Call for Papers: Trust, Social Capital and Networks: A different perspective on International Courts

iCourts, Centre of Excellence for International Courts has issued a call for papers for a workshop on "Trust, Social Capital and Networks: A different perspective on International Courts," to take place February 4-5, 2016. Here's the call:

Trust, Social Capital and Networks: A different perspective on Intertional Courts - Call for papers

Organised by iCourts, Centre of Excellence for International Courts.

The workshop, which will take place in February 2016 at iCourts, University of Copenhagen, aims to provide participants with the opportunity to think through and develop a new research agenda on social capital, networks and trust to be applied to understand International Courts and legal regimes.

While concepts of social capital, networks and trust are increasingly used in the study of International Courts and Law, the discipline still lacks a systematic analysis of the role, limits and uses of these concepts for the study of International Courts (ICs). The current discussions of trust, social capital and networks have evolved in separate spheres, circumscribed to a specific court or legal institution. This situation shows a fragmented conceptualization, preventing the creation of common conceptual frameworks, which could promote mutual understanding and exchanges among scholars in the field.

iCourts, committed to the promotion of the interdisciplinary perspective in the area of International Courts and Law, is inviting participants from several disciplines with an interest in International Courts to a high-level interdisciplinary discussion of the topic. This would allow for cross-fertilization, exchange of opinions and knowledge between the academics but also for the critical assessment of the new tools which the scholars use to scrutinize these concepts in the context of ICs. By doing this, the workshop will hopefully contribute to a wide-ranging discussion. This includes not only general theoretical approaches and concepts but also comparative and specific case studies based on original and innovative empirical evidence of how these concepts are or can be applied to several international courts and legal regimes (e.g. International Criminal Court, European Court of Justice, European Court of Human Rights, WTO dispute settlement system, arbitration bodies, and national courts, among others).

In order to frame the debate and papers, we ask paper-givers to reflect about: To what extent are these concepts applicable for the study of ICs? Can we agree on a common definition of these terms? How can these concepts help to explore the dynamics behind the creation, empowerment and legitimization of ICs in the global and domestic context and its success? Which empirical indicators are useful to investigate trust, social capital and networks in ICs? And, finally, how these new theories and concepts might contribute or challenge our current understanding of international courts and/or scholarship?

The conference will include papers presented by invited participants, as well as papers selected in the course of the present call for papers. We will seek to publish a selection of the papers in a special journal issue or book.

Paper submission
The workshop will be open to new participants PhD researchers, junior and senior scholars from international institutions working on this topic with an empirical approach. The papers should deal with specific topics related to the overall theme “Trust, social capital and networks in International Courts”. The selection will seek to ensure a balanced representation of the various ICs across the glove, disciplines (sociology, law, political science, etc.) and methods. – The proposal (approx. 300 words) should be submitted by the 15th of October 2015 and include:

• Title of the paper
• Research question
• Methodology and data
• Expected findings

The proposals should be submitted with curriculum vitae of the author/s to Juan A. Mayoral – juan.mayoral@jur.ku.dk

Financing
Authors of selected papers will be offered accommodation in a hotel in Copenhagen; lunches and coffee breaks will be covered for all the participants by iCourts.