2019 CIBEL Global Network Conference: Technological Change and the Future of International Economic Legal Order: China and beyond

The Herbert Smith Freehills China International Business and Economic Law (CIBEL) Centre, Faculty of Law, the University of New South Wales, Sydney (UNSW Law) is pleased to call for papers to be submitted to the inaugural CIBEL Global Network Conference and PhD workshop on China International Business and Economic Law: Technological Change and the Future of International Economic Legal Order: China and beyond on 1 May 2019, in Sydney, Australia. A PhD workshop will be held on 2 May 2019.
About the CIBEL Global Network
The CIBEL Global Network will be a prosperous global community of researchers, practitioners, students and other stakeholders working in the CIBEL field. The Herbert Smith Freehills CIBEL Centre will develop, support and promote this network by:

•  Holding an annual conference and PhD workshop, with conference awards and funding for PhD researchers and postdocs
•  Supporting researchers, practitioners, young scholars, students and other stakeholders in this field through possible support such as funding and mentoring opportunities
•  Circulating CIBEL Global Network emails (including events, Calls for Papers, opportunities, grants, funding information, and publications in this field, all collated from CIBEL Global Network members and beyond)
• Hosting a CIBEL Global Network Forum which will be established shortly on the CIBEL website www.cibel.unsw.edu.au, enabling members to post their publications, Calls for Papers, conference information, job openings, etc.)
• Organising joint events with members at their partner institutions
• Organising social and networking events for members
• Providing opportunities for network members to contribute to the possible books/journal issues of relevant publications arising from the Annual CIBEL Global Network Conference.
About the Conference and PhD Workshop
The conference will be held at the UNSW Sydney CBD Campus. The program offers discussion of China-related international business and economic law topics across many disciplines via speakers and panels. Special events will take place during the conference that include the CIBEL Keynote presentation, conference dinner and networking opportunities.

It is expected that the Conference will feature papers presented by eminent scholars, practitioners in private and public sectors and other speakers in the CIBEL field across the globe that will discuss cutting-edge issues from legal and cross-disciplinary perspectives, and from theoretical and empirical studies.

A PhD workshop will be held on 2 May 2018, at which participants will be provided with extensive feedback from senior experts on their graduate research in general, and their chosen methodologies. The workshop will also include research skills and networking sessions, a roundtable discussion on topical CIBEL issues and an information session on publishing advice.

Topics of the Conference and PhD Workshop
The Conference and PhD Workshop will consider abstracts in all disciplines of law, including cross-disciplinary legal studies, which have a significant focus on issues relating to China and international business and economic law that is understood its broad sense. We invite proposals on all aspects of international business and economic law related to China. Proposals that deal with multilateral, regional, and national issues that impact international trade, finance, investment, competition, business organizations, intellectual property and other relevant issues are all welcomed, along with theoretical, conceptual and empirical papers. Proposals can also address emerging issues such as (de)globalisation, digital currency, digital trade, trade war, just to name a few.

Panel Themes of the Conference and PhD Workshop

Panel proposals on any relevant topic may be submitted alongside paper proposals. Colleagues from Herbert Smith Freehills China International Business and Economic Law (CIBEL) Centre will facilitate discussions in the following areas, and additional panels will be created based on submissions.   

•  China’s Approach to International Economic Legal Order – Associate Professor Heng Wang

• Competition Law – Professor Deborah Healey and Dr Rob Nicholls

•  Business Organisations and Capital Market Law – Associate Professor Xiao-chuan Weng

• FinTech and Regulation of Digital Financial Services – Scientia Professor Ross Buckley

• Trade Law – Dr Weihuan Zhou

•  Investment Law – Dr Lu Wang and Dr Jonathan Bonnitcha

Registration of the Conference and PhD Workshop
There is no charge for this event, however registration is required.

Deadlines of the Conference and PhD Workshop
Conference: Paper Abstracts (of no more than 500 words) and/or Panel Proposals (of no more than 800 words) for the Conference and PhD Workshop shall be submitted for Peer Review before the deadline indicated below.

PhD Workshop: Interested PhD students should submit an application of no more than 500 words that includes the following information: your area of research, primary research question, the literature that you are challenging and the theoretical insights you hope to provide, and your methodological approach and the data you intend to collect (or have collected) in order to execute it. We strongly encourage first and second year PhD students to apply who are in the process of structuring their PhD dissertations. PhD students are also invited to submit an abstract for the main conference proceedings. Applications should be sent to cibel@unsw.edu.au

28 February 2019 – Paper Abstracts (of no more than 500 words) and/or Panel Proposals (of no more than 800 words) submitted for Peer Review. Paper and panel applications should be sent to cibel@unsw.edu.au
15 March 2019 - Notification of Acceptance by this date, selected applicants are expected to submit completed papers in by end of March
1 April  2019 – Conference and workshop schedule posted online
15 April 2019 – Conference and workshop attendance registration closes
Awards and Funding
The conference will have the following awards, which will be announced and presented at the conference closing session on 1 May 2019:

CIBEL Global Network PhD Scholar Prize awarded to the best article by a scholar who is pursuing but has not got a PhD degree on 1 May 2019
CIBEL Global Network Young Scholar Prize awarded to the best article by a scholar aged 35 or under on 1 May 2019
The author of an awarded paper, and co-authors if any (all the co-authors need to meet the criteria above), will be entitled to:

§  An official award certificate;

§  The announcement of the award on the CIBEL Global Network webpage;

§  An invitation for an extended and revised version publication in a book or a journal, if a post-publication agreement is available for this conference;

§  AUD $1,000 (to be shared if the winning paper is co-authored).

Selection Criteria 
The applicants for these prizes shall send their draft papers to the selection committee before 28 February 2019 indicating that they will participate in the selection. The awards will be conferred to the author(s) of a paper selected by the selection committee of the Conference/PhD Workshop. The decision criterion will consider the paper quality.

For the updated information of this conference and workshop, please visit cibel.unsw.edu.au.