Call for Papers: The Governor’s Dilemma: Law, Courts, and Rules, Hertie School, Berlin, 12-13 November 2026
Much modern governance, and particularly the governance of the EU, involves the sharing of authority between governors and intermediaries in a complex web of interactions. Governors often cannot fulfil their tasks and so enlist intermediaries for aid, i.e. because intermediaries are better resourced, have better knowledge, or have greater legitimacy. The first element of the governor’s dilemma is therefore the drive for capacity. The second is the drive for control. Governing through intermediaries involves a trade-off in the sense that overly strict control of the intermediary risks endangering the very capacities they carry; yet overly loose control risks deviation from the governor’s own priorities. Governing in multi-level systems thus involves what international relations theory calls the governor’s dilemma. We need intermediaries to achieve our goals yet this very need makes intermediaries difficult to effectively control (or even requires the governor to share power with the intermediary).
The aim of this call for papers is to bring together contributions that consider how courts, and other institutions tasked with enforcing, using and interpreting rules, deal with the trade-offs the governor’s dilemma implies. We are interested in what is special or unique about legal rules and institutions, producing different trade-offs between capacity and control. We welcome contributions that explore these questions through three broad perspectives:
- Theoretical
- Empirical/ doctrinal
- Normative
Workshop: Authors of selected papers will be invited to present their work in progress at the Hertie School on 12–13 November 2026. The aim of the workshop is to further develop papers for a special issue devoted to the Governor’s Dilemma. Travel and accommodation expenses will be covered by the organisers.
Important Dates
- Abstract submission deadline: 1 August 2026
- Notification of acceptance: week of 15 August 2026
- Workshop: 12-13 November 2026
- Final papers: to be submitted Spring 2027
For more details, refer here
