Young Legal Researchers Conference 2025

6^th Young Legal Researchers Conference 2025

The aim of this conference is to bring together young researchers (primarily PhD researchers and postdocs) to share, discuss and exchange ideas on their research with one another. The 6^th Young Legal Researchers Conference will take place on Friday the 5^th of December 2025 in Hasselt, Belgium under the theme of ‘Quarter-Century Milestones: the Next Generation’s Reflections on Legal Breakthroughs and Drawbacks’.

The conference will be hosted by young academics of the faculty of law at the University of Hasselt.

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Abstract submission – Until monday the 29th of September 2025  
Poster submission – Until monday the 29th of September 2025 
Notification of acceptance/rejection –  At the latest on the 10th of October 2025 
Registration – Between the 10th of October and the 9th of November 2025 
Day of the conference – Friday the 5th of December 2025

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS

Hasselt University’s Faculty of Law is pleased to announce the sixth edition of the Young Legal Researchers Conference, which will take place on Friday the 5th of December 2025. The conference will take place in person at the city campus of Hasselt University. The aim of the conference is to bring together young researchers (primarily PhD and postdoctoral researchers) to share, discuss and exchange ideas on their research with one another.

This conference will mark the 25th anniversary of the new millennium by critically examining the trajectory of legal systems, reforms, and developments across various legal fields and disciplines. Over the past decades, the legal landscape has undergone significant transformation, spurred by globalization, technological advancements, shifting political landscapes, and evolving social norms. This conference will reflect on the progress made and the challenges faced, drawing attention to key milestones that have shaped contemporary legal thought and practice.

We invite researchers to submit an abstract from all areas of law, including interdisciplinary legal research, to present their findings, critiques, ideas and solutions related to the following theme: “Quarter-Century Milestones: The Next Generation's Reflections on Legal Breakthroughs and Drawbacks”.

Topics may include but are not limited to: 

Monodisciplinary topics:

• Law of persons and family law: The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006), legalization of LGBTQIA+ marriage and developments thereafter, life cycle questions (abortion, euthanasia, surrogacy regulations, etc.), the impact of artificial reproductive technologies;
• Environmental and climate change law: The Paris Agreement on Climate Change (2015), Nature Restoration Regulation (2024), Climate change and greenwashing litigation, rights of nature and standing for ecosystems, carbon markets and emissions trading, environmental crime and enforcement;
• Constitutional and human rights law: Migration and the EU’s new pact on migration and asylum (2024), climate refugees and displacement, democracy and the rule of law, independence of human rights institutes;
• Labour and social security law: The EU Pay Transparency Directive (2023), pension reforms and aging populations, the status of social protection for international migrants, work and social protection in the gig economy;
• Data, technology and AI: Legal frameworks for data protection (GDPR, 2018), the EU AI Act (2024), intellectual property challenges in an era of generative AI, liability for AI-generated content, AI and sustainability considerations;
• Corporate and financial law: Corporate governance and corporate social responsibility, the expansion of digital banking service, the Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act (2022), circular economy action plan (2024), ESG framework;

Interdisciplinary topics:

• Law and criminology: The International Criminal Court (ICC) (2002) and the evolution of criminal justice, the expansion of restorative justice practices, decriminalization and legalisation of drugs, facial recognition and predictive policing;
• Law and economics: Environmental law and economics, corporate governance and finance, law and economics of innovation, economic aspects of healthcare legislation;
• Law and ethics: Exploring the interplay between law and ethics, the protection of minorities, ethical implications of privacy, ethical legal practice;
• Law and social sciences: Democracy, (in)equality, rule of law, the influence of politics in law.

All topics that lie within the overarching theme will be considered, regardless of the field of law.

Participants are welcome to submit topics outside the examples listed.

Young researchers are invited to submit an abstract in English until the 29th of September 2025:

• The abstract (max. 400 words, excluding the title) should contain the aim of the presentation, the main points of the argument and a brief conclusion. 
• Please also include a short biography of the researcher (max. 150 words).
• Acceptance of the abstract will be communicated at the latest on the 10th of October 2025.
• Abstracts should be uploaded through the abstract submission form, which can be found on the website https://www.uhasselt.be/ylrc.
• It is possible to attend the conference without presenting. 

For any inquiries, please contact ylrc@uhasselt.be. For more information on the programme, please consult our university website https://www.uhasselt.be/ylrc. 

CALL FOR POSTERS

Would you like to present your legal research in a different way than by means of a PowerPoint presentation or a paper...? Translate your research into a poster!

What? 

Each accepted poster will be displayed during the conference. Furthermore, each participant will have the opportunity to vote for their favourite poster. At the end of the conference day, the winner of the poster contest will be announced and will earn eternal YLRC fame!

Why? 

Legal research can be captured in a graphically attractive way. However, the use of posters is not (yet) an established way of presenting and sharing research within legal studies. The YLRC team wants to change this, since the creative and simplified presentation of (y)our research holds great potential, and is a worthwhile skill to develop. Consequently, we encourage you to submit a poster to pitch your research at our conference.

Who can participate, and how?

Any legal researcher who would like to showcase their legal research in a smooth and attractive way, can submit a poster in English until the 29th of September 2025:

• Please submit your poster before the 29th of September 2025 (as a JPEG or PDF) through the poster submission form, found on https://www.uhasselt.be/ylrc. 

• In the poster submission form, you will be asked to add a short description of yourself, your research and the content of the poster. This description will serve to support the poster and will be displayed on the website.

• Acceptance of the poster will be communicated at the latest on the 10th of October 2025.

• The presenters must bring their own poster in A1 format to the conference.

For any inquiries, please contact ylrc@uhasselt.be. For more information on the programme, please consult our university website https://www.uhasselt.be/ylrc.

Abstract submission form: https://forms.gle/ZLME16uuCQ1Lieqr6 

Poster submission form: https://forms.gle/sAt7JRt4R4tz5TEG6

Registrations for YLRC 2025 will open on the 10th of October.

Registration form: https://forms.gle/kNkXE9nZu4TNoquv5 

The conference will be hosted by a team of young academics from the faculty of law at the University of Hasselt.

• Britt BOCKEN
• Amber JANS
• Rana JANSSEN
• Olivia LOYENS
• Marie-Laure LUYKX
• Sharleen QUAREM
• Mariet STIERS
• Ifigeneia TSAKALOGIANNI

Programme

To be announced. 

Each presenter will have 15 minutes to present their research.

Venue

The conference will take place at campus Hasselt of Hasselt University. The university is located close to the city center of Hasselt and only a 15-minute walk from the train station, from where you have direct connections to Brussels-Airport and also the main train stations such as Antwerpen-Centraal and Brussel-Centraal. The organizing team looks forward to welcoming you in Hasselt!

Location: Campus Hasselt 

Address: Martelarenlaan 42, 3500 Hasselt

Accessibility and maps campus Hasselt

Getting to Hasselt

Taking the train or bus instead of the plane: it does make a big difference.  The new UHasselt policy (as of May 1) calls for taking the train for destinations that can be reached in 8h by train. Are you curious which destinations you can reach in less than 8h by train? The FWO made a convenient map. And also these websites can help you further: Direkt Bahn Guru (overview of direct train connections from every station in Europe). Who knows, maybe you will leave on an adventure with the night train? Take a look at Europe's night train connections and some mood photos.

Here some more interesting links to book international train travel: 

• Nightjet: European night travel
• Maybe an interrail pass would interest you? You can explore more than 33 countries.

Accommodation

You are of course free to choose your accommodation. However, UHasselt has agreements with partnering accommodations for reduced rates. 

Holiday Inn hotels:

• Holiday Inn Express: €108
• Holiday Inn: €138

Breakfast inclusive, exclusive city tax €2,5 pp/day

Reservations can be made by emailing reservations@hihasselt.com mentioning ‘UHasselt’ or via the booking links:

• Universiteit Hasselt_Holiday Inn Express Hasselt
• Universiteit Hasselt_Holiday Inn Hasselt

Radisson Hotels:

• Radisson Blu Hotel Hasselt:  €110, breakfast exclusive: €20 pp/day  
• Park Inn by Radisson Hasselt: €85, breakfast exclusive: €17,5 pp/day

Breakfast inclusive, exclusive city tax €2,5 pp/day

Reservations can be made by emailing reservations.hasselt@radissonblu.com mentioning ‘UHasselt’.

For any questions or further information, you can contact the organizing team at ylrc@uhasselt.be. 

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