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News Archive


Two PAL Project Contributions Receive Prestigious Awards
The Project on Autocratic Legalism (PAL) is proud to announce that two scholarly works produced under its umbrella have recently...
May 42 min read


🎧 PALcast Episode 20: Sindiso Mnisi Weeks and the Case for an Alter-Native Constitutionalism in South Africa
In Episode 20 of the PALcast , host Fabio de Sa e Silva speaks with Sindiso Mnisi Weeks , Associate Professor at the University of...
May 42 min read


PAL at LSA 2025: Understanding Autocratic Legalism and Resistance through Law
As democratic backsliding becomes a global concern, the Project on Autocratic Legalism (PAL) continues to offer critical insights into...
May 42 min read


Scheppele's 2019 address is published by Law & Society Review
Most publications originating from the PAL project start with a reference to the presidential address given by Kim Lane Scheppele at the...
Jan 3, 20241 min read


VRÜ/World Comparative Law Publishes Special Issue With PAL Studies
Studies cover Brazil, India, South Africa, Hungary, and the U.S. March 2022 The German journal Verfassung und Recht in Übersee...
Mar 25, 20231 min read


Hybrid Roundtable on Resistance to Authoritarianism
This panel discussion, hosted by the Global Legal Studies Center at the University of Wisconsin Law School, seeks to build on discussions...
Mar 24, 20231 min read


Call for Abstracts
The Project on Autocratic Legalism (PAL) is a multi-component scholarly initiative that looks at how political leaders use law to...
Nov 4, 20221 min read


Sofia Rolim on Bolsonaro, public safety, and engaging with PAL as a Brazilian graduate student
In the last two episodes of this season, Fabio interviews two students who were engaged with PAL, and the themes we are exploring through...
Nov 2, 20221 min read


Ryleigh Horst on democracy and law in the life of a US College Student
In the last two episodes of this season, Fabio interviews two students who were engaged with PAL, and the themes we are exploring through...
Nov 1, 20221 min read


Autocratic legalism in India: A roundtable
At a moment when democracy seems to be experiencing an unprecedented level of crisis worldwide, this roundtable focuses on one country,...
Jul 7, 20221 min read


PAL Heads to Lisbon
The PAL project is headed to a major presence in the Law & Society Global Meeting that is happening in Lisbon, Portugal, from July 13-16,...
May 12, 20221 min read


PAL Researcher Reviews the Literature on Law and Illiberalism
This article has been published in advance by the Annual Review of Law and Social Science Fabio de Sa e Silva October 2022 In democratic...
May 12, 20221 min read


Roundtable on Resistance to Authoritarianism and Autocratic Legalism
Tuesday, April 12, 2022 12:00-1:30pm CST Hybrid Event: University of Wisconsin-Madison Law School, Room 7200 Register on Zoom to join...
Apr 12, 20221 min read


Sanctions and the Ukraine: what can we learn from the literature?
Natasha Lindsaedt, University of Essex David Trubek, University of Wisconsin-Madison Bojan Bugaric, Sheffield University (*) Russia’s...
Mar 29, 20225 min read


On Autocratic Legalism and the Birth of PAL
“When democratic governments were overthrown in the past, they tended to be overthrown in a coup—with tanks in the streets and military...
Mar 27, 20224 min read
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