| dc.description.abstract | Responses to the recent (and ongoing) debt and austerity crises in Europe reveal multiple techniques through which the rule and role of law operate in these times of neoliberal capitalism. From international law, to human rights law, to European Union law, and constitutional law the deployment and orientation of law in the past few years point up ways in which law co-constitutes neoliberal values and structures, legitimating and hardening those values and foreclosing alternatives. Framing market interests, capital accumulation and profit as the common interest, advancing conditions for competition, favouring the private over the public and over the commons, and situating social justice as derivative of those goals are just some of the neoliberal values that have been reflected through the instrumentalism of law. The contributors to this collective working paper offer short ‘think pieces’ exploring the legal trajectory of neoliberalism in particular fields of law. Some of them take a general perspective on the evolving role of law, whereas others focus on select but representative examples. The authors may not all concur in their assessment of the role of law, but they all engage with the role of law in the recent evolution of European politics and society. | en |
