The Latin American Society of International Law (SLADI/LASIL) will celebrate its 7th biennial Conference from 31 July to 2 August 2025 at the Universidad de la República in Montevideo, Uruguay

 

Strand 1: Changing World, Changing Law? – International Law Amid Shifting Power Dynamics

 

This strand will explore the changing landscape of international law amid shifting global power dynamics. It will critically examine the so-called rules-based order, including its meaning, foundations, and challenges in an era of tectonic changes. The discussion will address how great power competition is reshaping international legal norms, the impact of political polarisation on multilateral cooperation, and the role of international law in mitigating or fuelling the consequences of economic conflicts such as tariff wars. Additionally, it will reflect on the intersection of international law and plutocracy, questioning whether global governance structures are increasingly influenced by economic elites and the implications this has for democracy and the rule of law.

 

This strand will accept applications on the following themes:

• The so-called ‘rules-based order’: what is it, and why might it be in crisis?

• International law in the era of great power competition

• International law and political polarisation

• International law and tariff wars

• International law and plutocracy

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Strand 2: Latin America – Approaches, Priorities, and Possibilities

 

This strand will concentrate on the role of Latin America and the Caribbean in this new global context. It will explore Latin American and Caribbean states’ current political, economic, and social priorities, as well as the new and diverse ways in which different actors engage with international law in the region. The discussion will consider contemporary approaches to multilateralism in Latin America, the role of the Organization of American States (OAS), the Inter-American Human Rights System, and the region’s evolving relationship with the United Nations as it marks its 80th anniversary. Additionally, it will examine the proliferation of subregional international organisations. The strand will further explore distinctive approaches, initiatives, and developments in Latin America and the Caribbean in areas such as climate justice, indigenous peoples’ rights, and the fight against organised crime.

 

This strand will accept applications on the following themes:

• Current priorities of Latin American and Caribbean states’ foreign policies

• New roles and uses of international law in the region

• The United Nations at 80, and the place of Latin America in the organisation

• Latin American and Caribbean approaches to climate justice, indigenous peoples’ rights, and the fight against organised crime

• Latin American regionalism within and beyond the OAS

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Strand 3: New Alliances? Multilateralism in and from the Global South

 

Considering past and current cooperation schemes in the Global South, this strand will focus on multilateral arrangements and their diverse normative and institutional structures that have been shaping blueprints for overcoming persistent issues of wealth redistribution, political stability, rights protection and inequality in the Global South. The discussion will comprise analyses of concrete experiences of public litigation in and from the Global South, the legal aspects of Southern multilateralism, including the specific features of cooperation between Latin American and Caribbean states and the legal aspects of BRICS. The strand will further assess historical and theoretical approaches concerning the experience of international organisations in the South.

 

This strand will accept applications on the following themes:

• South-South alliances in public interest litigation

• South-South cooperation in international law

• History and theory of international organisations in the Global South

• Cooperation between Latin American and Caribbean states

• BRICS and international law

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Timeline

 

LADI/LASIL invites submissions of papers and panel proposals addressing one or more of the issues outlined above by 20 March 2025 at  Sladi2025@utdt.edu. Abstracts and proposals should not be longer than 500 words and should be accompanied by a CV (2 pages max.) and a brief letter. SLADI welcomes submissions from PhD researchers.

Submissions can be made in Spanish, Portuguese, English or French, and presentations at the Conference can be conducted in any of these four working languages of the Society. Selected papers will be notified by 1 April 2025.

We expect a selection of papers to be published in a special issue in a peer-reviewed journal such as the Revista Latinoamericana de Derecho Internacional or the Latin American and Caribbean Journal of International Law. All sessions will be in person. SLADI will send letters of invitation to those who need to seek support in their relevant institutions, as required. Unfortunately, SLADI/LASIL cannot offer any financial assistance.

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Organising Committee

 

Laura Betancur Restrepo (Universidad de Los Andes), Alejandro Chehtman (Universidad Torcuato Di Tella), Fabia Fernandes Carvalho (FGV Direito SP), Francisco-José Quintana (Geneva Graduate Institute/EUI), and Justina Uriburu (University of Manchester).