Situated at the intersection of legal and economic history, the symposium will focus on the regulation of natural monopolies in network industries such as railways, energy, or telecommunications. On one hand, it will analyze constitutional and legal frameworks, and, on the other hand, it will investigate the development of markets and the political influence exerted by market participants. Of particular interest are the formative periods of 1870-80 and 1930-35, when major decisions were made about which regulatory path to take. The period from 1945 until the 1980s will also be examined, because it was then that the deregulation discussion took firm hold in the United States, and the American concept of regulation was replicated in Germany and the European Economic Community. Naturally, all of these historical moments lead to broader questions about regulation in its cultural-historical context, including the general principles underlying public regulatory policy in law, economics, and society-as well as existing path dependencies. Hence, the symposium will also serve as a transnational and intercultural dialogue about the different characteristics and cultural interpretations of markets and market economies as well as their roles in society.Paper proposals are welcome from both young and established scholars from a variety of disciplines, especially economics, economic history, business history, and legal history. Proposals (two pages maximum) should include an abstract of the paper (to be 20-25 minutes as presented) and a CV in English. The proposals should be submitted via email (preferably in pdf format) by October 15, 2010, to Cathrin Kronenberg.
Please see the full call for papers for additional information.