Events

International Access to Justice Forum - Sep 26-27, 2025

The 2025 International Access to Justice Forum was hosted by New York University and Fordham Law Schools. Access to justice is essential to the enforcement and protection of rights for vulnerable individuals and communities across the globe. It is a core prerequisite to achieving equal justice under law. Despite its primary importance, in many ways, it is the exception rather than the norm. All too often, individuals face insurmountable barriers to asserting rights through legal systems. 

A broad community of scholars, researchers, jurists, practitioners, reformers, court and dispute resolution experts around the world are focused on addressing this intolerable deficit, so that rights and legal protections can become a reality, rather than an aspiration.

The 2025 International Access to Justice Forum brought together almost 300 members of the access to justice community from more than 20 countries including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Chile, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Ghana, Honduras, India, Italy, Mali, Mexico, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, United Kingdom, United States and Zimbabwe.

Over the two days, we saw robust discussion of exciting new research, theory, and policy developments and innovative programs in the global movement for civil justice. Topics included a broad range of work advancing access to justice through community empowerment and engagement, court reform, diversion programs, law schools, tech and AI, and through human rights and democracy efforts. There were also two plenary sessions consisting of moderated discussions with global access to justice leaders.

MDL in Motion: Evolving Practices, Emerging Leaders, and Reform - Sep 12, 2025

https://www.ali.org/meeting/mdl-motion-evolving-practices-emerging-leaders-and-reform 

Mass Actions: Bankruptcies, MDLs, Class Actions & Harrington v. Purdue - Jan 31, 2025

https://www.law.nyu.edu/centers/civiljustice/mass-actions 

On January 31, 2025, the Center on Civil Justice hosted a full-day conference discussing the future of American mass actions in the wake of the United States Supreme Court's bankruptcy decision in Harrington v. Purdue. Panelists debated the extent  of the impact of the Purdue case and the respective merits and disadvantages of the bankruptcy vs MDL system.  They brought first-hand experiences as individuals personally involved in litigating the Purdue MDL and bankruptcy cases.  They raised novel differences in how MDL and bankruptcy claims get valued, especially noting that large pools of low-value mass tort claimants have outsized influence in bankruptcies, where each claimant has a single vote, whether the claimant is an individual or a State.  The event concluded with Professor Arthur Miller, present for the founding of American mass actions, reflecting on how they have evolved.

N/A

Unlocking Antitrust: Updates on Merger Enforcement Panel - Nov 1, 2023

https://www.law.nyu.edu/events/unlocking-antitrust-updates-merger-enforcement-panel 

Supreme Court and Stealth Rulings - Oct 23, 2023

BWLC x CCJ Book Talk: Steve Vladeck, author of The Shadow Docket: How the Supreme Court Uses Stealth Rulings to Amass Power and Undermine the Republic

https://www.law.nyu.edu/events/bwlc-x-ccj-book-talk-steve-vladeck-author-shadow-docket-how-supreme-court-uses-stealth-rulings-amass 

Nationwide Injunctions - Oct 23, 2023

https://www.law.nyu.edu/centers/civiljustice/nationwideinjunctions

Technology and Housing Courts - Sep 18, 2023 

Sateesh Nori Book Talk: Sheltered: Twenty Years in Housing Court

https://www.law.nyu.edu/events/sateesh-nori-book-talk-sheltered-twenty-years-housing-court 

The Future of AI & the Law: Risks, Opportunities and Challenges - Wed Sep 13, 2023

https://www.law.nyu.edu/centers/civiljustice/future-of-ai-2023