ABA Antitrust Law Section to cohost Next Gen antitrust, data privacy scholars conference

January 15, 2026

ABA Antitrust Law Section to cohost Next Gen antitrust, data privacy scholars conference

CHICAGO, Jan. 15, 2026 - The Next Generation of Antitrust, Data Privacy and Data Protection Scholars Conference will be held Jan. 22-23 at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law in Los Angeles.

Co-sponsored by the American Bar Association Antitrust Law Section, New York University School of Law, USC Gould School of Law and USC Marshall School of Business, the conference provides an opportunity for professors in law, economics, accounting, finance, management, information system, operations management and marketing who began their full-time tenure-track career in or after 2018 to present their latest research.

Senior scholars and practitioners in the field will comment on the papers. The day-and-a-half 9th Biennial Next Generation Conference is complimentary.

What:
Next Generation of Antitrust, Data Privacy and Data Protection Scholars Conference
Sponsored by the ABA Antitrust Law Section

When:
Jan. 22-23

Where:
USC Gould School of Law
699 West Exposition Boulevard
Los Angeles, California

Among the sessions are:

• "Competition Policy I" will explore multifaceted challenges of competition policy and antitrust law in digital markets, focusing on issues of structural market power, the efficacy of regulatory remedies and the specialized judicial expertise required for effective enforcement.
• "Competition Policy II" will examine the evolving landscape of market power by connecting firm strategies, regulatory interventions and the broader consequences of industry concentration. The session includes discussion of platform self-preferencing, serial acquisitions in the tech sector, price transparency on Airbnb and linking economic consolidation to political influence.
• "Privacy I" will investigate the complex interplay between regulatory frameworks, firm innovation and consumer responses in the data-driven economy. The session will examine how the California Consumer Privacy Act reshapes the trajectory of AI innovation. Complementing this macro-view, the second paper explores the micro-incentives of privacy as a competitive tool.
• "Competition, Privacy and Data Issues" will investigate the complex interplay between algorithmic decision-making, firm incentives and consumer welfare across diverse digital environments and explore the prevalence of tacit collusion among deep Q-learning algorithms in first-price advertising auctions, the "transparency paradox" in privacy regulation, ad quality improvements from stronger competition could benefit consumers.

The complete conference agenda is here. All sessions are open to the media, but reporters are required to meet the ABA media credentials policy. For media registration, please contact Shanda Ivory at [email protected]. The ABA Antitrust Law Section reserves the right to limit the number of reporters per media outlet.

The ABA is one of the largest voluntary associations of lawyers in the world. As the national voice of the legal profession, the ABA works to improve the administration of justice, promotes programs that assist lawyers and judges in their work, accredits law schools, provides continuing legal education, and works to build public understanding around the world of the importance of the rule of law. View our privacy statement online. Follow the latest ABA news at www.americanbar.org/news.