Notre Dame J.S.D. Candidates Present at the World Congress of Constitutional Law and ICONS | News | The Law School

Three smiling people, a man in black, a woman in red, a man in beige, at WCCL 2026 Colombia with cultural hats.

Notre Dame J.S.D. Candidates Present at the World Congress of Constitutional Law

This summer, Notre Dame Law J.S.D. candidates Felipe Lyon Errázuriz, Ángel Muñoz-Carpintero, and Valentina Salazar presented their work at the 2026 World Congress of Constitutional Law (WCCL) hosted by Externado University in Bogotá, Colombia. The WCCL brings together more than 2,000 academics, legal professionals, and government officials from around the world interested in discussing and analyzing issues related to the theory, philosophy, practical problems, and contemporary challenges of constitutional law and human rights. This event takes place every four years and is partly promoted by the International Association of Constitutional Law (IACL).

Valentina Salazar presented her doctoral research in three different panels related to comparative law and new technologies. First, she shared her paper “From Ally to Enemy in a Click” on the use of artificial intelligence for judicial decision making at the international level in the panel “Rule of law, science, and technology.” She then participated in one of the Max Planck Institute for Public International Law workshops on “Regional comparative law,” showing how her project on a "Theory of Precedent for the Inter-American Court of Human Rights" could contribute to a better understanding of the Americas as a legal community. Finally, she presented her paper on the use of the role of the Colombian Constitutional Court in strengthening judicial reasoning in the panel “Contributions of Latin American constitutionalism to comparative law.”

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“Attending and presenting my work at the WCCL was an exceptional opportunity to challenge my assumption with the questions and comments of experienced academics from all around the world," said Salazar. "It was also an amazing space for meaningful connections that I believe will lead to future projects related to international tribunals, new technologies, and human rights. I am grateful for the support that I received from the Klau Institute for Civil and Human Rights that allowed me to take part in this important event.”

Ángel Muñoz-Carpintero presented his work-in-progress paper titled “The Theseus Ship: The New Rule of Law in Nicaragua.” The paper explores the 2025 sweeping constitutional reforms of the Nicaraguan Constitution under the lens of the constitutional dismemberment framework, identifying the intersections of the rule of law, militarism, and constitutional dismemberment that the 2025 constitutional reforms in Nicaragua reveal. The paper was presented at the workshop "Constitution-Making and Constitutional Reform: Amendment, Dismemberment, and Replacement."

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“After attending and presenting at the WCCL, I came back to Notre Dame with renewed energy to continue my research agenda, inspired by the amazing scholarship that is being produced world-wide in evermore important matters of constitutional and international law," said Muñoz-Carpintero. "I am grateful for the support that I received from the Kellogg Institute for International Studies, which allowed me to go to Bogotá and present my work.”

Felipe Lyon Errázuriz presented a draft of his dissertation’s second chapter in the workshop “Human Duties: An Important Constitutional Issue?”. He proposed to revive the idea of duties to the community, an understudied concept in constitutionalism that could help illuminate current questions about the responsibility of big techs in the free speech environment. Lyon Errázuriz was also one of the 100 conference participants selected for the “Mini Public on Democracy as a Human Right,” an unprecedented deliberative exercise whose results are expected to be published in the following months. He was appointed to the panel that discussed potential risks of enshrining democracy as a right and institutional ways of preventing them.

“Presenting in such a specialized panel allowed me to dig deep into some of the toughest questions of my project and to discuss specific methodological improvements with some of the best comparative constitutional scholars in the world," said Lyon Errázuriz. "Also, it was satisfactory to see how my J.S.D. peers also thrived in their presentations. I thank both the Kellogg and Klau Institutes for supporting my participation, which will enrich my future academic work.”

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Notre Dame J.S.D. Candidates Present at ICONS

From June 29 to July 1, 2026, the University College Dublin’s Sutherland School of Law held the International Society of Public Law (ICON-S) annual conference: “Reimagining Public Law for a Fractured World—Technology, Identity & Truth.” Every year, this conference brings together some of the most prestigious academic work in the areas of constitutional, international, and public law. Notre Dame Law doctoral candidates Juan Carlos Gazmuri and Felipe Lyon Errázuriz participated in this year’s edition with great success.

Both Lyon Errázuriz and Gazmuri shared a workshop on the lessons and questions left by the two failed constitution-making processes that their home country, Chile, underwent between 2019 and 2023. The panel—chaired by former expert commissioner for the 2023 process and constitutional law professor, Catalina Salem from the Universidad del Desarrollo, Chile—featured works in progress by four early-career Chilean scholars and generated great interest. Gazmuri presented a paper analyzing the influence of constituent power theory on both constitution-making processes, whereas Lyon Errázuriz’s piece showed the impact that the mandatory nature of the 2022 and 2023 ratification referendums might have had on their respective constitutional drafts, their electoral rejection, and their aftermath.

Additionally, they presented parts of their doctoral theses in specialized workshops. Gazmuri presented his work on “Political parties, digitalization, and democratic backsliding,” providing evidence that the decline and desinstitutionalization of political parties are highly predictive of a country’s likelihood of experiencing democratic backsliding. From there, he discussed potential tools that constitutional and electoral design can use to address these challenges. His panel featured constitutional scholars from Greece, Brazil, and Belgium. Lyon Errázuriz presented his piece “Responsibility of Tech Companies on the Free Speech Environment: A Fundamental Duties Perspective,” in which he proposes a framework based on constitutional duties to establish big tech’s liability regarding defamation and other harmful alterations of the truth happening in their platforms.

Five people with laptops attend a Notre Dame session on Chilean constitution-making processes.

Lyon Errázuriz said, “It was a privilege to represent Notre Dame Law School and share my work in this prestigious conference. ICON-S allows you to engage with early-career and top-notch consolidated scholars in a unique way, which leaves me with great energy to continue my research. I’m grateful for all the support from Notre Dame Law School and the Kellogg Institute, for allowing me to participate on such a stage not only with my doctoral project, but also with a contribution to the Chilean academic debate.”

Gazmuri added, "Notre Dame Law School and the Kellogg Institute for International Studies have given me a unique opportunity to engage with constitutional scholars from around the world, for which I am deeply grateful. These conferences provide us with a valuable opportunity to learn from colleagues and to enrich our research.”

Across both conferences, the Notre Dame J.S.D. candidates presented their research alongside and engaged with scholars representing universities and institutions across Colombia, Chile, Italy, Spain, Greece, Brazil, Belgium, Hong Kong, the United States, and other countries and regions.