The purpose of the CLSC is to support in-progress scholarship, foster a community of consumer law scholars, and build connections with scholars in other disciplines who focus on consumer and economic justice issues. The conference consists principally of workshop sessions at which one or two commentators, rather than the author, introduce and lead discussions of a single paper; the author is able to focus on and respond to the comments from participants. Everyone who attends a workshop session is expected to have read the paper and to actively participate in the discussion. The conference also offers plenary “lightning round” sessions during which 5-6 authors each briefly present a paper in progress.

Details

When: March 4-5, 2027

Where: UC Berkeley School of Law

Call for Abstracts

Please review the Call for Abstracts – CLSC 2027 page closely for further information on expectations for abstract submissions.

If you would like to workshop an unpublished paper, please submit HERE by Friday, September 11, 2026: (1) a title, (2) an extended abstract — 1-2 pages — that includes an explanation of how your article relates to other published work and advances the field, and (3) an outline of the article. Together, the extended abstract and outline should total approximately 2-3 pages in length.

Examples of submissions from previous years showing the appropriate format may be found here.

Drafts of complete papers (for workshop discussion) will be due January 29, 2027.

Dates and Deadlines

September 11, 2026: Abstract + outline submissions due

November 2026: Authors notified of paper selections

December 2026: Registration for conference opens

January 29, 2027: Complete drafts of accepted workshop papers due

February 5, 2027: Registration for conference closes

March 4-5, 2027: Conference

Registration Fee

We will be charging a $250 registration fee to participate in the 2027 CLSC. If you have any questions, or require a waiver in order to participate, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Fleming Scholars Program

We particularly encourage scholars who are currently working at legal services organizations to submit abstracts and to participate in the conference. The Fleming Scholars Program was launched in memory of our colleague Anne Fleming, who worked as a legal aid attorney before turning to academia. The program provides support, including conference travel funding and mentorship opportunities, for legal aid lawyers with scholarly aspirations/inclinations. Please contact us if you are interested.

Accessibility

If you have a disability or require an accommodation to fully participate in the CLSC , please contact Ben Hiebert (ben.hiebert@law.berkeley.edu) with as much advance notice as possible and ideally at least three weeks in advance of the event.

AALS Meeting Call for Panelists: “Consumer Protection in an Era of Regulatory Relaxation”

Separately, please also see this call for presentations at AALS from Stacy-Ann Elvy of UC Davis!

Dear Colleagues:

I am writing to you in my capacity as Chair of the Section on Commercial and Consumer Law.  The section’s program at the annual AALS meeting in January 2027 will focus on the current movement towards regulatory relaxation and the impact on consumers. The title of the panel is “Consumer Protection in an Era of Regulatory Relaxation.” We are looking to have a panel of 4 to 5 speakers on this topic. If you currently have a project that falls within this area and are interested in presenting it at the AALS conference, please feel free to reach out to me (selvy@ucdavis.edu) with an abstract or proposal for consideration by July 17th.

Best,

Stacy-Ann Elvy

Martin Luther King Jr., Professor of Law

University of California, Davis School of Law

selvy@ucdavis.edu

Questions?

Feel free to contact Ted Mermin (tmermin@law.berkeley.edu) and/or conference logistics coordinator Ben Hiebert (ben.hiebert@law.berkeley.edu).