International League of Antiquarian Booksellers

The International League of Antiquarian Booksellers is an organisation that encompasses national associations of antiquarian booksellers around the world. It encompasses twenty national associations and speaks for two thousand booksellers from twenty-nine countries.

Beginnings.

The League (or ILAB, as it is often known among English-speakers; LILA among French) was founded in Amsterdam at a meeting of major European booksellers in 1947. It was born of the spirit of international co-operation and fuelled by the determination to sweep away national differences that inspired the postwar world. Since that time its aims, objects and ideals have been adopted across the continents, and the ILAB network now extends into America, Asia and the Southern Hemisphere.

Objects.

The objects formulated in 1947 are still little changed. Put briefly, they are to uphold and improve professional standards in the trade, to promote honorable conduct in business, and to contribute in various ways to a broader appreciation of the history and art of the book.

Customs & Usages.

The League publishes, and upholds, a code of practice based on the wide experience of all its affiliated nations. It is binding on all its members. It is a mark of the success of this code that disputes are rare. If disputes should arise then the League mediates and its authority ensures that judgments are implemented.