Call for Abstracts for the Berkeley Annual Consumer Law Scholars Conference

We are pleased to announce the Eighth Annual Consumer Law Scholars Conference will be held in Berkeley on Thursday and Friday, March 5-6, 2026! Please save the date! 

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. We will also have plenary “lightning round” sessions during which an author will have a chance to briefly present a paper in progress.

Where: UC Berkeley School of Law

Please review the Call for Abstracts – CLSC 2026 page closely for further information on expectations for abstract submissions.

If you would like to workshop an unpublished paper, please submit HERE by September 12, 2025: (1) a title, (2) a brief abstract that includes an explanation of how your article relates to other published work and advances the field, and (3) an outline of the article.

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 30, 2026.

September 12, 2025: Abstract submissions due

November 2025: Authors notified of paper selections

December 2025: Registration for conference opens

January 30, 2026: Complete drafts of accepted workshop papers due

February 6, 2026: Registration for conference closes

March 5-6, 2026: Conference

In order to make the conference more self-sustaining, we will be introducing a $250 registration fee to participate in the 2026 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. Please contact us if you are interested.

Accessibility

If you have a disability or require an accommodation to fully participate in this event, please contact Ben Hiebert (ben.hiebert@law.berkeley.edu) with as much advance notice as possible and at least 7-10 days in advance of the event.

Questions?

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