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The Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference

The 2026 CONFERENCE

The 23rd Annual Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference & Prize Presentation

October 14–16, 2026 | London, England

Panels at No. 11 Cavendish Square | Prize Reception & Dinner at The Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn

To register, visit our registration page. For conference information, please contact [[w|lawevents]].

See the full 2026 program below.

The annual Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference is presented by the William & Mary Property Rights Project and is named in recognition of Toby Prince Brigham and Gideon Kanner for their lifetime contributions to private property rights. The conference is designed to bring together members of the bench, bar, and academia to explore recent developments in the law that affect property rights. The Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference began in 2004 at William & Mary Law School.

The conference offers outstanding panel discussions and encourages active audience participation through question and answer segments with each panel. It also includes the annual presentation of the Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Prize to an individual whose work has advanced the cause of property rights and has contributed to the overall awareness of the important role property rights occupy in the broader scheme of individual liberty.

2026 Program at a Glance

All times are local London time (BST).

When Event Location
Wed., Oct. 14
6:30–9:30 p.m.		 Welcome Reception at Parliament (invitation required; business attire) Palace of Westminster, Terrace Pavilion, House of Commons
Thu., Oct. 15
9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.		 Registration, Welcome and Sessions 1–4 No. 11 Cavendish Square
Fri., Oct. 16
10:00 a.m.–3:15 p.m.		 Sessions 5–7 No. 11 Cavendish Square
Fri., Oct. 16
6:00 p.m.		 Brigham-Kanner Prize Reception & Dinner (black tie optional) The Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn, The Old Hall
Sat., Oct. 17
8:30 a.m.		 Farewell Breakfast The Welbeck Hotel, 57-59 Welbeck Street, London W1G 9BL

Schedule of Events

Wednesday, October 14

6:30–9:30 p.m. | Welcome Reception at Parliament

Palace of Westminster, Terrace Pavilion, House of Commons
Hosted by The Rt. Hon. The Baroness Butler-Sloss. Sponsored by Katie and Joshua Baker ’06.
Invitation required.
Business attire required.

Thursday, October 15

All Thursday events take place at No. 11 Cavendish Square.

9:00–9:45 a.m. | Registration & Breakfast

9:45–10:00 a.m. | Welcome

10:00–11:45 a.m. | Session 1: The Concept of Property: A Tribute to J.E. Penner

This panel celebrates the work of Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Prize recipient James Penner, whose scholarship has reshaped contemporary understanding of the nature and structure of property. The panel will explore major themes and contributions of Penner’s work, including separable “things,” exclusionary norms and the bundle-of-rights debate, as well as connections between conceptual, doctrinal, practical and philosophical approaches to property law.

Panelists

  • James Burling, Vice President of Legal Affairs, Pacific Legal Foundation
  • Ben McFarlane, Professor of English Law and Fellow of St. John’s College, University of Oxford
  • Thomas W. Merrill, Charles Evans Hughes Professor of Law, Columbia Law School
  • Henry E. Smith, Professor of Law, Yale Law School
  • Carol M. Rose, Tweedy Professor Emerita of Law & Organization, Yale Law School; Lohse Professor Emerita of Water & Natural Resource Law, University of Arizona Rogers School of Law
  • James E. Penner, 2026 Prize Recipient; Kwa Geok Choo Professor of Property Law, National University of Singapore

Moderator: James Y. Stern, Professor of Law and Director, William & Mary Property Rights Project, William & Mary Law School

11:45 a.m.–12:00 p.m. | Break

12:00–1:00 p.m. | Session 2: Other People’s Things: Trusts, Entities and Fiduciaries in Property

This panel examines forms of ownership in which control and benefit are divided across persons, from private trusts to corporate and charitable entities. The discussion will showcase current debates in fiduciary law and the significance of the wider set of questions they present for our understanding of property and ownership. The panel will also address the conceptual and practical implications of separating legal and beneficial interests across different institutional settings.

Panelists

  • Raul Madden, Lecturer in Law, Queen Mary University of London School of Law
  • Paul B. Miller, Robert & Marion Short Professor of Law, Associate Dean for International & Graduate Programs and Director, Program on Private Law, Notre Dame Law School
  • Irit Samet, Professor of Law and Interim Vice Dean for Students, Culture & Community, King’s College London Dickson Poon School of Law

Moderator: Blake A. Willis ’18, Attorney, Waldo & Lyle, P.C.

1:00–2:15 p.m. | Lunch

2:15–3:30 p.m. | Session 3: Property, Human Rights and International Law

This panel will consider how property rights are recognized, limited and contested in international contexts, including through human rights and investment law regimes, as well as mediation of property disputes between nation-states. Discussion will touch on questions about the status of property as a human right, the relationship between property protections and state authority, and the role of international law in shaping domestic property systems.

Panelists

  • Thomas Allen, Professor of Law, Durham University Law School
  • Gregory H. Fox, Professor of Law and Director, Program for International Legal Studies, Wayne State University School of Law
  • Eric Loefflad, Senior Lecturer, University of Exeter Law School
  • Robert H. Thomas, Joseph T. Waldo Visiting Chair in Property Rights Law, William & Mary Law School; Director, Property Rights Litigation, Pacific Legal Foundation

Moderator: Joseph T. Waldo ’78, Partner & Founder, Waldo & Lyle, P.C.

3:30–3:45 p.m. | Break

3:45–5:00 p.m. | Session 4: Roman, English and Other Legacies: The Role of History in Property Law

More than other areas of basic private law, property draws upon and reflects historical sources and practices in a wide range of contexts and applications. This panel will explore how and why historical considerations shape contemporary property law. Discussion will address the uses and limits of historical analysis in property theory and doctrine, including questions about continuity, adaptation and divergence. The panel will also consider how appeals to history inform present-day debates about ownership, authority and the evolution of property institutions.

Panelists

  • Sir John Baker, Downing Professor Emeritus of the Laws of England, University of Cambridge
  • Maureen E. Brady, Deputy Dean and Louis D. Brandeis Professor of Law, Harvard Law School
  • Claire Priest, Simeon E. Baldwin Professor of Law, Yale Law School; Professor of History, Yale University
  • Randall A. Smith, Founder and Managing Partner, Smith & Fawer, LLC

Moderator: Brett S. Tensfeldt ’16, Partner, Brigham Property Rights Law Firm, PLLC

Friday, October 16

Daytime sessions take place at No. 11 Cavendish Square.

10:00–11:00 a.m. | Session 5: Intangible Property in an Interconnected World

This panel examines how legal regimes governing intellectual property, digital assets and other non-physical ownable assets operate across borders, the extent to which globalization complicates or reshapes traditional territorial assumptions, and implications for the law of both intangible and tangible property.

Panelists

  • Danielle D’Onfro, Treiman Professor of Law, Washington University School of Law
  • Justin Hughes, Hon. William Byrne Jr. Distinguished Professor of Law and Fulbright-Hanken Distinguished Chair in Business & Economics, Loyola Law School, Los Angeles
  • Christopher K. Odinet, Professor of Law and Mosbacher Research Fellow, Texas A&M School of Law

Moderator: Cody S. Taylor ’28, Toby Prince Brigham Property Rights Fellow, William & Mary Law School

11:00–11:15 a.m. | Break

11:15 a.m.–12:45 p.m. | Session 6: Comparative Perspectives on Compensation for Government Takings

This panel will explore how different legal systems approach compensation for government expropriation of private property, focusing in particular on English, American and Canadian law. It will examine when compensation is required, how it is measured, and differences in more general attitudes and institutional approaches to property protection.

Panelists

  • David L. Callies, Benjamin A. Kudo Professor of Law Emeritus, University of Hawaii Richardson School of Law
  • Raj Gupta, Partner, Town Legal, LLP
  • Gregory Jones KC, Barrister, Francis Taylor Building & KBW Chambers; Alderman, City of London
  • Shane Rayman, Founding Partner, Rayman Barristers LLP

Moderator: Andrew Prince Brigham, Senior Partner, Brigham Property Rights Law Firm, PLLC

12:45–2:00 p.m. | Lunch

2:00–3:15 p.m. | Session 7: Of Locke, Bentham and Blackstone: English Contributions to Property’s Philosophical Foundations

This panel will discuss normative justifications for property law, with a special emphasis on the contributions of major English theorists. It will explore how themes of labor, productivity, security and legal order have shaped enduring understandings of ownership and its moral underpinnings. The discussion will consider the continuing influence of writers like Locke, Bentham and Blackstone on contemporary property theory, as well as the tensions among their approaches.

Panelists

  • Eric R. Claeys, Professor of Law, George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School
  • Jeremy P. Hopkins ’02, Partner, Cranfill Sumner LLP
  • Larissa M. Katz, Professor of Law & Cecil A. Wright Chair, University of Toronto Faculty of Law
  • Laura Biron Scott, Chaplain, Balliol College, University of Oxford; Research Fellow, St. Augustine’s College of Theology

Moderator: Joshua E. Baker ’06, Partner & President, Waldo & Lyle, P.C.

6:00 p.m. | Brigham-Kanner Prize Reception & Dinner

The Honourable Society of Lincoln’s Inn, The Old Hall
Black tie optional.

Join us at Lincoln’s Inn for our closing reception and dinner, which will feature the presentation of this year’s Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Prize to James E. Penner, the Kwa Geok Choo Professor of Property Law at National University of Singapore.

Getting there: Guests are encouraged to enter through the main gatehouse off Lincoln’s Inn Fields and Serle Street. Other entrances close after 7:00 p.m. Porters at the gatehouse can point you in the right direction, and signs will direct guests to the Old Hall.

Saturday, October 17

8:30 a.m. | Farewell Breakfast

The Welbeck Hotel, 57-59 Welbeck Street, London W1G 9BL
Please join us on Saturday morning for a farewell breakfast at our conference hotel.

Brigham-Kanner Conference Coordinating Committee

Dean A. Benjamin Spencer, Dean and Chancellor Professor, William & Mary Law School

James Y. Stern, Professor of Law and Director, William & Mary Property Rights Project, William & Mary Law School 

Andrew P. Brigham, Senior Partner, Brigham Property Rights Law Firm, PLLC

Conference Advisory Board

Joshua E. Baker ’06
Andrew P. Brigham
Christi A. Cassel
Stephen J. Clarke
Stephen S. Davis
Mark (Thor) Hearne, II
Justin A. Hodge
Jeremy P. Hopkins ’02
Shane Rayman
Joseph P. Suntum 
Brett S. Tensfeldt ’16
Robert H. Thomas
Christian F. Torgrimson
Joseph T. Waldo ’78
Blake A. Willis ’18