Past Conferences Hosted or Sponsored by the Journal

Accessible Justice: A Symposium on Emerging Issues in Disability Rights
March 28 & 29, 2024
Topics included employment discrimination in AI, immigration, and Repro Rights, and a preview of the special disability spring issue.
More information here.

Here & Queer: Legal Issues Impacting LGBTQIA+ Communities
February 10 & 11, 2023
Topics included trans healthcare post-Dobbs, banned books, criminalizing queerness, and a preview of the special spring issue.
More information here.

Access Issues Here in Austin
March 1, 2019
Topics included access to public defenders, affordable housing, and healthcare in the state’s capital.
More information here.

The Collateral Consequences of Criminal Convictions
February 9, 2018
Topics included the intersection of criminal law and immigration law, felon disenfranchisement, and the reentry landscape.
More information here.

Misdemeanor Defendants and the 85th Legislative Session
January 27, 2017
Topics included the legacy of Sandra Bland, pretrial reform, and debtors’ prison.
More information here.

Workers’ Rights in the 21st Century: New Developments / New Challenges
February 19, 2016
Topics included mandatory arbitration of employment disputes versus the enforcement role of courts, defining “employment” relationships in the 21st century, and the next generation of employment law issues.
More information here.

Life After Marriage
Friday, February 13, 2015
Conversation topics for this lunch panel focused on the future of marriage quality in Texas and across the United States. The panel explored issues such as the path forward to marriage equality, cases of religious-based denials of service, the change landscape after Windsor, practical issues of counselling same-sex families in area of estate planning and family law, and controversial proposals for anti-discrimination ordinances.

Diversity in Higher Education Post-Fisher
March 28, 2014
The theme was “Beyond Affirmative Action: From Diversity to Inclusion.”
More information here.

The Role of Law in Closing the Educational Achievement Gap
April 5, 2013
More information here.

Achieving Equal Access to Fair Credit: The Civil Rights Implications of Consumer Lending Practices and How Recent Developments May Change the Industry
March 22, 2012
Panel topics included changes in the consumer credit industry since the 1970s and their effect on minority communities, as well as moving towards equal access to fair credit through federal litigation state and local regulation and the coming of Dodd-Frank.

Civil Rights on the Border
March 1, 2011
Panel topics included detention centers and Hutto litigation, immigrant youth, streamlining operations, and birthright citizenship.
More information here.

Juvenile Justice: The Rights of Minors in the American Criminal Justice System
March 29, 2010

Voting Rights and the New Administration
March 9, 2009
Topics included Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District No. I v. Mukasey and whether the Voting Rights Act was on thin ice, and Crawford, Texas Redistricting, and Beyond: Are Facial Challenges Dead in Election Law

The Roberts Court and the Future of the Fourth Amendment
March 3, 2008
Panel topics included Hudson and Moore and the Exclusionary Rule, as well as privacy.

Re-examining Incarceration
April 17, 2007
Panel topics focused on possible steps to take to address issues in this area, and civil society challenges to conditions of incarceration.

Constructing America: A Discussion on Immigration and Civil Rights
March 23, 2006
Panel topics including litigating on behalf of undocumented immigrants, public benefits available to undocumented immigrants, the meaning of crossing the border, and legislation and immigration policy.

The State of Our Union: The Debate Over Same-Sex Marriage
March 24, 2005
Panel topics focused on religion and morality, legislator perspectives, global perspectives, and the Constitution.

Terrorism and the War on Civil Liberties, Civil Rights, and Immigrants After 9/11
Thursday, February 26, 2004