SLSA Annual Conference 2027 at Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne (23-25 March 2027): Call for Paper and Poster Abstracts
Socio-Legal Studies Association (SLSA), hosted by Northumbria Law School, Northumbria University.About the conference
The Socio-Legal Studies Association (SLSA) has run an Annual Conference since the Association was founded in 1990, hosted by a different UK institution each year. The 2027 conference is hosted by Northumbria Law School and will take place at Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, from Tuesday 23 to Thursday 25 March 2027.
The SLSA is a membership charity (registered charity number 1186333) whose stated aim is to advance education and learning, in particular research, teaching and the dissemination of knowledge, in the field of socio-legal studies.
Streams and current topics
Papers are grouped into recurring SLSA streams and one-off current topics, each with its own thematic focus and convenors. Choose the most appropriate stream or current topic for your paper. The full list of streams, with descriptions and convenor contacts, is on the SLSA streams page. Examples include:
- Labour Law and Society: socio-legal analysis of labour law, the employment relationship and the future of work, including collective action, workplace discrimination, the gig economy, labour migration, care work and precarious employment. Submissions must reflect socio-legal, not purely doctrinal, work.
- Equality and Human Rights Law: contributions from different jurisdictions on law, equality, human rights and discrimination, covering drafting, interpretation, enforcement and lived experiences of inequality, using theoretical, interdisciplinary, empirical, comparative and socio-legal approaches. Papers from researchers at any career stage are welcome.
- Other streams include Administrative Justice and Law and Emotion; current topics for 2027 include Access to Legal Advice and Legal Aid.
Who can submit
The call is open to socio-legal scholars and researchers. Streams expressly invite contributions from different jurisdictions and multijurisdictional work, so researchers based in India can submit. Stream convenors will consider whether an abstract is sufficiently socio-legal and how well it fits the stream.
The poster call is open to all; selected posters by postgraduate researchers who are SLSA members are entered into the Best Poster Prize competition.
Submission guidelines
- Papers: an abstract of no more than 250 words, submitted via Oxford Abstracts under your chosen stream or current topic.
- Posters: an abstract of no more than 250 words, submitted via the separate Oxford Abstracts poster form. Posters are presented both online and in person.
- The same abstract cannot be submitted as both a paper and a poster; use the correct form.
- Each delegate can be named in only two paper submissions.
- AI should not be used to generate abstracts; evidence of AI generation results in rejection.
- To propose a Special Session outside the streams and current topics, contact the organising committee at slsa2027@northumbria.ac.uk.
- The conference does not facilitate publication: acceptance is for the conference only.
Mode of participation
The SLSA conference is an in-person conference and presenters are expected to present in person. It is not a hybrid conference. Presenters with a disability, health issue or caring responsibility that prevents attendance may request to present online (via Teams) as a reasonable adjustment, and the request must be made during abstract submission. Online presenters pay the same registration fee as in-person attendees.
Registration fee
Accepted presenters must register by Thursday 12 February 2027. There is no day rate. Fees by SLSA membership status:
- Early bird (5 October 2026 to 28 January 2027): Member GBP 295, Non-member GBP 400, Postgraduate member GBP 210, Postgraduate non-member GBP 263
- Standard (29 January to 12 February 2027): Member GBP 380, Non-member GBP 465, Postgraduate member GBP 255, Postgraduate non-member GBP 300
- Late (to 9 March 2027): Member GBP 420, Non-member GBP 520, Postgraduate member GBP 275, Postgraduate non-member GBP 320
- Online poster presentation: Postgraduate researchers GBP 10, SLSA members GBP 20, Non-members GBP 40
The fee covers all sessions, lunch and tea/coffee breaks, with free places (subject to capacity) at the drinks reception and conference dinner. Refunds: full refund up to 23 February 2027, 50% up to 9 March 2027, none after that.
Bursaries
The SLSA offers bursaries that waive the early-bird registration fee (travel and accommodation are not covered). Eligible: postgraduate students without a full-time academic appointment, precariously employed staff, third-sector representatives, and scholars facing serious financial hardship. Undergraduates and online-poster-only presenters are not eligible. Applicants must be paid-up (or free PGR) SLSA members at the point of application, and must have a paper or poster abstract accepted (or an invitation to another session) by the time the bursary is accepted; you need not wait for acceptance before applying. Bursary applications close on Thursday 3 December 2026; outcomes by 21 January 2027.
How to apply
Submit your paper abstract (max 250 words) through Oxford Abstracts by Thursday 3 December 2026, 18:00 GMT (11:30 pm IST). Poster abstracts go through the separate poster submission form by the same date. Abstracts submitted by Thursday 29 October 2026 receive a decision by 12 November 2026; later submissions receive a decision by 14 January 2027.