The "International Society for Military Law and the Law of War" is an International Non-Profit Organization (AISBL in french) governed by Belgian Law. The Society has had its seat (and its General Secretariat) in Brussels since 1988, when it was created to take over an International Society with the same name established in Strasbourg in 1956. The official languages of the Society are English and French. In short, the aim of the Society is to study and spread military law and international humanitarian law. To that end, the Society regularly organises congresses and seminars (in various countries). Also under the patronnage of the Society, a specialized review is published: "The Military Law and the Law of War Review". In addition, the Society has a Documentation Center that's in the posession of a large collection works on military law and international humanitarian law. The Society has almost 750 members, among whom University professors, military or civil magistrates, high state officials, lawyers and general and field officers from over nearly fifty countries. Moreover, the Society is a liaison organization for 22 National Groups, that each of them have distinct legal status, and, in 22 different countries, are working for an objective similar to the one pursued by the Society and are organising their own activities. The Society's activities are open to members as well as to non-members. In 1997 the Society was granted consultative status by the United Nations.