University of Basel, 5 June 2026
The VALS-ASLA 2026 Conference explores topics highlighting the power of language in legal issues, and more generally in situations of dissent and conflict implicating the negotiation of evidence and the re-establishment of consensus.
Forensic linguistics is a field of applied linguistics in which all the sub-disciplines of linguistics contribute to settle legal issues – from phonetics and the identification of (type of) speakers, to text linguistics and the spotting of fakes, copyright violations and plagiarism. Linguistics also intervenes in the legal field by proposing a large array of studies regarding different legal issues – from the way in which legal texts are written to the way in which talk organizes courtroom procedures.
Applying linguistics in these contexts enables a reflection on the way in which evidence and arguments are produced linguistically, discursively, interactively, as well as the way in which legal reasoning is based on linguistic evidence. The work of mediation uses both to negotiate forms of consensus across dissenting positions.
Call for Paper
Linguistic scholars are invited to present ongoing research on these topics, in the form of data presentations, analyses, and results—for presentations of 20 minutes + 10 minutes discussion. Please send a title and an abstract of 300 words (references excluded) to info@vals-asla.ch by April 20, 2026.
Invited Keynote Lectures
Prof. Noah Bubenhofer (University of Zurich)
On the notion of authorship and issues of plagiarism in the era of AI
Prof. Volker Dellwo (University of Zurich)
On the use of phonetics in forensic linguistics
Dr. Fabio Ferraz De Almeida (University of Lincoln)
On the interactional order of courtroom debates
Time schedule
Deadline for abstract submission: April 20, 2026
Notification of acceptance: April 27, 2026
Publication of the final program: May 4, 2026
Registration: May 15, 2026
VALS-ASLA 2026 Conference: June 5, 2026, University of Basel
Registration fees
Students 25 CHF, VALS-ASLA members 35 CHF, others 50 CHF.
The fees cover coffee breaks and a light lunch.
You can register by sending an email to info@vals-asla.ch – you will receive an invoice.
Scientific committee
Prof. Lorenza Mondada (UNIBAS), Prof. Regula Schmidlin (UNIFR), Dr. Laura Baranzini (OLSI), Prof. Sara Cotelli (UNINE), Prof. Philipp Dreesen (ZHAW), Prof. Ulla Kleinberger (ZHAW), Prof. Martin Luginbühl (UNIBAS), Dr. Gilles Merminod (ZHAW), Prof. Anita Thomas (UNIFR).