ESELS Conference Report Elche 2024

Annual Conference 2024

ESELS Conference Report Elche 2024

On 20-21 June 2024 the highly successful Annual Conference of ESELS took place in the city of Elche (Spain), hosted by the Universidad Miguel Hernández. For two days more than 120 scholars working in the field of Empirical Legal Studies from all over Europe and around the world convened and contributed to fruitful intellectual exchanges and collaboration on empirical-legal research and teaching.

Day 1

After a wonderful, historical address by the major of Elche on Wednesday the 19th, the Conference officially started off on Thursday the 20th with a warm welcome by ESELS President Catrien Bijleveld and opening by vice-rector Vicente Micol Molina.

In the first plenary address, keynote speaker Juan S. Mora-Sanguinetti  shared his expertise on regulatory complexity and the impacts of anti-discrimination legislation and “green regulation”, followed by an engaging discussion with the audience.

From the end of the morning onwards interactive panel sessions on Empirical Legal Research took place, in which scholars from different legal backgrounds and disciplines showcased their researching findings and engaged in productive discussions with their ELS colleagues.

In the afternoon, after a delicious lunch, the ESELS General Assembly convened. The attending ESELS members elected Tilmann Altwicker as ESELS Future President (2025/26) and Rita Gsenger as ESELS Board Member.

Also, during the GA Jessie Pool was thanked for all her efforts for the Society before stepping down as past President. Finally, Julien Bétaille delivered a compelling presentation on the next ESELS Conference in the wonderful city of Toulouse, on 19-20 June 2025.

At the end of the afternoon the ice cream event with poster presentations offered more networking opportunities. The first day concluded with a social gathering with drinks at the pool of the beautiful, palm-surrounded Hotel Huerto del Cura, followed by a wonderful dinner featuring many delicious Spanish specialties.

Day 2

The second day of the conference commenced with another set of engaging ELS panel sessions, providing participants with more opportunities to explore interdisciplinary topics of interest, on criminal law, compliance, constitutional studies and European courts.

During the plenary session at the end of the morning, moderated by ESELS President Urška Šadl, two intriguing keynotes were delivered. Barbora Holá captured the attention of the audience with a compelling address on “Doing Justice after Atrocities”, followed by an insightful discussion by Mathias Siems on the most recent developments in the growing field of Comparative Empirical Studies in Europe.

After the keynotes attendees enjoyed another networking lunch, further strengthening the connections formed during the conference. The afternoon featured two additional rounds of stimulating panel sessions, offering participants the chance to delve into a diverse range of subjects and engage in fruitful dialogues, for example during the Presidential Panel on the meaning and importance of ELS for legal scholars and students.

The closing ceremony was chaired by past President Catrien Bijleveld, delivering thankful words to the outstanding local organization for making this great event possible. On behalf of the local organization Fernando Miró Llinares handed over the ESELS flag to Executive Secretary Erik Wesselius, to be displayed again during the next Annual Conference in Toulouse on 19-20 June 2025 at the Université Toulouse Capitole.