactions.
The UINL is currently participating as an observer in the Working Group dealing with private international law issues related to digital tokens.
What is the HCCH?
The HCCH (Hague Conference on Private International Law) is an intergovernmental organisation whose mandate is to work towards the “progressive unification of the rules of private international law”. Based in The Hague (Netherlands), it brings together many Member States that negotiate and adopt conventions aiming to harmonise private international law rules between different countries (determination of the applicable law, competent jurisdiction, recognition and enforcement of foreign decisions, etc.), in order to provide greater legal certainty and predictability for individuals and companies in an international context.
These Conventions cover three main areas: International Family and Child Protection Law, Transnational Litigation and Apostille, International Commercial, Digital, and Financial Law.
Some examples of Hague Conventions of interest to the notariat
• Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents (Apostille Convention)
• Convention of 5 October 1961 on the Conflicts of Laws relating to the Form of Testamentary Dispositions
• Convention of 14 March 1978 on the Law Applicable to Matrimonial Property Regimes
• Convention of 1 August 1989 on the Law Applicable to Succession to the Estates of Deceased Persons
• Hague Convention of 1 July 1985 on the Law Applicable to Trusts and on their Recognition
• Hague Convention of 13 January 2000 on the International Protection of Adults
• Hague Convention of 23 November 2007 on the International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance
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The HCCH in Africa – Latest developments
In 2025, the HCCH established a Regional Office for Africa in Morocco, in Rabat. The opening of this new office aims to disseminate and promote the work of the HCCH in Africa and to strengthen African participation in the activities of the Hague Conference. To help the HCCH achieve this goal, the UINL African Affairs Commission (CAAf) signed a partnership agreement in 2025 with the HCCH Africa Office.
