Constitutional Studies Convenes State of the Field Panels (Online)
/Constitutional Studies is convening authors from its June 2025 State of the Field issue to discuss their findings.
State of the Field: Constitutional Change and Judicial Impacts
Date: Thursday, September 18, 2025
Time: 7:00-8:30am London / 8:00-9:30am Lusaka / 11:00am-12:30pm Astana / 2:00-3:30pm Taipei / 4:00-5:30pm Canberra
Registration: Register here for Zoom link
Languages: Captions in 37 languages
Authors from Constitutional Studies’ June 2025 issue convene to discuss the state of the field of constitutional studies, providing a sweeping comparative view of what we know about the processes of constitutional change in recent decades, the evolution of constitutional systems, and judicial impacts in these areas. Hear from leading constitutional scholars on these dynamics in the regions where they work—Africa, Asia, Oceania, and post-Soviet states. The depth of case comparison across the authors’ papers is unparalleled in one volume, covering 54 states in Africa, 25 states and administrative regions in Asia, 12 post-Soviet states, and 2 large states in Oceania—and over 200 court cases across these jurisdictions. Join us for a discussion of the current state of play in each region and lessons learned across these dynamic regions.
We ask attendees to please read the articles in advance so the discussion can explore their arguments and draw connections across the articles and regions. Speakers include:
● Elisa Arcioni (University of Sydney) and Kirsty Gover (University of Melbourne), Can Private International Law Methods Facilitate Indigenous-Settler Legal Pluralism?: Possibilities in Australia and Aotearoa
● Markus Böckenförde (Central European University), (Unconstitutional) Constitutional Amendments in Africa: Mapping the Field
● Alexei Trochev (Nazarbayev University) and Alisher Juzgenbayev (Northwestern University), Diverging Trajectories of Post-Soviet Constitutional Courts
● Jiunn-rong Yeh [and not attending, Wen-Chen Chang] (National Taiwan University), Changing Dynamics of Constitutional Progress and Regression in Asia: Interplay of Electoral, Civic, and Judicial Constitutionalism; 亞洲憲政進步與倒退的動態分析：選舉憲政主義、公民憲政主義與司法憲政主義的相互作用
● Moderators: Mara Malagodi (Warwick University) and Ashley Moran (University of Texas)
State of the Field: Democratic and Constitutional Backsliding
Date: Tuesday, September 30, 2025
Time: 8:00-9:30am Mexico City / 10:00-11:30am Washington DC / 11am-12:30pm Brasília / 3:00-4:30pm London / 4:00-5:30pm Lusaka / 10:00-11:30pm Taipei
Registration: Register here for Zoom link
Languages: Captions in 37 languages
Authors from Constitutional Studies’ June 2025 issue convene to discuss the state of the field of constitutional studies, providing ground-breaking new theoretical frameworks and empirical analyses to understand democratic and constitutional backsliding. Comparing cases across the Americas and Europe, the authors assess recent decades of backsliding as broad patterns and also in specific relation to gender policies, climate change, social diversity, and anti-majoritarianism shaping the backsliding context today. Hear from leading constitutional scholars with analysis of trends across Central America, Central and Eastern Europe, South America, and North America as we assess the current state of play in each region and lessons learned for responses globally.
We ask attendees to please read the articles in advance so the discussion can explore their arguments and draw connections across the articles and regions. Speakers include:
● Roberto Gargarella (CONICET Argentina; University of Pompeu Fabra Barcelona), El ‘Problema Democrático’ en América Latina y el ‘Traje Estrecho’ del Constitucionalismo; The ‘Democratic Problem’ in Latin America and the ‘Narrow Suit’ of Constitutionalism
● Ran Hirschl (University of Toronto), Comparative Constitutional Inquiry: The North American Angle
● Silvia Suteu (European University Institute), Democratic Backsliding and Comparative Constitutional Soul-Searching in Europe
● Discussant: Wen-Chen Chang (National Taiwan University)
● Moderators: José María Serna de la Garza (National Autonomous University of Mexico) and Ashley Moran (University of Texas)
For more information, please contact Ashley Moran.