Spears School of Business

The Tobias Leadership Center at Indiana University, the Center for Legal Studies and Business Ethics at the Spears School of Business (Oklahoma State University), and the American Business Law Journal (ABLJ) welcome submissions on legal strategy, ethics, leadership, and compliance issues that may advance positive organizational change following the multiple challenges of 2020: public health issues, an economic recession, civil rights and social justice movements, changing working conditions, environmental concerns, innovation, and evolving legal norms. This theme is consistent with 2020 AACSB Standard 9. The ABLJ anticipates publishing a special issue devoted to the symposium theme (2021 Symposium: Ethical Leadership and Legal Strategies for Post-2020 Organizations).

The challenges facing organizations around the globe following the convergence of monumental events in 2020 require a renewed focus on ethical leadership and legal strategies that build structures and organizations to make a positive societal impact. Often times, the law is lagging in its ability to address new means of interacting and conducting business. Given the severity and reach of challenges in 2020, it is imperative to advance the legal and ethical research to meet the moment. This symposium hopes to generate a broad range of scholarship that develops options and opportunities for organizations to contribute positively to their communities and the world following the disruptions of 2020. Only submissions on the symposium theme will be considered for presentation. Interdisciplinary submissions are especially welcome.

 

We are seeking submissions that may include topics related to human rights, changing technologies, sustainability, the future of cities, telecommuting, healthcare law, child and elder care, cashless economy, government investment priorities, governance and regulation, and compliance. Scholarship may be related to a single regulation and its impact on a particular industry or to a broader theoretical perspective reimagining organizational engagement. Application of ethical leadership literature to these issues is encouraged. Sixteen (16) papers will be selected for presentation.

 

We anticipate cohosting the symposium in March 2021 in coordination with the annual meeting of the Midwest Academy of Legal Studies in Business (MALSB) and the MBAA International Conference in Chicago. The symposium will take place on a Friday, March 26. Participants must commit to submitting a completed draft of their paper no later than Friday, March 12, 2021, two weeks before the symposium.

 

Participants in the symposium should register for the MALSB meeting or request to take part in the symposium online. Participants agree to acknowledge the Tobias Leadership Center, Indiana University, and the Center for Legal Studies & Business Ethics at the Spears School of Business, Oklahoma State University in a footnote, if the article is published in the ABLJ or elsewhere.

 

If you are interested in presenting at the symposium, please send a one-page abstract of your proposed paper, along with your CV, by Friday, October 16, to llucas@okstate.edu. Participants whose abstracts are selected will be notified on or around Friday, October 30.

 

The American Business Law Journal anticipates publishing an issue devoted to the symposium theme. Papers selected for presentation at the symposium are not guaranteed publication, though participation in the symposium will be viewed favorably. The symposium issue will be Volume 58, Issue 4 (2021). Articles submitted for consideration must conform to The Bluebook (21st Edition). To increase publication opportunities, the ABLJ is soliciting articles 12,000 to 15,000 words in length, inclusive of footnotes.

 

The ABLJ is rated an A journal on the Australian Business Deans Council (ABDC) journal quality list and is the premier peer-reviewed research journal in business law.

To be considered for publication in this issue, you must submit your final paper for peer review directly to the ABLJ by Friday, April 30, 2021, at abljsubmission@alsb.org.

 

Laurie Lucas                                                                     Terence Lau

Director and Chair in Business Ethics                        Editor-in-Chief, Volume 58

Center for Legal Studies & Business Ethics             American Business Law Journal

Spears School of Business                                            Dean, College of Business

Oklahoma State University                                            California State, Chico

 

Julie Manning Magid

Professor of Business Law

Kelley School of Business

Executive & Academic Director,

Tobias Leadership Center

Indiana University