An opportunity has arisen for Illinois lawyers who are veterans of World War II combat in the South Pacific and might enjoy a return visit to the Independent State of Papua New Guinea.

Chicago attorney William R. Coulson was host last month for a dinner with Evan J. Paki, ambassador to the United States from Papua, who had traveled from Washington, D.C.

They discussed the possibility of organizing a group of lawyer and judges to meet with their professional counterparts in the capital city of Port Moresby. Ambassador Paki continued on to Janesville, Wis., to discuss the plan with veterans in that area.

Papua consists of the eastern half of the island of New Guinea. After the war, the combined territories became a United Nations trusteeship administered by Australia, which had liberated it from the Japanese.

Once a British possession, Papua received limited home rule in 1951 and complete independence in 1975. It is governed by a constitutional monarchy with parliamentary democracy, and is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.

For more information about an organized visit to Papua, call Coulson, a past president of the Chicago chapter of the Federal Bar Association and partner in Gold & Coulson, at (312) 372-0777.