Has the idea of development outlived its usefulness? What role has critical scholarship on law in development to play in contemporary contexts? Would it be better to focus on specific social and economic injustices? What is the role of the law and of legal professionals and judicial officers in socio-economic and political development in contemporary Africa? What challenges do civil society organisations encounter when they engage with the law?

To mark the 60th anniversary of the University of Warwick and the Warwick Law School’s long history and continuing engagement with law in development scholarship, the African Judiciaries Research Network, Department of Politics and International Studies, Warwick Africa Hub, and Warwick Law School are hosting a two-day workshop at the British Institute in Eastern Africa in Nairobi on 1st and 2nd April 2025.

Day 1: Critical engagements with African Law in Development workshop and roundtable. 1 April 2025

This hybrid academic workshop will focus on the evolution, contemporary relevance, and challenges facing the idea of law in and for development in contemporary Africa.

Possible themes include: the potential for law and of legal professionals and judicial officers in pushing forward socio-economic and/or political development; the role of the law and of legal professionals and judicial officers in maintaining the status quo or upholding authoritarianism and injustice; the challenges facing those, including civil society organisations and activists who seek to pursue social, economic and climate justice through legal means; and neo-colonialism and post-coloniality and the law.

The day will conclude with a roundtable discussion of continuities and discontinuities in ‘law in development’ to be facilitated by Prof. Ambreena Manji Cardiff University.

If you would like to present a paper at the workshop, please submit a title and 300-word abstract to Gabrielle Lynch (g.lynch@warwick.ac.uk) by Tuesday 31 December 2024 and indicate whether you intend to participate in person or online. Those selected will need to give a 10 to 15-minute presentation.

Day 2: Early career writing workshop. 2 April 2025

This in-person writing workshop will support early career researchers – from MA students through to those who have completed a PhD in the past five years – to prepare articles for submission to academic journals. Papers are welcomed from legal scholars, but also from anthropologists, historians, and political scientists, whose scholarship focuses on the role of, challenges to, and critiques of law in development.

If you would like to submit a paper for discussion, then please submit a title and 300-word abstract to Gabrielle Lynch (g.lynch@warwick.ac.uk) by Tuesday 31 December 2024. Those selected will need to submit a full draft of their paper by 28 February 2025.

We have a small budget to support the travel of researchers from Eastern Africa to attend the writing workshop. When submitting your abstract please indicate whether you would need to apply for a bursary to cover travel and/or subsistence and where you will be travelling from and a breakdown of your travel budget.