Call for Papers: International Economic Law in a Time of Change

The International Economic Law Interest Group of the American Society of International Law has issued a call for papers for its biennial interest group conference to take place November 18-20, 2010, at the University of Minnesota Law School. The theme is "International Economic Law in a Time of Change: Reassessing Legal Theory, Doctrine, Methodology and Policy Prescriptions." Here's the call:

Call for Papers

American Society of International Law

International Economic Law Interest Group (IEcLIG)

2010 Biennial Interest Group Conference:

INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC LAW IN A TIME OF CHANGE:

REASSESSING LEGAL THEORY, DOCTRINE, METHODOLOGY AND POLICY PRESCRIPTIONS

University of Minnesota Law School

Minneapolis, MN, USA

November 18-20, 2010

I. Conference Theme

The ASIL International Economic Law Interest Group will hold its next biennial conference on November 18-20, 2010 at the University of Minnesota Law School in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The title of the conference is International Economic Law in a Time of Change: Reassessing Legal Theory, Doctrine, Methodology and Policy Prescriptions.

The start of the second decade of the twenty-first century is witnessing a confluence of events affecting international economic law that calls for re-evaluation. The international context has radically changed. Most analysts contend that we are shifting toward a multi-polar world in light of economic transformations in China, India, Brazil, and other developing and transitional countries, coupled with economic stagnation in the United States and Europe which are beset by a financial crisis and embroiled in foreign wars and security concerns. These developments have arguably complicated international economic governance, yet other factors–such as the current financial crisis–press consideration of new forms of international economic governance, such as the G-20. Global economic interdependence, exemplified by global production and supply chains, calls for sustained attention to international economic law and institutions.

II. Possible Topics for Papers and Panels

With this backdrop, the November conference will organize sessions that address the full range of international and transnational economic law. We encourage scholars to submit papers or panel proposals related to trade, investment, international financial regulation, transnational private law, and development law, as well as their intersection with social regulation such as over global warming, labor rights and consumer safety. This call for papers welcomes submissions that provide new analytic frameworks, reassess legal theory, evaluate developments in legal doctrine, engage in empirical analysis of the way international economic law operates, and provide guidance for policymakers, regulators and adjudicators in this time of international economic change.

The range of possible topics is wide—the list below is provided as a thought-starter of possible topics identified by the conference committee. We welcome however quality proposals on any international economic law topic.

• Methodological approaches for studying international economic law and their implications;
• Interpretive approaches to international economic law: theory vs. practice;
• Reform of international economic governance institutions, such as the WTO, IMF, World Bank, the G-8/G-20; international standards organizations;
• The interaction of institutions in a fragmented international economic law system;
• The role of hard and soft law in international economic governance, such as financial regulation;
• The interaction of private transnational economic governance regimes with public law;
• The interaction of international economic law and domestic law and politics;
• Theoretical and empirical studies on how international economic law institutions work;
• Theoretical and empirical studies on the handling of trade and investment disputes;
• Accountability and legitimacy of international economic governance;
• Climate change and its implications for international economic governance;
• Handling food and consumer safety risks in international trade;
• International economic law and the reassessment of development policies;
• New governance techniques in international economic law: their prospects and limits;
• Teaching international economic law: using new technologies;
• The future of international economic law after the financial crisis;
• The rise of China and a new international economic order?;
• Proliferating regional trade and investment agreements: complementing or supplanting multilateralism?; and
• The implications of the Doha Round for international economic law governance

III. Proposal Submission, Selection and Paper Publication

We encourage proposals for papers from both young and established scholars and practitioners so that they may engage with each other. Paper proposals and all other program-related proposals must be submitted electronically by July 30 2010 to 2010IELconference@gmail.com. Proposals should include the author's name and full contact information, and an abstract of no more than 300 words.

A Conference Committee will review and select proposals. Committee Members are:

ASIL International Economic Interest Group Co-Chairs:

Susan D. Franck, Washington & Lee University School of Law, and

Gregory Shaffer, University of Minnesota Law School

Robert Ahdieh, Emory Law School

Nathalie Bernasconi-Osterwalder, International Institute for Sustainable Development

Chris Brummer, Georgetown University Law Center

Hannah Buxbaum, Indiana University, Maurer School of Law

Sungjoon Cho, Chicago-Kent College of Law

Carolyn Deere, Oxford Centre for International Studies

Jeff Dunoff, Temple University Beardsley School of Law

Susan Karamanian, George Washington University School of Law

Claire Kelly, Brooklyn Law School

Petros Mavroidis, Columbia University Law School

Ruth Okediji, University of Minnesota Law School

Margrete Stevens, King & Spalding LLP

Joel Trachtman, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy

Markus Wagner, University of Miami Law School

Jarrod Wong, University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law

Jason Yackee, University of Wisconsin Law School

Decisions regarding inclusion in the conference program will be sent by September 1, 2010. Paper contributors will be expected to provide full paper drafts by November 1, 2010.

This conference is being co-sponsored by the University of Minnesota Law School and the Minnesota Journal of International Law. The Journal welcomes the opportunity to publish papers prepared for the conference as part of a special symposium issue.

The results of previous three biennial IEcLIG conferences have been published as THE POLITICS OF INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC LAW, Tomer Broude, Amy Porges and Marc L. Busch eds., Cambridge University Press (forthcoming 2010); INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC LAW: THE STATE AND FUTURE OF THE DISCIPLINE, Colin B. Picker, Isabella D. Bunn and Douglas W. Arner eds., Oxford: Hart Publishing, 2008; and TRADE AS THE GUARANTOR OF PEACE, LIBERTY AND SECURITY? CRITICAL HISTORICAL AND EMPIRICAL PERSPECTIVES, Padideh Ala'i, Tomer Broude, & Colin Picker eds., ASIL Press, 2006.

IV. Conference Details

The conference will take place at University of Minnesota Law School at Walter F. Mondale Hall, 229-19th Avenue South, Minneapolis, Minnesota on November 18-20, 2010. The conference site is centrally located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. For ASIL members, the registration fee is expected to be approximately $95 (which will cover some meals). The organizers will provide contact information for a range of hotel accommodations at various price ranges conveniently located in the Minneapolis area, including the Holiday Inn Metrodome across the street from the Minnesota Law School. We will also be applying for CLE credit for attendance in multiple jurisdictions.

V. About the Interest Group

The International Economic Law Interest Group promotes academic interest, discussion, research and publication on subjects broadly related to the transnational movement and regulation of goods, services, persons and capital. International law topics include trade law, investment law, economic integration law, private law, business regulation, financial law, tax law, intellectual property law and the role of law in development. The group provides a forum for interdisciplinary explorations of public and private international and municipal law, and is particularly interested in promoting the work and interests of new practitioners and scholars in the field. Its activities also include sponsoring panels at the ASIL Meeting and co-sponsoring conferences with allied organizations.

The Group’s major focus of activity is to hold a biennial conference, framed by an open Call for Papers publicized to group members, the ASIL and the public. The group’s conferences address the array of issues in international economic law, including the role and development of the multilateral trading system, the World Trade Organization, foreign investment, bilateral and regional trade and investment agreements, international development law, and international financial regulation. The research papers generated by these conferences have regularly been published in prestigious venues and are widely cited in international economic law scholarship.