12th Latin American Workshop in Law and Economics
George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, USA, November 18–20, 2026
Updated November 13, 2026
Agenda
(Updated 10/28/2026 by NG)
Wednesday, November 18
6:30 – 8:30 pm Reception and Dinner, Circa
Thursday, November 19
All sessions will be held in Hazel Hall 215
7:00 – 7:50 am Breakfast, on own at hotel
7:50 – 8:20 am Walk from hotel to Antonin Scalia Law School
8:20 – 8:30 am Welcome Remarks
Daniel B. Kelly, Allison and Dorothy Rouse Dean and George Mason University Professor of Law, George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School
Donald Kochan, Professor of Law and Executive Director of the Law & Economics Center (LEC), George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School
Nuno Garoupa, Professor of Law and Faculty Director of Graduate Studies,
George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School
8:30 – 10:15 am Session 1: Law and Policy
Chair: Joyce Sadka
Frances Xu Lee, Waiver of the Proffer Statement Right.
Yijia Lu, Legal Uncertainty and Factual Uncertainty (with Gunnar Nordén).
Joyce Sadka, AI-based Legal Advice: Evidence from Labor Conciliation in Mexico.
10:15 – 10:45 am Break
10:45 – 12:30 pm Session 2: Law and Behavioral Incentives
Chair: Mauricio Bugarin
Andrei Gomberg, When Should the Jurors Talk: Timing of Communication and Rational Ignorance (with Diego Aycinena and Lucas Rentschler).
Mauricio Bugarin, Income Inequality and Congressional Campaign Finance: Evidence from U.S. House Districts, 2006–2022 (with Rodrigo Schneider).
Jorge Streb, Adam Smith and an Impartial Judicial System: Incentive and Selection Problems.
12:30 – 1:30 pm Boxed Lunch
1:30 – 3:15 pm Session 3: Law and Economics Theory
Chair: Mauricio Bugarin
Cesar Martinelli, Is Cheaper Democracy Better? (with Hans Gersbach and Egor Kravchenko).
Scott Baker, Evidence Thresholds (with Giri Parameswaran).
Abraham Wickelgren, The Alarmist’s Dilemma (with Frances Lee and Shmuel Leshem).
3:15 – 3:30 pm Break
3:30 – 5:15 pm Session 4: Regulation and Innovation
Chair: Jorge Streb
Daniel Ferrés, Elite Venture Capitalists (with Luiz Bissoto).
Álvaro Bustos, The ‘CorE’ Dynamics of Corporate Soft-Regulation Compliance: Theory and Evidence from an Emerging Market.
Bernardo Mueller, Smartphones, Social Media and the Mental Health of Nations.
5:15 – 6:30 pm Afternoon Break
6:30 – 8:00 pm Dinner, Lyon Hall
Friday, November 20
All sessions will be held in Hazel Hall 215
7:00 – 8:00 am Breakfast, on own at hotel
8:00 – 8:30 am Walk from hotel to Antonin Scalia Law School
8:30 – 10:00 am Session 5: Keynote Address
Chair: Nuno Garoupa
Todd Zywicki, The Efficiency of the Common Law.
10:00 – 10:30 am Break
10:30 am – 12:15 pm Session 6: Rule of Law
Chair: Daniel Ferrés
Amanda Driscoll, Judicial Independence Beyond the Bench: How Court Capture Reshapes the Legal Profession.
Diana Kapiszewski, Democratic Backsliding: Conceptual Foundations (with Simon Ballesteros).
Vanessa Casado, Judicial Councils under Polarization: Paralysis as a Failure Mode of Judicial Self-Government in Spain (with Nuno Garoupa).
12:30 – 1:30 pm Boxed Lunch
1:30 pm LAWLE 2027 Announcements, Program Adjourns
3:00pm Library of the Congress group tour
PARTICIPANTS
Scott Baker, William F. and Jessica L. Kirsch Professor of Law, Washington University in St. Louis School of Law, USA
Maurício Soares Bugarin, Professor, Departamento de Economia, Universidade de Brasília, Brazil
Álvaro E. Bustos, Director, Escuela de Administración and Profesor Asociado, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Chile
Vanessa Casado Pérez, Associate Dean for Research and Faculty Development, Professor of Law and Research Associate Professor of Agricultural Economics, Texas A&M School of Law, USA
James C. Cooper, Professor of Law and Director, Program on Economics & Privacy, George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, USA
Amanda Driscoll, Dr. J. Elizabeth Garraway Professor of Political Science, Florida State University, USA
Daniel J. Ferrés, Director, Maestría en Finanzas y Postgrado en Data Science, Universidad de Montevideo, Uruguay
Nuno Garoupa, Professor of Law and Faculty Director of Graduate Studies, George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, USA
Andrei Gomberg, Professor of Economics, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM), Mexico
Diana Kapiszewski, Provost’s Distinguished Associate Professor and Director, Center for Latin American Studies, Georgetown University, USA
Daniel B. Kelly, Allison and Dorothy Rouse Dean and George Mason University Professor of Law, George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, USA
Donald Kochan, Professor of Law and Executive Director of the Law & Economics Center (LEC), George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, USA
Frances Z. Xu Lee, Associate Professor of Economics and Department Chair of Economics, Loyola University Chicago, Quinlan School of Business, USA
Yijia Lu, Associate Professor of Law, George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, USA
Cesar A. Martinelli, Professor of Economics, George Mason University, USA
Bernardo Mueller, Professor, Departamento de Economia, Universidade de Brasília, Brazil
Gunnar Nordén, Professor, Department of Business, Marketing and Law, University of South-Eastern Norway, USN School of Business, Norway
Joyce Sadka, Professor and Chair, Department of Law, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM), Mexico
Jorge Miguel Streb, Professor and Director of Research, Universidad del CEMA, Argentina
Abraham L. Wickelgren, Fred and Emily Marshall Wulff Centennial Chair in Law, University of Texas at Austin School of Law, USA
John M. Yun, Professor of Law, George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, USA
Todd J. Zywicki, George Mason University Foundation Professor of Law, George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, USA
