Legal Disruption Call for Papers
Following its successful inaugural February academic conference in Stockholm in 2019, the Law
Schools Global League is holding its second Academic Conference in February 2020. The conference
will be hosted by the Faculty of Law, University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, and take
place on Tuesday, 11 February 2020. The theme of the conference is Legal Disruption.
This call for papers is for senior and/or junior researchers at LSGL institutions, including PhD
candidates and former LSGL Summer School participants.
Proposals are being sought on one of six broad topics related to the theme of legal disruption.
The theme of the conference has been deliberately chosen so as to be globally relevant, applicable to
multiple sub-disciplines of legal scholarship, timely and open-ended. In inviting a discussion about
the theme of legal disruption, we are interested in exploring not only how law and legal education is
being disrupted by technological and commercial innovations but also in how legal orders (national,
regional and international) are today being disrupted by political movements of the left and the right.
Equally, is law itself an agent of disruption (in terms of its historical and ongoing effect on colonised
peoples, for example)? And just how might we understand the very idea of ‘legal disruption’ relative
to other possible metaphors of legal change, be they evolutionary or revolutionary? Without limiting
the possibilities of the foregoing or the following, it is proposed that there will be a mix of plenary
and parallel sessions on:
• Disrupting constitutional orders
• Can law disrupt the environmental status quo?
• Colonialism: disruptor and disrupted
• Technological disruptions to law, legal orders and the legal profession
• Disrupting business as usual: human rights in business; and
• Shaking up the international order
We anticipate having 12-16 papers in total. The LSGL will fund two nights’ approved hotel
accommodation in Sydney for each of the accepted presenters.
The conference will be held in the Law Building, University of New South Wales (Kensington
Campus), from 9:00am to 5:00pm.
Timelines and Details
• Paper proposals of 300 to 500 words, together with a brief CV, should be submitted no later than
30 September 2019.
• Proposals will be reviewed by a panel consisting of the current LSGL co-presidents (Prof. Amnon
Lehavi (Dean, Harry Radzyner Law School, IDC Herzliya) and Prof. Gonçalo Matías (Dean, Católica
Global Law School)) and UNSW Law faculty members (Prof. Gabrielle Appleby (Associate Dean
(International & External Engagement)), A/Prof. Ben Golder (Associate Dean (Education)) and
Prof. Michael Handler (LSGL faculty contact)). Decisions will be announced by 25 October 2019.
• Papers should be ready for circulation to all conference participants no later than 31 January
2020.
Please send inquiries, proposals/CVs and final papers to presidency@lawschoolsgloballeague.com
Logistical Information
Travel: All participants are to pay for their own travel to and from Sydney, and to and from the
conference venue.
Information about visa requirements to enter Australia is available at
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing and
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-finder. UNSW Law staff can provide
assistance if you need advice about the correct visa for your visit.
Accommodation: The two hotels we will use for the Academic Conference are the Crowne Plaza
Coogee Beach (www.crowneplazacoogee.com.au) and the Coogee Sands Hotel & Apartments
(www.coogeesands.com.au), both at spectacular Coogee Beach.
Two nights’ accommodation for those presenting papers at the Academic Conference will be
covered by the LSGL (successful presenters will be contacted by UNSW staff in late October, and
UNSW will arrange and pay for the two nights’ accommodation). Hotel accommodation for all other
parties (for example, those attending the LSGL Deans’ Meeting and Global Legal Tech Venture Day on
10 February, and non-presenting participants at the Academic Conference on 11 February), is to be
paid for by the individual or his or her institution. Speakers who wish to stay for longer than two
nights will also need to cover those additional nights.
The Coogee Beach hotels are located approximately 12 km from Sydney Airport. The
approximate taxi fare from the Airport is A$40 – $50, depending on time of day and traffic. All taxis
are regulated in New South Wales. (Unfortunately, there are no straightforward public transport
options to get from the Airport to Coogee Beach.)
Meals: Breakfast will be included at the Coogee hotels. Morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea will be
served during the Academic Conference.
Conference location: The Academic Conference will be held at the Law Building, University of New
South Wales (Kensington Campus). A campus map is available at
http://fmtoolbox.unsw.edu.au/comms/KensingtonCampus.pdf and the Law Building is at F8.
The Kensington Campus is located approximately 3 km west of Coogee Beach, 5km south-east
of the Sydney Central Business District, and 7km south-east of Circular Quay/Sydney Opera House.
A shuttle bus will pick up speakers and conference attendees from the two Coogee hotels on
the morning of 11 February.
Pre-conference events: Those attending the February 2020 Deans’ Meeting and/or Academic
Conference arriving early are invited to a walking tour exploring Sydney’s indigenous, colonial and
recent history, to take place on Sunday, 9 February. This tour, which will be led by a number of
UNSW academics, will start at the Law Building at 1:00pm and finish in the Sydney suburb of Redfern
at approximately 5:00pm.
This will be followed by a cruise and welcome dinner on beautiful Sydney Harbour. This will
start from Circular Quay at 6:00pm.
Shuttle buses will take participants from the Coogee hotels to the start of the walking tour,
from Redfern back to the Coogee hotels, from the Coogee hotels to Circular Quay, and from Circular
Quay back to the Coogee hotels.
Weather: The average daytime temperature for Sydney in early February is 26°C (79°F), with
overnight lows of 18°C (64°F). However, it could well be much warmer than this, with daytime
temperatures at this time of year often around 30-35°C (85-95°F), and it is also likely to be humid,
with the possibility of afternoon storms. UV radiation is also likely to be very high at this time of year,
so please pack high SPF sunscreen, a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses if you plan on spending any
time outside.