Call for Papers for the Conference 'Law in the Age of Transitions: Public Interests and Private Powers', Groningen, 3-4 April 2025

Call for Papers

The view of 'the market' as a solution to social issues and a path to prosperity is facing growing skepticism. The convergence of existential risks, such as those linked with climate change and public health, with the aspiration of economic resilience in a context of global competition have prompted a re-centring of the state across the Global North. Among other things, this has taken the form of a return of industrial policy and a push towards unilateralism in international economic relations. At the same time, these developments fuel the discourse about a “transition away from neoliberalism” and the emergence of a ‘geoeconomic’ or ‘post-neoliberal’ order.

The idea behind the title “Law in the Age of Transitions” is to focus on the role of the law amidst these conceptual developments and practical realities. More specifically, we focus on the role of law in structuring two key transitions that play a defining role in this emerging socio-economic organisation: the digital and the green transition. Developments in these fields have been rapid, with legislative initiatives like the Digital Markets Act, the Digital Service Act, the Net-Zero Industry Act, or the Critical Raw Materials Act having far-reaching ambitions and shaking-up the political economy of the Union. Drawing from this transformational spirit, this conference concentrates on how law reinterprets the public-private challenge and revises the balance between public and private actors. In other words, how does the law restructure claims and burdens, rights and entitlements between private and public actors in these emerging transitions?

In particular, we welcome contributions that will help answer the following questions:

1. How are new legislative instruments addressing the diverse challenges posed by digitalisation, climate change and environmental degradation in the context of the traditional public-private divide?
2. What role does the law play in shaping a ‘post-neoliberal’ order? Does it reconcile the multiple contradictions arising from the (relatively) opposed normative foundations of the green and digital transitions (i.e. environmental protection and sustainability and economic growth respectively)? How does the Public-Private divide look in this shifting legal and political landscape?
3. What is the role of private law in the digital and green transitions? When it comes to the necessary changes towards sustainable societies, which kind of role is left to and what challenges arise in the regulation of private relationships?

The conference is open to all theoretical approaches and methodologies, including doctrinal work, socio-legal studies, Law and Political Economy, private law theory, experimental or empirical legal studies.

Submission Guidelines

If you are interested in contributing, kindly submit your abstract [max. 700 words] to sectorplan law.eur.nl, indicating author name(s), affiliation, and contact information by 15 December 2024.

The conference will take place in Groningen (The Netherlands) on 3 and 4 April 2025 under the umbrella of the ‘Public-Private Challenge’, a joint research initiative of Erasmus School of Law and the Faculty of Law of the University of Groningen.

Successful applicants will be informed by 15 January 2025, and will be asked to submit a paper (between 5000 to 8000 words) by 9 March 2025.

Registration and funding

There are (limited) funds available to cover travel and accommodation costs. Please indicate in your submission whether you would require funding to attend the workshop.

Publication Opportunity

Selected papers will be invited for a post-conference publication project. Details will be shared during the event.

Important Dates

• Abstract Submission Deadline: 15 December 2024
• Notification of Acceptance: 15 January 2025
• Paper submission: 9 March 2025
• Workshop Date: 3-4 April 2025