CfP: The GenDJus Final Conference - (DE)CONSTRUCTING GENDER IN INTERNATIONAL JUDICIAL DISCOURSE: ACTORS, NORMS AND PRACTICES
The GenDJus Final Conference
(DE)CONSTRUCTING GENDER IN INTERNATIONAL JUDICIAL DISCOURSE:
ACTORS, NORMS AND PRACTICES
16 – 17 October 2025
SSLMIT/IUSLIT, University of Trieste
Call for Papers
Key information
• Conference date: Thursday 16 and Friday 17 October 2025
• Venue: SSLMIT/IUSLIT, University of Trieste, via Filzi 14, Trieste
• Registration fee: none
• Languages: English, Italian, Spanish
• Submission deadline: 7 May 2025
• Notification of acceptance: 23 May 2025
The Department of Legal, Language, Translation and Interpreting Studies (IUSLIT) of the University of Trieste hosts a two-day international conference to explore gendered discursive practices in international judicial language and their consequences on the scope of human rights protections. The conference is the final event of the interdisciplinary project “Rights and Prejudice: Linguistic and Legal Implications of Gendered Discourses in Judicial Spaces (GenDJus),” financed by the Italian Ministry of Education and the European Union (Next Generation EU funding scheme) [www.gendjus.it].
In the era of polarisation of debates, anti-gender movements, and populist anti-rights rhetoric, the power of language is clearer than ever. Sex, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and sex characteristics are among the most salient themes in those contexts, especially where these substantiate claims for individual protection. To this end, international human rights law constitutes one of the possible devices that societies deploy to ensure egalitarian values. But what does it mean to deal with gender through the language of human rights? How do international legal norms understand gender, and its connected categories? To what extent can international and EU legal actors, including judges, speak the language of human rights despite their possible personal prejudices, stereotypes and biases? How can gendered judicial discourse impact on the enjoyment of human rights? More broadly, what can make gender an analytical category to understand discursive constructions in international and EU judicial decisions? The conference will explore these and other questions about the premises and effects of gendered language in the practices of international and EU judicial actors. It will gather scholars working on gender in legal discourse across areas as diverse as linguistics, translation, law and, more generally, social sciences.
Themes and topics
We welcome abstracts addressing topics including, but not limited to, the following:
- The reproduction of gender norms in judicial discourses
- Exclusionary judicial narratives on gender and their impact on human rights
- Peripheral existences and mainstream gender-related judicial interpretations
- Prejudices, stereotypes and biases as enshrined in judgments on sexuality, reproduction, and parenthood
- Anti-gender movements and theories in (and against) international and EU case law
- Human rights rhetoric versus gender protections in international and EU decision-making
- Legal silence and gender ‘outlaws’ in international and EU case law
- Gender stereotyping in the language of human rights courts and judges
- Constructions of gender identities in judicial discourse
- Corpus linguistics approaches to gender stereotypes in judicial discourse
- Queer linguistics approaches to human rights discourse
- Critical discourse analysis applied to gender and human rights law
- Gender bias in legal translation
- The role of legal translation in conveying gendered narratives
Submission guidelines
Abstracts could be written in English, Italian and Spanish. They should not exceed 250 words and must be sent to info@gendjus.it, giovanna.gilleri@units.it and chiara.sarni@units.it by 7 May 2025 with the subject line “GenDJus Final Conference – Abstract proposal”. All abstracts should include a title, authors’ name, affiliation, short biosketch of the author(s), email address, five keywords and references (if relevant). Acceptance of papers will be notified to the presenting author(s) by 23 May 2025.
Contact details
For more information, please contact Giovanna Gilleri (giovanna.gilleri@units.it) and Chiara Sarni (chiara.sarni@units.it). Visit www.gendjus.it and follow us on Instagram (@gendjusproject).
Organising and Scientific Committee
Marco Balboni (University of Bologna), Emanuele Brambilla (University of Trieste), Carmelo Danisi (University of Bologna), Giovanna Gilleri (University of Trieste), Erika Miyamoto (University of Bologna), Giuseppe Pascale (University of Trieste), Katia Peruzzo (University of Trieste), Gianluca Pontrandolfo (University of Trieste), Francesca Ragno (University of Bologna), Chiara Sarni (University of Trieste).
This conference is the final event (milestone 12) of the interdisciplinary research project “Rights and Prejudice: Linguistic and Legal Implications of Gendered Discourses in Judicial Spaces (GenDJus)” [P2022FNH9B / CUP J53D23017220001] financed by the Italian Ministry of Education and the European Union (Next Generation EU funding scheme); Piano Nazionale di Ripresa e Resilienza (PNRR) – Missione 4 "Istruzione e ricerca" – Componente 2 "Dalla ricerca all’impresa" - Investimento 1.1, Avviso Prin 2022 PNRR indetto con Decreto Direttoriale n. 1409 del 14 settembre 2022. https://www.gendjus.it/