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At the UK Constitutional Law Group AGM, held on 17 January 2014, members agreed to provide our activities with a more formal framework by adopting rules and becoming an association. The UKCLG is therefore now the UK Constitutional Law Association or UKCLA and, for the twitterati, our twitter account has become @UKCLA. No need for the 2,700-plus blog followers or 1,100-plus twitter followers to do anything: you’re still with us.

The Association’s executive committee, elected at the AGM, now includes: me (as president, continuing also in my role on the International Association for Constitutional Law executive committee); Nick Barber (vice-president and co-editor of the blog); Sebastian Payne (vice-president and events organiser); Jeff King (treasurer and co-editor of the blog); Javier Garcia Oliva (membership secretary); Merris Amos; Aileen McHarg; and Richard Ekins; with Robert Hazell and Peter Leyland co-opted for 2014.

The organisational changes are part of a general revitalising of our activities, something that all organisations should do from time to time. In the 10 years from its launch as a small network of scholars by Anthony Bradley, Stephen Sedley and Mads Andenas in 2003, followed by leadership from Dawn Oliver, we have grown into a larger membership organisation with supporters throughout the UK and beyond.

The initial focus of the group was relatively small events usually held in London, supplemented by occasional larger conferences. The UKCLA continues to organise and sponsor events (there are three in January). Sebastian Payne is always happy to have suggestions for events, all the more so if a venue can also be provided. We are especially keen to help members with events outside London. Some events are UKCLA “own productions”; others are organised by members and their institutions with the UKCLA providing varying packages of support (including, for example, pre-event publicity through our web and blog and a post-event report on the blog).

The blog now allows us – though a panel of over 60 contributors – to provide scholarly commentary on constitutional law issues to readers around the world: in 2012, we had more than 400,000 ‘hits’ on the blog. Nick Barber and Jeff King are keen to hear from academics who would like to contribute to the blog. Authoritative posts of around 800-1,000 words, written by scholars, will remain the blog’s distinctive style. The UKCLA remains affiliated to the International Association of Constitutional Law, which holds the IXth Congress in Oslo from 16-20 June 2014.

Andrew Le Sueur is president of the UKCLA and Professor of Constitutional Justice in the School of Law and Human Rights Centre, University of Essex, UK.  

Suggested citation:  A. Le Sueur, ‘UKCLG (“G” for group) becomes UKCLA (“A” for association)’ U.K. Const. L. Blog (23 January 2014) (available at http://ukconstitutionallaw.org)