The International Association for the Advancement of Teaching and Research in Intellectual Property (ATRIP) was founded in Geneva in July 1981, with the support and assistance of the World Intellectual Property Organization. This professional academic association now includes hundreds of intellectual property professors and researchers from around the world. As the final contribution to the "ATRIP Passes 30" Symposium, which collects the reminiscences of the past and current ATRIP presidents, this short essay provides, in chronological order, some key information about all the pre-ATRIP Round Tables and ATRIP Congresses. This short history not only documents the historical origins, rapid growth and past accomplishments of an important transnational professional association, but also reflects the rapid development of the intellectual property field in the past three decades.