Category Archives: Conferences and Calls for Papers

Second Call for Papers – 1st European conference of the International Association of Consumer Law (IACL)

Conferences and Calls for Papers, IACL events and reports

CALL FOR PAPERS

Global challenges for consumer law and policy in contemporary Europe

1st European conference of the International Association of Consumer Law (IACL)

17-18 September, Girton College Cambridge (UK)

and honouring the work of Prof. Iain Ramsay

 

The Board Members of the International Association of Consumer Law/Association Internationale de Droit de la Consommation (IACL-AIDC) are pleased to announce its first regional event dedicated to contemporary consumer protection across Europe. This event aims to encourage established and early career scholars to share their new research on 21st century challenges that consumers face and debates about legislative and regulatory responses to advance consumer protection in Europe. This regional conference will contribute to fostering connections made at biennial IACL-AIDC conferences, as well as help to build new communities of interest in consumer law, policy and regulation.

Our Conference Theme

The first quarter of the 21st century is an era of huge change in consumer protection with 2024 alone witnessing significant European reform initiatives to improve consumer rights. In February, the Member States of the European Union extended the Digital Services Act to all online platforms, with hopes of curbing online misinformation practices and facilitating better consumer decision-making and the European Parliament and the European Council finally reached a political agreement on the new consumer repair rights, which should boost the movement for sustainable consumption. Throughout the year, credit providers in Europe are adapting their practices to the newly adopted Consumer Credit Directive (EU) 2023/2225, intending to decrease financial information asymmetry while the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority has made implementation of the Consumer Duty by July 2024 a top priority. The UK’s Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill is also expected to become law by the end of this year updating consumer protection against unfair commercial practices to the digital economy, and potentially introducing a collective consumer law action regime (alongside the existing regime in competition law). With these and so many other important developments in the field of consumer law, now is the time to take stock of the themes, tendencies, and trends of consumer law in 21st century Europe and identify future directions and priorities.

Building our community at the Regional level also gives us the opportunity to recognise landmark contributions to consumer protection as a field of law. During this event, the Board of IACL-AIDC will honour and celebrate the work of Prof. Iain Ramsay. Throughout his career, Professor Ramsay’s dedication and passion for advancing consumer empowerment led to many ground-breaking and thought-provoking publications, especially in the areas of consumer finance and consumer protection theory and policy.

Conference Themes and Streams

 The conference will be divided into three sessions, each devoted to an evolving consumer protection field where we will reflect on advancements and remaining obstacles to consumer protection:

  1. Digital environments
  2. Financial services
  3. Sustainable consumption

Submit a proposal

We invite researchers to submit proposals for papers in the above-mentioned key themes. We welcome submissions that reflect on EU consumer law in the themes and/or national experiences. Papers reflecting on or responding to the work of Prof. Iain Ramsay are also welcome for the financial services stream. If you would like to present your work at the conference, please submit a 350 words abstract to [email protected] by 30th April 2024. Please do state the stream you wish to be included in. We aim to review all proposed submissions and inform authors whose submissions have been accepted by 15th May 2024.

Conference package

 The conference will take place at Girton College, University of Cambridge.

The full conference fee is £195, to include refreshments, lunch and dinner on the 17th September and refreshments and a sandwich/takeaway lunch on the 18th.

Modular rates for attendees wishing to participate in some of the event are:

Tuesday 17th only, full day with drinks and dinner                                                145.00

Tuesday 17th day session only, without drinks and dinner                                 £90.00

Tuesday 17th afternoon session (from 2:00pm) with drinks and dinner     £115.00

Wednesday 18th September only (including lunch)                                               £60.00

 

Registration opens at the end of April

Contact details

IACL-AIDC organising team (Toni Williams): [email protected]

+44(0)1223764069

About our location

Girton College, Cambridge

Huntingdon Road, Cambridge, CB3 0JG, UK

Arriving by Train:

There are regular train services to/from Cambridge, further guidance can be found on the National Rail website.

The links below provide the most up to date train times, prices and ways to save money on a train ticket:

Arriving by Air:

London-Stansted is the closest airport to Cambridge. Gatwick, Heathrow and Luton airports are within two hours drive.

Accommodation

Some on-site (single-room ensuite) accommodation is available and we are finalising preferential rates at hotel about 15 mins walk away. Details will be available by the end of April 2024.

Berk/ELI Transatlantic Conversation

Conferences and Calls for Papers, Newsletters

Berk/ELI Transatlantic Conversation on Consumer Protection Law

Wednesday, April 3

8:00 a.m. PDT / 17:00 CEST

The UC Berkeley Center for Consumer Law & Economic Justice and the European Law Institute Digital Law SIG are pleased to invite you to the next conversation in a series of transatlantic conversations on pressing issues in the area of consumer protection law.

The conversation will focus on the topic of artificial intelligence (AI).  Specifically, it will address current efforts to regulate AI in the US and EU, such as the recently-approved EU AI Act, and their implications for consumer protection.  The discussion will take place via Zoom on Wednesday, April 3 at 8:00 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time / 17:00 Central European Summer Time.

The conversation will be led by Philipp Hacker (Professor for Law and Ethics of the Digital Society at the European New School of Digital Studies) Pamela Samuelson (Richard M. Sherman Distinguished Professor of Law and Information at the University of California, Berkeley), and Colleen Chien (Professor of Law at the University of California, Berkeley).

After remarks from each speaker the floor will open for questions from the Zoom audience.

Please RSVP here by April 2 to receive the Zoom link.

                                       

Teaching Consumer Law Conference

Conferences and Calls for Papers

 

“Teaching Consumer Law in a Changing Environment”

Santa Fe, New Mexico

May 17-18, 2024

Preceded by the Law School Consumer Clinic Conference on May 16

The Center for Consumer Law & Economic Justice at the UC Berkeley School of Law and The Center for Consumer Law at the University of Houston Law Center are proud to present the thirteenth biennial international Teaching Consumer Law Conference. The conference is presented in cooperation with the University of New Mexico School of Law and the National Association of Consumer Advocates.

As in the past, the Teaching Conference has combined forces with the Law School Consumer Clinic Conference – so the program will begin with a full day devoted exclusively to consumer clinical education. There is a separate registration form for the Clinic Conference. If you are interested in or have questions about the Clinic Conference on May 16, please email Ted Mermin

([email protected]) and/or Ben Hiebert ([email protected]).

This year’s subject is “Teaching Consumer Law in a Changing Environment.” The Conference will be held at the Drury Hotel in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the “City Different,” one of the oldest and most interesting cities in the United States.

Please review the information below carefully, and let us know if you have any questions.

We look forward to seeing you in Santa Fe in May.

Richard Alderman

Nathalie Martin

Ted Mermin

Conference Chairs

 

Details

Date: May 17-18, 2024

Location: Drury Plaza Hotel, Santa Fe, NM (see “Hotel Accommodations” section below)

Schedule: The conference will commence at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, May 17, followed by a full day of sessions and an evening reception. The conference will continue with sessions the following morning on Saturday, May 18 and conclude at 12:00 p.m.

Meals: On Friday, May 17 we will provide lunch and a rooftop reception with libations and Hors d’Oeuvres. If you plan on having dinner after the reception on May 17, please make reservations. If you are staying in our room block at the Drury Hotel, breakfast is included in your room rate.

Program

The current list of speakers can be viewed here. Please note that this list is being updated, and the full conference agenda will be shared once ready.

Registration

Please REGISTER HERE by Friday, April 19, 2024.

When you register, you will be prompted to select the appropriate category from the below:

  • General registration: $250.00
  • Speaker registration: $100.00
  • NACA / Legal Services / Clinical Faculty / Adjunct Faculty registration $ 125.00

If you need assistance in order to attend or have any questions regarding registration, please contact us.

Hotel Accommodations

We have a block of rooms set up at the hotel conference venue (Drury Plaza Hotel, Santa Fe) from May 15-19.

Book your room HERE

  • Room rate: $245/ night
  • Note: breakfast is included in room rate
  • Group booking code: 10073368
  • Booking Deadline: Wednesday, April 17, 2024 

If you prefer to make your reservation over the phone, or if you want to add additional nights to your reservation (NOTE: the group rate is available 3 days pre/post the block dates, subject to availability), you may call 1-800-325-0720 and refer to the group number (10073368) in order to make your reservation.

For more information on the hotel room block and the included amenities, please see here.

Keynote Address

We are pleased to announce that Christine Riefa of the University of Reading will be providing the keynote address, entitled “The Transformative Power of Enforcement Technology in Consumer Law.”

Accessibility

If you require an accommodation for effective communication or information about mobility access features in order to fully participate in this event, please contact Ben Hiebert ([email protected](link sends e-mail)) with as much advance notice as possible and at least 7-10 days in advance of the event.

Questions?

Feel free to contact conference logistics coordinator Ben Hiebert ([email protected]).

Berkeley Center for Consumer Law & Economic Justice | UC Berkeley School of Law, 308 Law Building, Berkeley, CA 94720 510-643-3519

2024 Teaching Consumer Law Conference

Conferences and Calls for Papers

“Teaching Consumer Law in a Changing Environment”

Santa Fe, New Mexico

May 17 & 18, 2024

Special supplemental session for clinical faculty, May 16.

The Center for Consumer Law & Economic Justice at the UC Berkeley School of Law and The Center for Consumer Law at the University of Houston Law Center are proud to present the thirteenth biennial international Teaching Consumer Law Conference. The conference is presented in cooperation with the University of New Mexico School of Law and the National Association of Consumer Advocates.

As in the past, the Teaching Conference has combined forces with the Law School Consumer Clinics Conference – so the program will begin with a full day devoted exclusively to consumer clinical education. If you are interested in or have questions about the Clinics Conference on May 16, please email Ted Mermin ([email protected]) and/or Ben Hiebert ([email protected]).

This year’s subject is “Teaching Consumer Law in a Changing Environment.” The Conference will be held at the Drury Hotel in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the “City Different,” one of the oldest and most interesting cities in the United States.

Please review the information below carefully, and let us know if you have any questions.

We look forward to seeing you in Santa Fe in May.

Richard Alderman

Nathalie Martin

Ted Mermin

Conference Chairs

Call for Presentations

Please review the Call for Presentations page closely for information on the substantive focus of the conference, the nature of the sessions, and expectations for proposals.  Proposals are due February 15, 2024.

Submitting a proposal is not required for conference attendance. (See “Registration” section below.)

Details

Date: May 17-18, 2024

Location: Drury Plaza Hotel, Santa Fe, NM (see “Hotel Accommodations” section below)

Schedule: The conference will commence at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, May 17, followed by a full day of sessions and an evening dinner reception. The conference will conclude Saturday, May 18 at 12:00 p.m.

Meals: We will provide lunch and dinner on Friday, May 17. If you are staying in our room block at the Drury Hotel, breakfast is included in your room rate.

Registration

Please REGISTER HERE by Friday, April 19, 2024.

When you register, you will be prompted to select the appropriate category from the below:

  • General registration: $250.00
  • Speaker registration: $100.00
  • NACA / Legal Services / Clinical Faculty / Adjunct Faculty registration $ 125.00

NOTE: if you have submitted a presentation proposal, please refrain from registering until we have responded to your proposal so you know which category applies.

If you need assistance in order to attend or have any questions regarding registration, please contact us.

Speaker Form

If your presentation proposal was accepted and you will be speaking at the conference, please complete the Speaker Form.  (Note: please also register via link above.)

Hotel Accommodations

We have a block of rooms set up at the hotel conference venue (Drury Plaza Hotel, Santa Fe) from May 15-19.

Book your room HERE

  • Room rate: $245/ night
    • Note: hot breakfast is included in room rate
  • Group booking code: 10073368
  • Booking Deadline: Wednesday, April 17, 2024

You may also make your reservation over the phone by calling 1-800-325-0720 and referring to the group number (10073368).

For more information on the hotel room block and the included amenities, please see here.

Keynote Address

We are pleased to announce that Christine Riefa of the University of Reading will be providing the keynote address.

Questions?

Feel free to contact conference logistics coordinator Ben Hiebert ([email protected]).

2024 Teaching Consumer Law Conference

The 2024 Teaching Consumer Law Conference will focus on traditional substantive and pedagogical issues of teaching consumer law, as well as new issues presented by generative AI, fintech, crypto, social media, Covid, Artificial Intelligence, and current societal issues. It is directed primarily toward those currently teaching or interested in teaching consumer law—full-time or as an adjunct.

We invite papers and presentations that will inspire attendees at the conference to think differently about the way we teach and the way we think about consumer law and the marketplace. Possible topics for the 2024 conference include:

  • What opportunities are there for reimagining traditional classroom structure and practice?
  • “I want to steal this idea from you.” A panel to share and borrow teaching tricks.
  • How do we address issues of economic justice within the context of consumer law?
  • How can we bring the world around us into the classroom – and get students out into that world as part of our teaching?
  • How should the field of “Consumer Law” be defined? Are there further/fewer subjects that should be brought within the term?
  • How can we build and enhance consumer law programs at our universities?
  • What societal issues might benefit from the application of consumer protection law – for example, racial justice, health care, elder law, coerced debt in abusive relationships, telecommunications, commerce involved in incarceration, or climate change?
  • How can we learn and teach about consumer financial scams that proliferate today, especially those targeting vulnerable groups like immigrants, children, and seniors?
  • What aspects of consumer protection regulation should come from public or private litigation? From legislation? From agency rulemaking?
  • Are there innovative ways to resolve consumer problems, other than existing court and alternative dispute resolution systems?
  • Are there new forms of risky credit that we can learn and teach about – for example, buy now pay later and educational income share agreements?
  • What can comparing different countries’ approaches to the same consumer protection issues tell us about those countries, and about consumer law?
  • What updates and cutting-edge developments and issues have arisen in substantive consumer law?
  • The view from the trenches—what do practicing attorneys see as the most pressing consumer law issues?
  • What is different about this post-pandemic generation of students, and how can our teaching address those differences?

Presentations will be relatively short, leaving more time for discussion. Papers and presentations, which do not require a formal paper, are invited on any of the above themes, or any other topic of interest to those teaching of consumer law. Presenters may discuss the law of any jurisdiction; however, the emphasis is on topics of interest to law school instructors and those with an interest in entering academia.

Those who wish to submit a paper or presentation topic are invited to forward a proposal including a brief abstract of no longer than 400 words, and contact information for the author. The proposals should be sent to Professor Richard M. Alderman at [email protected]. Proposals may be submitted anytime, but no later than February 15, 2024. You will be promptly notified of acceptance. Final drafts of papers or materials that are to be distributed prior to the Conference should be received not later than the 1st of May 2024. Slides to accompany a presentation are welcome, particularly if they aid the presentation by providing useful graphs, images, videos, and other non-textual material.

The language of the conference is English. Conference registration fees will be reduced for all presenters. With consent, selected papers may be published in the Journal of Consumer and Commercial Law. For more information, contact Richard Alderman, [email protected].

Registration, hotel, and other important logistical information be found on the main conference webpage HERE.

Forthcoming conference you may be interested in…

Conferences and Calls for Papers

Consumer Protection in Transition: Digital Transformation and Better Enforcement 

23-25 September 2021, online/onsite hybrid conference

Participation is free, but a registration is needed. Please find the registration page here and the LinkedIn announcement here.

This event features academics with close links to the IACL including Prof Geraint Howells and Mateja Durovic. have a look at the great programme: https://ps7.pravri.uniri.hr/en/program/

IACL Annual Conference Postponed due to Covid-19

Conferences and Calls for Papers

The current Covid-19 pandemic has affected everyone one way or the other. It has also brought about a lot of uncertainty about the future, particularly regarding the availability of a vaccine and the lifting of international travel bans. The 18th Conference of the International Association of Consumer Law (IACL) was initially set to take place in Hamburg, Germany during July 2021. However, in view of the prevailing uncertainty regarding the ongoing pandemic, the IACL board and Institute for Financial Services in Hamburg, Germany (IFF), the organisers of the next IACL’s international conference, have jointly taken the decision to rather postpone the conference to 2022. The 2022 conference with the theme “Challenges and Unanswered Questions of Consumer Law” is tentatively set to take place in Hamburg, Germany during 13–15 July 2022. A main attraction of the bi-annual conference of the IACL is that it not only gives participants the opportunity to share their research with other participants (and delegates), but also to network and form meaningful research relationships. The lunches, tea breaks and social agenda cater for these opportunities. Using a virtual platform for the IACL conference will deprive delegates and participants of this integrated feature of the IACL conferences. The call for papers should follow in due course. Please continue to regularly check the IACL’s website, Facebook page and newsletters for the call for papers and further conference details.

In the meantime, we are fortunate that Prof Geraint Howells has an action packed programme of regular Webinars to fill the gap. Please check our Webinars page for more details.

Call for Papers: Fourth University of Pretoria International Consumer Law Conference (UPICLC) – Proportionality and consumer regulation: Time for a balanced approach?

Conferences and Calls for Papers, Country Specific Information

21-23 September 2020

The dynamics of the consumer market are such that it transcends borders and realms. The products and services traded in this market are evolving and changing on a daily basis. They are increasingly sophisticated and complex. 

We are now on the frontiers of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which drives the search for a new regulatory landscape aligned with the challenges that this exciting epoch presents. If our aim is to protect consumers, especially vulnerable ones, we need to consciously consider, now more than ever, the type of approach we support. Is more intrusive and expansive regulation the answer? Should we completely rethink and innovate our approach to consumer protection and take it to new dimensions? Or do we need to consider a more balanced and proportional approach? 

We invite you to join us in this exciting debate where we can freely share ideas in the interest of expanding knowledge and shaping policy in the area of consumer protection. At the 4th University of Pretoria International Consumer Protection Law Conference, we would like to explore the concept of a balanced approach between proportionality and consumer regulation and how it affects all the various aspects, policies, theories, areas and rights that is considered to be part of Consumer Protection. This would include for example General Consumer Protection, Financial Consumer Protection and Credit Law, E-Commerce and other related areas. 

Send your abstract of no more than 500 words to Jani van Wyk at [email protected] by 30 June 2020.

Contact Jacolien Barnard at [email protected] or Jani van Wyk for more information

https://www.up.ac.za/cf-upiclc2020

In addition … African realities and approaches to Consumer Protection

The UPICLC 2020 will include a concurrent stream of presentations for participants from other African jurisdictions (or any other jurisdiction) to disseminate the position relating to the conference theme and the position in Africa or a particular African country/countries.  

We will also have a one-day workshop on 21 September 2020 facilitated by the Attorney General Alliance Africa (“AGA Africa”) on inter alia debt collection, credit reporting, privacy, e-commerce and secured transactions involving movable assets with a comparative perspective of the United States of America and how these transactions relate to the South African and African positions. Any other jurisdictions are welcome to attend!

Important information

Abstracts      Abstracts must be submitted no later than 30 June 2020 and must not exceed 500 words. The abstract must contain the following information of the candidate: title, surname, affiliated institution, position held at institution and an e-mail address where the candidate can be reached. This information does not form part of the word count for the abstract.

All abstracts are peer-reviewed. Candidates are requested to proofread their abstracts to ensure that the language and style is of high quality. 

All presentations at the conference will be in English and no provision is made for translators. As such, prospective participants need to be proficient in English or make provision for their own translators to accompany them. Feedback on submitted abstracts will be given within two weeks of date of submission of the abstracts

Venue      The conference will take place from 21 to 23 September 2020 at the new Future Africa Campus of the University of Pretoria. 

Accommodation is available at the venue and must be arranged directly with the venue. Visit the Future Africa website at www.futureafrica.science for more information.

Conference fee   3 500 ZAR which includes the AGA Africa-workshop, evening welcoming function, conference dinner, and refreshments and lunch on the days of the conference. Delegates are responsible for their own travel and accommodation expenses. 

Masters and doctoral candidates, as well as post-graduate research fellows qualify for a reduced fee of 1 750 ZAR upon application to the conference committee. Delegates who only wish to attend one of the two conference days, together with the workshop, qualify for a reduced conference fee of 2 000 ZAR upon application to the conference committee.

Important dates

30 June 2020Last day for submission of abstracts
14 August 2020Last day for payment of conference fee
21 August 2020Publication of draft program on conference website
21 September 2020AGA Africa-workshopEvening: UPICLC Welcoming function
22 September 2020UPICLC Day OneEvening: UPICLC Conference dinner
23 September 2020UPICLC Day Two