Collaborative Research Networks
Organizers
Pedro Fortes, David Restrepo, Diego Gil, Rolando Garcia
This CRN brings together a group of scholars from different parts of the world, who are interested in multiple aspects of research on law and development. We welcome papers related to various theoretical, empirical and interdisciplinary debates – from scholarship focused on Max Weber’s work on legal families to the more contemporary accounts of the new developmental state and different conceptions of development. We are also interested in the role of institutions and markets in development.
Within this broader framework, this CRN encourages dialogues on a series of sub-themes, such as: 1) constitutionalism, democracy, and the rule of law, especially the complex process of state-building with the challenges of constitutional design; 2) the role of, and the interaction between, institutions, markets, and regulations in shaping social life, including themes like property, contracts, housing, urban zoning, healthcare, social security, infrastructure, trade, industrial innovation, antitrust, anti-corruption, finance and development banks; 3) legal metrics, new technologies and social change, specially the impact on legal decision-making processes resulting from the use of legal indicators, Big Data, and algorithms, arguably leading to the so-called “mathematical turn” in socio-legal analysis; 4) institutional reforms, including judicial reforms, expansion of access to justice, and development of mechanisms for Alternative Dispute Resolution, including the challenges brought by mass litigation, legal aid, enforcement of collective rights, complex litigation, arbitration, mediation, and the multi-doors courtroom; 5) the changing character of the legal profession, including lawyers, judges, prosecutors, regulators, the ombudsman, and public defenders; and 6) sustainable development and research that examines the role of law from a biocentric perspective and analyses the complexity of environmental protection, policies, and objectives.
The sub-themes listed above are far from exhaustive. Thus, the CRN invites papers that do not directly address any of the sub-themes mentioned above but are related to law and development. Academics in all stages of their careers are welcome and invited to participate.