This is the fourth call for tales for the IViR Science Fiction & Information Law Writing Competition organised in cooperation with the Digital Constitutionalist (DigiCon) and CPDP. We are delighted to once again host the Awards and Conversation with the Winners at the CPDP 2026 Culture Club. 

 

Fiction is the lie through which we tell the truth, it is said. If that is so, does being served high doses of framed daily reality risk obfuscating truthfulness? In other words, has the surge of information technologies buried us under a patchwork of realities, and led us into a post-truth era? We witness a proliferation of social media, proficient recommender systems, and prolific LLMs, to name just a few novel technologies of recent decades that increase our capacity to tinker with truth. Though counterintuitive, one can wonder why, despite so much apparent technological progress, current times often feel near-apocalyptic at best. Scientific consensus about climate change is twisted or simply ignored in heated political climates. Cultural wars shoot back and forth between what is true and what feels true, although it is said, too, that in war, truth is the first casualty. And if it has really already passed away, is the culture war simply a fight for its legacy? 

Technology is a powerful tool and many times a tool of the powerful. The same is to be said for stories. Narratives mobilise, create allies and (imaginary) enemies, and shape collective conscience. And technology can sometimes be not much more than a story we tell ourselves, too. Can you shed light on the prevalent narratives of our times, imagine which lies ring true? 

Information Law to the rescue!  

Even if lagging behind as law in general is said to do, information law has the potential to do so with intriguing glitches. Distorted wordings that inspire the sharpest of legal eyes. In other instances, allegedly dated provisions, flickering somewhere in a now void, aimless Directive, then suddenly shining bright with meaning once the stardust is blown off because of newfound relevance.   

The competition provides the opportunity to use the facts of a case to craft legal fiction, or vice versa, to make up cases to inspire new legal realities.   

About the competition  

We welcome short stories that do not exceed 6.000 words. Contributions by non-legal people are just as welcome as those from the legally trained, as long as they reflect on information(,) law and the future of truth, though the future could just already be now. Short stories are not: legal essays, case notes and texts with footnotes and bibliographies. It’s your ideas about the future of information (law) we are interested in, not your knowledge of the law.  

The deadline for submitting your story is 31.01.2026. 

An independent jury will award the best essay the IViR Science Fiction & Information Law Award, and the finalist’s essays will be given a platform online on DigiCon’s Science Fiction section and during a (hybrid) session at CPDP 2026. 

During this ceremony, we will introduce the essays and together discuss their ideas, to spark a lively exchange about how they can inspire our visions on future (information) societies, and shared regulatory projects.  

Together, the short stories of the finalists will get the opportunity to be published on the website of DigiCon’s Science Fiction section. The winning short story will be transformed into a Virtual Gallery, bringing it to life in a three-dimensional world during the symposium. This special symposium will showcase the immersive power of science fiction, inspiring all who learned from it. 

You can submit your story by sending it to Etienne Valk 

 

The competition was born out of the idea that science fiction and information law have much in common. Not only is there a fair share of law in science fiction, but information law experts and science fiction authors also share a vivid interest in the way technology is interfacing and transforming our digital society, and the values and rules that matter to us. And rules as well as narratives are powerful tools in shaping the future. This is why the Institute for Information Law, as one of the oldest and largest research institutes in information law, once launched the first edition of this competition in 2018, and since then the future of information has only become more intriguing.