Colloque international - Beyond the State: New Perspectives on the Conceptual Relationships Between Constitution and Society

Colloque international organisé par Sabina Tortorella (MSCA/Université de Namur) et Manon Altwegg-Boussac (Université Paris-Est Creteil University/IUF) dans le cadre du projet Marie Skłodowska-Curie SOCIAL et de la Chaire Fondamentale Junior de l’Institut Universitaire de France

Beyond the State:
New Perspectives on the Conceptual
Relationships between Constitution and Society

Organised by Manon Altwegg-Boussac (Paris-Est Creteil University/IUF) and Sabina Tortorella (MSCA/University of Namur)

 

29-30 January 2026

Institut de droit comparé - Amphithéâtre - 1st floor
28 rue Saint Guillaume, 75007 Paris

Constitutionalism, understood as a means of establishing a political autonomous from society, is seen as having constructed the opposition between the State and society. At the same time, the concept of constitutionalism is increasingly being used to describe other forms of social power and normativity – such as the economy, finance, digital, technologies, media, environment – even though the concrete and theoretical implications of these shifts have not always been fully clarified. More recent trends have emerged within the framework of socio-constitutionalism or societal constitutionalism to challenge the reduction of constitutional issues to state-individual relations, acknowledging the complexity of power. Despite their heterogeneity in assumptions, as well as in their descriptive, normative, and theoretical dimensions, these approaches have contributed to renew the inquiry into the relationship between constitution and society. The purpose of the conference is to assess the current boundaries of constitutionalism and to explore theoretical proposals seeking to overcome them. These approaches raise several fundamental questions: What role should be granted to social actors and sectors within constitutionalism? How can their normative autonomy be acknowledged while also regulating their private power and expansionist tendencies? To what extent do these transformations challenge traditional forms of politics? At what cost might the relationship between constitution and society be reconsidered today? 

The event is open to the public and free of charge.
It will take place both in person and online.
To attend remotely, please contact the organisers. 
 

 

Télécharger l'affiche et le programme

 

29 January 2026

9:00                 Welcome

9:30-10:00     Introduction: Manon Altwegg-Boussac (Paris-Est Creteil University/IUF) and Sabina Tortorella (MSCA/University of Namur)

 

From State to Society: New Challenges for Constitutionalism

Chair: Isabelle Aubert (Paris Panthéon-Sorbonne University)

 

10:00-10:30 Thomas Boccon-Gibod (Grenoble Alpes University): Relationships between Constitution and Society

10:30-11:00 Simone Mao Zhenting (Harvard University): Constitutionalising Society in an Age of Fragmented Authority: From State-Centrism to Social Constitutional Norms

11:00-11:30 Discussion

11:30-12:00 Coffee Break

12:00-12:30 Angelo Jr Golia (Luiss Guido Carli): Societal Constitutionalism and General Theory of Law (beyond the State): Norm, Order, Interpretation

12:30-12:45 Discussion

12:45-14:30 Lunch

 

Moving Beyond the Nation-State: Theoretical Perspectives

Chair: Eleonora Bottini (Sciences Po)

14:30-15:00 Jean-François Kervégan (Paris Panthéon-Sorbonne University): Politics below and beyond the State: Schmitt and Kojève in Comparative Perspective

15:00-15:30 Paul Linden-Retek (University at Buffalo School of Law): Postnational Society and its Law

15:30-16:00 Discussion

16:00-16:30 Coffee Break

 

New Conceptual Tools: Alterity and Derogation

Chair: Eleonora Bottini (Sciences Po)

16:30-17:00 Horatia Muir Watt (Sciences Po): On the Borderline (and beyond the State): Ontologizing Alterity on the Terms of the Law

17:00-17:30 Raffaele Bifulco (Luiss Guido Carli): Derogation as Legal Response to Social Differentiation

17:30-18:00 Discussion

18:00              Dinner

30 January 2026

9:00                 Welcome

Mapping Sectoral Constitutions: Case Studies

Chair: Sabina Tortorella (MSCA/University of Namur)

9:30-10:00     Francesco Martucci (Panthéon-Assas University): Trust and Distrust. State, Society and Money at the Digital Era

10:00-10:30 Nefeli Lefkopoulou (Sciences Po): Exploring Constitutional Narratives in Meta’s Oversight Board: Replicating or Renewing Traditional Constitutionalism?

10:30-11:00 Discussion

11:00-11:30 Coffee Break

11:30-12:00 Manuela Niehaus (University of Administrative Sciences Speyer): Global Climate Constitutionalism beyond the State?

12:00-12:30 Mathilde Laporte (Pau University): The Debated Protection of Constitutional Rights within Social Orders beyond the State. The Example of Gated Communities

12:30-13:00 Discussion

13:00-14:30 Lunch

 

Critical Insights: Take the Leap?

Chair: Manon Altwegg-Boussac (Paris-Est Creteil University/IUF)

14:30-15:00 Chris    Thornhill   (University   of    Birmingham):   The    Military   in   Sociological Constitutionalism

15:00-15:15 Discussion

15:15-15:45 Coffee Break

15:45-16:15 Jörn Reinhardt (Fulda University of Applied Sciences): Regression and Progress in Constitutionalism beyond the State

16:15-16:45 Martin Loughlin (LSE): The Concept of Constitution

16:45-17:15 Discussion

17:15              Cocktail

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This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 101150961. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Union’s Horizon Europe. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

 

Contact : Sabina Tortorella - sabina.tortorella@unamur.be
Télecharger : vCal