On 6 and 7 June, the interdisciplinary workshop “Contesting Austerity. A Socio-legal Inquiry into Resistance to Austerity[1]“ that we had conceived together with Xabier Arzoz, from the University of the Basque Country, has taken place at the Oñati Institute for the Sociology of Law[2]. Over twenty European scholars have dealt with the political, societal and judicial implications of the eurozone crisis and the diverse modes of contesting austerity. On the one hand, the conference reflected upon the transformation of decision-making structures adopted to cope with the Eurozone crisis, featuring technocratization and depoliticization of institutionalized democratic processes. On the other hand, we discussed institutional fora and actors of resistance against these expert-based regimes such as national and European courts, as well as civil society actors, including unions and new social movements.
At this point, we would also like to thank the staff of the Oñati Institute for the Sociology of Law[3]. Our conference did not only profit from the inspiring architecture of a Siglo de Oro law school building, but also from the invaluable logistic support in the organization of the workshop.