In this talk Professor Kjaer wishes to present two tales of the law of political economy and that in a twofold sense. First in the sense of a ‘culturalist’ versus a ‘market’ oriented version of the law of political economy. Secondly, through a focus on European versus US-American approaches to ‘law of political’. In both cases, substantially different epistemological and methodological starting points lead to very different insights into what the law of political economy is all about.

The presentation will draw upon but also expand insights originally presented in the introductory chapter of Poul F. Kjaer (ed.): The Law of Political Economy: Transformation in the Function of Law (Cambridge University Press, 2020).

About the Speaker

Poul F. Kjaer. Is professor of Governance and Sociology of Law at the Department of Business Humanities, Copenhagen Business School. His research focuses on public and private global governance and political economy and European integration, governance and political economy from a legal theory and historical sociology of law angle.

He is currently directing the European Research Council Advanced Grant project ‘Global Value Chain Law: Constituting Connectivity, Contracts and Corporations’ He previously directed the European Research Council project ‘Institutional Transformation in European Political Economy – A Socio-legal Approach’.

Poul has degrees in law, sociology and political science including a PhD from the European University Institute in Florence and a Habilitation from the Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main. He has been visiting fellow at several research institutions including the Paris Institute for Advanced Study, Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study, London School of Economics and Political Science, Sciences Po Law School, and Harvard University. He currently visiting professor at University of Amsterdam Law School.