Summary report – Second NLUD Annual Doctoral Lawe Colloquium 2024 on Contemporary Themes in Law
National Law University Delhi is a leading law school situated in Dwarka, New Delhi. Established in 2008, within 15 years of its existence it has managed to establish itself as a pioneer in Indian legal education. Its commitment has been unwavering in developing and advancing interdisciplinary legal education and scholarship in the country. As a research-oriented institute, sufficient impetus is provided for unimpeded academic imagination in the belief that creativity and multi-disciplinarity leads to original, relevant, and impactful research. It is a matter of immense pride that the effective and impact-driven research has brought both national and international recognition to our name.
With the view to carry forward this legacy and train a new generation of legal scholars, NLUD in 2023 launched its inaugural Annual Doctoral Law Colloquium. The Colloquium in designed keeping in mind the absence of active, collaborative networks for young legal scholars to interact and engage in peer learning in India. The aim of the colloquium is to bring together doctoral scholars undertaking research within the broad discipline of law and its adjacent fields, and provide them with a supportive and collaborative environment for exchange of ideas and to build networks with peers and experts in the field. To this end, scholars registered in non-law disciplines but working on primarily legal issues from an interdisciplinary perspective are also invited to participate.
The Second Annual Doctoral Law Colloquium 2024 on Contemporary Themes in Law took place from 1st to 3rd March, 2024. This year the format of the Colloquium was innovated to ensure that participants receive feedback not only from experts but also from their peers. All papers were classified into panels depending on their subject area. Each panel was headed by a primary discussant, an expert in the subject area, who provided feedback to the presenter and guided the discussion. Additionally, each participant in the panel also performed the role of a fellow discussant. They were assigned a manuscript of another scholar from the same panel, and were required to give substantial feedback on their work.
The Colloquium was presentations of 19 doctoral scholars from across the country, in seven different panels on the subject area of Environmental Law, Alternative Dispute Resolution, Intellectual Property Rights Law, Competition Law, Criminal Law, Human Rights Law and Constitutional Law.
In addition to this, to further ensure a rich learning experience, the colloquium hosted two panel discussions. The first was on ‘Academic Publication’ moderated by Prof. Anup Surendranath, National Law University Delhi with Prof. Farrah Ahmed, Melbourne Law School and Mr. Anandadeep Roy, Associate Commissioning Editor, Cambridge University Press, as panellists. The second panel discussion was on ‘Fundamental Aspects of Writing and Publication for Academics’ moderated by Prof. Ritu Gupta, National Law University Delhi with Prof. (Dr.) Harpreet Kaur, Vice Chancellor, National Law University Jodhpur, Prof. (Dr.) Umakanth Varottil, Professor, National University Singapore and Dr. Prabhash Ranjan, Associate Professor, Faculty of Legal Studies, South Asian University, New Delhi as panellists.
In addition to presenters, discussants and panellists, the Colloquium saw participation from Doctoral candidates who attended the proceedings of the Colloquium and interacted with others. The Colloquium successfully served as a platform for young scholars to engage in dialogue and sharpen their research ideas, build research collaborations and professional networks.