CFA (Workshop): Forms of Exculpation: Nature and Norms of Blamelessness

This workshop is aimed at discussing questions regarding the relationship between prescriptive and hypological notions in the normative, with a specific focus on conceptual issues regarding excuses and exemptions. It is a familiar fact of life that agents can be exculpated through a variety of factors, ranging from ignorance, over duress, to permanent impairment of their rational facilities. Sometimes, these various factors are taken to directly affect what an agent ought to do, at other times, they are taken to constitute excuses for (nonetheless wrong) actions. Contributions to this workshop will deal with the question of how to best theoretically capture the various forms of exculpation, combining perspectives from ethics, epistemology and legal philosophy.

We have reserved a small number of slots for early-career researchers (including advanced PhD students) working on related issues. These will be selected from anonymized submissions based on quality and fit for the workshop theme. We have secured funds to reimburse travel fees of up to 300€ but unfortunately cannot cover accommodation costs (though we are happy to suggest affordable options within proximity to the workshop venue).

Potential topics of submissions include, but are not limited to:

·       The difference between excuse and justification

·       Full and partial excuses

·       Varieties of exculpating conditions

·       Epistemic excuses

·       Excuses in the law and morality

·       Exemptions and the “objective attitude”

·       The role of blame and blameworthiness in relational theories of morality

Please submit an abstract (700-1000 words, prepared for blind review) until 31 January 2026 as a pdf file [email protected], with the subject line “Submission for Workshop: Forms of Exculpation”. Papers should be suitable for a presentation lasting 30-40 minutes. Authors of accepted papers will be notified by 10 February 2026. Submissions by underrepresented groups in philosophy are highly encouraged.

For any questions regarding the workshop, please contact Daniele Bruno ([email protected]).