Blog Archives

Welcome back to part four, the final installation, of my yearlong series discussing select aspects of music streaming. Today, I’d like to consider where all of this leaves us and what the future might hold. I think it’s safe to say that change happens rapidly these days, whether we want it, are ready for it, or not, and the music industry is not immune from that premise. So, let’s tie it all together and, as a point of personal privilege, I’ll share my own thoughts.

The Biden Administration’s target of 100 percent renewable power by 2035 involves rapidly increasing solar energy in the U.S. Solar energy involves heavy imports from countries that have current manufacturing and mining capacity as the U.S. has little to none. The solar energy outlook is positive; however, a recent proposed revival of a U.S. solar tariff could entirely derail climate goals and wreak havoc on the industry.

As AI technologies become more prevalent in virtually every industry, debates regarding the legal and ethical implications of AI are emerging as well. Moreover, many of these discussions concern AI creations in respect to intellectual property law. For instance, using AI to innovate has raised questions as to whether AI systems can be listed as the inventor on a patent application. The issue has already reached the courts, particularly whether patent law requires an inventor to be a “natural person.” The court's view on the issue has evolved in recent years, and we can expect to see an ongoing debate about whether AI can be listed as an inventor.

Does social media present a danger to the safety and mental health of children? Many government officials across the nation believe so. Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders recently signed the Social Media Safety Act, which will substantially limit teen access to social media this September. The Act will prevent Arkansas children under the age of 18 from creating accounts on various social media platforms without parental consent. Specifically, the Act intends to restrict teen use with Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok according to Tyler Dees, an Arkansas state senator.

Recent headlines make it no secret that there is a fervent bipartisan appetite to ban the use of TikTok in the United States. James Lewis, Senior Vice President for the Center for Strategic and International Studies, recently told POLITCO, “I don’t really care what Congress writes, or what the administration writes. They’re not going to ban TikTok.”

With artificial intelligence becoming more prevalent in society, it may come as a shock to none that AI is making its way into the field of health care. AI in this setting essentially analyzes data, and makes predictions based on that data. While AI is supposed to bring precision and efficiency, it’s also brought a worrying amount of bias to the health care field. The ACLU published the article, Algorithms Are Making Decisions About Health Care, Which May Only Worsen Medical Racism, which details the issue at hand.

Did you send an emoji today? Probably. Emojis are “small images, symbols, or icons used in text fields in electronic communication (as in text messages, email, and social media) to express the emotional attitude of the writer, convey information succinctly, communicate a message playfully without using words, etc.” Specifically, these wordless communications include emoticons (keyboard-generated), emojis (computer-generated), and other communications (GIFs, JPEGs, memes, and pictures).

Law firm culture is changing, whether we like it or not. With the rise of artificial intelligence, there has been much discussion on exactly how this new technology will change the legal world in general as we know it. The biggest development has been the rise of alternative legal service providers.

Lab-grown meat, also known as cultured meat or cultivated meat, could be coming to people’s plates as early as this year. So far only Singapore has approved cultivated meat for retail sale. However, in November 2022, the U.S. FDA approved a lab-grown chicken breast by UPSIDE Foods for human consumption. UPSIDE Foods still needs to be inspected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS). However, the FDA approval is a hopeful first step for the cultivated meat industry.

The Southern District of New York issued an important ruling on an issue that is as old as time; however, this tale does not center on a conflict between a book loving princess and her misunderstood, transformed prince. This conflict, instead, centers on a group of book publishers who sued the nonprofit Internet Archive (IA) for scanning and lending digital copies of copyrighted books. Whether you view IA as the misunderstood prince merely trying to promote fair use access to digital materials or an infringing beast undermining copyright protections, the development and implications of this holding has the potential to meaningfully impact copyright law.

On the last episode of Tra’Vaysha’s thoughts, I pondered why and why not AI-created works should receive Copyright protection. A LOT has happened since that article, and the answer to my admittedly philosophical question has been answered, and I have to say I am bummed about the answer. Still, the short version is that back in 2019, The United States Copyright Office denied registration of artwork created by Creativity Machine, an AI algorithm. Fast forward to February of this year, and The US Copyright Office Review Board affirmed that original decision.

Benjamin P. Edwards’ article The Rise of Automated Investment Advice: Can Robo- Advisors Rescue the Retail Market? is a short review of the changing landscape of automated investment tools being used in directing retirement accounts.

The rapid expansion, evolution, and acceptance of artificial intelligence has resulted in questions being raised faster than they are answered. The law, as a general principle, is not a fast-moving entity, nor is it one that readily adapts to new challenges. The quick evolution of artificial intelligence and its uses leaves the law open to interpretation and potential abuse. In the world of artificial intelligence: how does the law distinguish protections for artificial intelligence only created works and human created works, made with the assistance of a computer program?

Imagine it's Monday morning, school starts in 30 minutes, and you finally decide to get out of bed and put on your virtual headset. Once the headset is on you log in to your first-period class, where you find yourself in a virtual classroom surrounded by classmates, chairs, a desk, and a whiteboard. As you wait for class to begin, you decide to customize your avatar and socialize with your classmates. The teacher then logs in and proceeds to teach class. This is only an example of what the future of education could look like with the metaverse.

Human cells, tissues, and cellular and tissue-based products (HCT/Ps) such induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) and haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) have been used for decades and still have expanding potential. But the use of naturally occurring materials, and patient derived materials complicate the regulatory landscape for this area of technology.

In February 2023, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for two cases that have the full attention of tech giants, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Google – to name just a few. The cases at hand are Gonzales v. Google and Twitter v. Taamneh. The issue at hand in both cases are similar and address a question that has perplexed legal experts throughout the 21st century; can tech companies be held liable for the content published by its users? The arguments of both sides hinge on the interpretation of 47 U.S.C. § 230, or Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (“the CDA”).

The manufacturing industry is making a comeback in the United States as Electric Vehicle (EV) financial incentives are luring major market players towards domestic production. Panasonic, GM and LG, Toyota, Zinc8, Ion Storage Systems, along with others are leveraging these incentives by expanding and building manufacturing factories for EV batteries across the country. Although this new economic development is promising, it comes with challenges; EV batteries require critical minerals which raise concerns surrounding availability, human rights, and environmental impacts.

Individuals living in rural areas have long struggled to obtain sufficient internet access. Approximately 20% of rural Americans lacked broadband to conveniently enjoy services such as Netflix, Zoom, and telehealth in 2020. In order to access the internet, these individuals often have to travel to the nearest town to continue their everyday activities. As more jobs and schools are rapidly relying on internet access in post-COVID America, the concern of broadband availability only continues to grow.

You wake up to your phone buzzing. Upon checking, you see that you have been sent what is seemingly a video of yourself. You’re doing things in the video that you have no recollection of doing. It’s hyper realistic, though, you know that you were in no such video, and that this must have been edited somehow. Still, the masses of people that have seen this video are unable to tell the difference between what is real, and what is fake. This is the reality that women, and other vulnerable demographics of the population face as deepfakes become more prevalent in our society. One of the most common crimes that’s being found as deepfakes continue are women being edited to appear in nonconsensual deepfake pornography videos.

Digitization is a hallmark of the 21st century. Companies are beginning to target consumers through digital ads to keep engagement up. Increased engagement through screentime increases the likelihood a consumer is going to be influenced by an ad. Data sharing and tracking further help companies achieve their goals by utilizing targeted ads based on a consumers search history, daily media/ internet patterns and/or conversations.

Welcome back to part three of this ongoing series discussing select aspects of music streaming. Today, we survey an upcoming rule from the Copyright Office seeking to overturn a policy created by the Mechanical Licensing Collective.

A recently unveiled study has concluded Black taxpayers are 2.9 to 4.7 times more likely to be audited by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) than their non-Black counterparts. This troubling finding again raises important questions about structural bias in the American tax and legal system.

Since the release of ChatGPT, researchers have tested the performance of the OpenAI- powered chatbot on high-level academic exams. Law professors at the University of Minnesota used ChatGPT to produce final exam answers for constitutional law - federalism and separation of powers, employee benefits, taxation, and torts. ChatGPT scored a C+ average across all exams which would be sufficient to earn a J.D.

Along with four billion people, judges regularly venture into a worldwide phenomenon: social media. However, a judge’s use of social media can present unclear ethical issues. Many users quickly add friends to their accounts, post publicly, and double-tap the like button with ease. But for a judge, likes and other social media communications require thoughtful considerations.

What if we could take a 1:1 scan of your brain and turn you into an AI? It would have all of your memories and feelings as well as your exact personality. In fact, unless you told it, it wouldn’t know it wasn’t you. Black Mirror explores such technology through creations like: the perfect dating app, digital immortality, or eliciting psychologically tortured confessions. The last one of these is the focus of White Christmas, my favorite Black Mirror episode, which has always left me with one question: How was any of this constitutional?

The fashion world seems to be at constant battle with the metaverse. This new digital landscape has given individuals the opportunity to blur the line of what exactly is allowed before hitting a trademark or copyright wall.  As more fashion v. metaverse litigation rise, the more we understand how to navigate this new world. Most notably, all eyes are on the ongoing trial of Hermès Int’l. v. Rothschild.

Copyright is a complex and ever-changing area of the law, more so than many other areas based on the need for copyright to stay up to date with the latest technology. This need for evolution dates all the way back to 1884 when the Supreme Court was tasked with deciding whether copyright covered the newly invented technology of photography. Fast forward to today, the newest hot topic in the long line of copyright disputes is how to tackle works created by artificial intelligence (AI).

When a consumer makes a purchase in full, they own the right to do as they chose with their new items, right? Wrong. Warranties and guarantees will often only go so far as giving a consumer the right to an “authorized” repair. This means that consumers must abide by manufacturer rules on how to go about getting a repair. It is often almost as expensive to repair an old device as it is to upgrade to a new one, so it is obvious consumers should just upgrade to a new device, right? Again, wrong. Consumers and advocates alike are often faced with these decisions, thus the movement for right to repair laws has taken off in recent years. Right to repair is a basic movement; if a consumer owns a good, they should be able to repair it.

On November 30, 2022, the San Francisco-based OpenAI made the ChatGPT chat box available for free public testing. In its own words, ChatGPT is an “AI language model developed by OpenAI, designed to respond to user input in a conversational manner.” ChatGPT has the ability to access a vast amount of text data and does not have emotions or personal experiences but exists solely to assist and communicate with humans through text. While those in the legal practice are now trying to utilize ChatGPT, how much should we rely on an AI bot?

Our current patent system does allow for generic drug use for older inventions with expired patent terms. And the secondary patents that are problematic are able to be challenged in the USPTO review processes. But frequently the secondary patents are not challenged. Often because patent challenges are considered cost prohibitive or are ineffective against drugs with a thicket of patents protecting them. Instead, skinny labels are used where the drug approval is based on usage for the expired patent applications only.

Today a new philosophical issue challenges legislatures and courts to determine how, and whether, works generated via artificial intelligence (AI) should receive copyright protection. Another crucial question to be answered surrounding AI generated works is how the courts should react when a machine infringes on the valid copyright of an actual person.

Sam Bankman-Fried has made headlines recently following allegations of the misappropriation of funds from FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange which he co-founded that recently filed for bankruptcy. Bankman-Fried’s alleged illegal activity resulted in the loss of $8 billion of customer money; he has been charged with various federal crimes surrounding the customer investments, including wire fraud, securities fraud, and money laundering.

Four stripes vs. three stripes. Luxury vs mainstream. The trademark battle between Adidas and Thom Browne has finally concluded. After a nine-day trial, Thom Browne was not found liable for damages or profits made from sales of its products.

Movies made us believe that artificial intelligence would take over the world, and I never believed in that hype. I specifically never believed technology would ever advance to the point of independent artistic or sophisticated creation needed to take over the world. However, I am now going back to that belief.

Methane gas is a major source of climate pollution in the United States, and as a result, a shift from using fossil fuels to electricity for heating and cooking has become necessary to avoid the worst consequences of climate change. The energy usage of buildings is a prime target for curbing emissions, as gas combustion in buildings produces at least 10 percent of the United States’ greenhouse gas pollution. The shift away from gas-fueled heaters, boilers, and stoves -- to all-electric heating and appliances powered by solar, wind, and other sources of zero-carbon electricity -- assists in mitigating the climate crisis by protecting the health and safety of the public and promoting equity. So far, 90 cities and counties located in 12 states and Washington, D.C. have adopted policies requiring or encouraging electrification in buildings.

Big tech companies play a crucial role in everyday life. Individuals around the world interact with their family and friends on Facebook, follow their favorite trends on Twitter, and purchase a variety of goods on Amazon. Unfortunately, these companies have laid off tens of thousands of workers over the past couple of weeks.

How often do you order food online or with an app? Probably often. The United States is one of the most prominent delivery markets in the world. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, online orders have skyrocketed. For many these services provide great convenience, but for customers like Guillermo Robles, these “services” create steep disadvantages.

After months of legal drama, on October 28th, Elon Musk finally took control of Twitter as its CEO. According to Musk, his acquisition was spurred by his belief that Twitter can be a “platform for free speech around the globe.” However, his plan to usher in a new era of digital free speech has so far materialized into chaos.

While housing insecurity, lack of affordable housing, or lack of housing in general continues to be an issue for many citizens globally, a new idea has emerged as a potential solution. Though it may still be in its early stages, some believe that 3-D printing is the solution to housing that is not only affordable, but also has less of an impact on the environment than traditional construction.

Oh Twitter — the omnipresent social media leviathan where comedy is once again legal and speech will now, allegedly, be regulated by the government’s standard -- what would we have without you? According to parties in two cases granted cert in October, we’d at least have fewer terrorist attacks. While these cases ask the Court to determine social media’s level of responsibility for terroristic rhetoric and radicalization that happens on their platforms, they also give the Court a chance to tackle one former president’s occasional nemesis: 47 U.S.C. §230.

In modern times, automobiles have become more and more technologically advanced. In 2013, the idea of having a Bluetooth sound system was exciting and new. Now, automobiles have enhanced features including assisted breaking, adaptive cruise control, and advanced self- driving capabilities. Automobiles today are more technologically equipped and more intelligent when it comes to driving on the road. Drivers now have additional safeguards to help ensure that, in the event the driver is not paying attention, an accident will be prevented. With all of these added features, have automobiles become more trustworthy than the driver? How much reliance should a driver have on an automobile to perform in unexpected situations?

Recent action by the Biden administration has sought to reduce exports and limit the exchange of technology and experience from the United States to China related to Integrated Circuits and semiconductor chips. While most consumer semiconductor applications are concerned with personal computers and smartphones, semiconductor chips can play a key role in smart weapons, artificial intelligence, supercomputing, and AI for military intelligence. Because of this, an advantage in semiconductor chip technology can have national security implications. The economic impact of restricting the export of technology with consumer and commercial usage should be concerning. However, it is not surprising considering the rising tensions caused by economic competition, geopolitical positioning and cyberattacks attempting to steal trade secrets of U.S. companies.

In this post, I will take a look at an oft- discussed royalty payment method known as “user-centric” and compare it to the industry standard “pro-rata” formula. Both methods are complex and can’t easily be consolidated into a static sentence or two. Instead, by the end of this I hope you will understand the basic differences and why different parties might prefer one over the other.

AirTag helps users track their personal items, such as keys, wallets, purses, backpacks, luggage, and more. In February 2022, Apple released a statement regarding AirTag and unwanted tracking. AirTag was designed to help people find their personal belongings, but Apple’s statement addressed “reports of bad actors attempting to misuse AirTag for malicious or criminal purposes.”

eSports is on the rise and on the fast track to become one of the biggest industries in the world. eSports is — in the simplest terms — competitive, organized video gaming. Like traditional sports, eSports involves teams competing against one another. Additionally, different eSports players have different skillsets like traditional athletes or sports player, but in eSports, the skillset is the type of video game they play. This competitive gaming space has seen a growing industry rise with large gaming competitions that sell out arenas and stadiums. In 2020, the eSports industry raked in a revenue of about $1.1 billion and is projected to bring in $1.8 billion in 2022. However, with such a large industry, many different legal issues emerge.

Discrimination in hiring is an unfortunate historical fact that many employers have tried to distance themselves from since the passing of Title VII. Internal policies of discrimination aside, some employers have turned to a believed-to-be unbiased decision maker: big data. However, algorithms and AI might not be as infallible as could be expected from our technological advancements. Many factors might contribute to discrimination in data-driven decisions, such as errors in the underlying data, programmer coding choices, unrepresentative samples, or the selection of variables for exclusion or inclusion.

Genome editing is a powerful tool that can significantly benefit the medical field. CRISPR technology makes this tool more efficient, simple, and cheaper. The technology can be applied directly in embryos, which reduces the time required to modify target genes compared to other gene-targeting technologies. Eliminating genes that cause genetic diseases such as diabetes and cystic fibrosis is one of the uses CRISPR has the potential for. CRISPR-Cas9 is very programmable and allows for rapid prototyping of different therapeutic approaches. This leads to faster development cycles compared to other genome editing approaches.

You often hear the phrase, “if you’re not paying for the product, then you are the product,” but what does that really mean? Data and data privacy mean many things across different platforms, on social media your likes, searches, and interactions create an opportunity for targeted ads, so they are collected to be sold. However, other industries store your information as well; for example, a bank collects your social security number, phone number, email, and physical address, as well as a list of every transaction you make. What do the banks, or any other institutions, do with this information, and how do they protect it? 

When you hear the phrase ‘fraud in technology,’ what do you think of? Do you think of simple spam emails promising you wealth, or maybe even a social media ‘bot’ trying to lure you into a scam? Perhaps you picture a suave conman who pulls you in with a convincing story. Although, most people might not associate prominent CEOs of mainstream and promising technology companies with such common swindlers and cheats, recent high-profile examples have shown that seeing is not always believing.

If you ask me, YouTube is the most incredible technological creation ever. I say that as someone who both creates content on YouTube and someone who spends way more hours on it per week than I am proud to admit. What was once a simple platform for sharing videos in 2005 has expanded to a billion-dollar platform. YouTube reported more than a 30% revenue growth in just four years. It generated $28.8 billion in 2021, a 46% increase from 2020. 3 Think about that the next time you watch your next How-To or gaming video.

With time passing and technology advancing, the duties of lawyers are ever changing. Specifically, some tasks lawyers normally perform, or tasks that people would normally go to lawyers for, can now be done by the average person at a less substantial price. This being said, what should or could people go to lawyers for, and what are these less expensive self-help alternatives that are now available for people to use?

Elon Musk, the moody, enigmatic billionaire who seems to find himself at the center of a new controversy every week, is a well-known figure in the technology industry. Popular for bringing electronic cars into the mainstream with Tesla, Inc., Musk has made headlines for most of 2022 concerning his offer to acquire Twitter, Inc., one of the most popular social media companies at the moment.

As artificial intelligence becomes more prevalent in our society, from self-driving cars to smart assistants, an interesting issue has emerged for the legal community to debate. Should robots receive legal personhood, and if so, what are the implications of that decision? One way to examine this is through an example of a robot that already has citizenship. The British Council published an article specifically about this robot, Should Robots be Citizens, detailing her origin, and perhaps the future of citizenship for robots.

As Hurricane Ian swept through Florida last week, around 1.5 million people were without power at one point. More outages continue as the hurricane ravages through the Carolinas. Warming waters from climate change and low vertical wind shear create stronger storms. An unprecedented number of hurricanes rated Category 4 or above have hit the United States since 2017. Although not much can be done to ensure the electrical grid can withstand over 150 mph winds and almost 20 inches of rain, decarbonization is necessary to further prevent destruction and handle other extreme weather events such as heatwaves, droughts, and cold snaps.

As social media becomes increasingly prominent, tech companies are presented with rising pressures from legislatures throughout the nation. Various public officials argue that conservative speech is unjustly limited on major platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. On the contrary, tech companies assert that censorship is necessary for the public benefit as the presence of hate speech and misinformation is vast on their platforms. While First Amendment arguments from both sides create a murky outlook concerning online speech, the Supreme Court of the United States is presumed to hear a case which may define the bounds of online speech for the coming decades.

Within the core of President Roosevelt’s New Deal was a visionary plan to electrify rural America. The Rural Electrification Act (REA), passed on May 20, 1936, provided federal funding to build a network of electrical infrastructure to serve America’s growing agrarian heart. Instead of funding large utility companies to tackle this unique problem, the act allowed the farmers themselves to form co-ops that received the REA funding and handled construction. The co-ops and the REA were a huge success, with nearly 900 of the original co-ops still serving their customers to this day.

Employees attempting to unionize or organize via their company email account should tread carefully. Under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), employers cannot interfere with an employees’ right to self-organize or their ability to discuss matters related to their employment status. However, in 2019, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) under the Trump administration, ruled that private employees do not have a statutory right to discuss self- organization matters using their work email accounts unless there are no other viable options. Stated another way, an employer generally can restrict an employee’s use of their work email concerning union-related activities.

To the chagrin of backyard nuclear energy enthusiasts, there are instances where national security interests outweigh the interests of intellectual property rights. The United States Patent and Trademark Office grants patent rights to qualifying inventions, but the government limits the patenting and intellectual property rights of technologies sensitive to national security interests through secrecy orders. Secrecy order restrictions prevent patenting, related patent publications, and limit foreign filing.

Federal and State governments commonly set a variety of goals to address the volume of carbon emissions produced by gas-powered vehicles. One goal typically found in executive orders and legislative initiatives is to curb the sale of gas-powered vehicles and to promote the purchase of electric or zero-emission vehicles. Until late August 2022, many initiatives were just that, goals. Taking a key step forward to reduce auto emissions, California has codified an effective ban on the selling of gas-powered cars by 2035, and the seventeen states that typically adopt California’s auto-emissions standards are expected to follow suit.

On September 18, 2022, Rockstar Games fell victim to a massive leak of its highly anticipated video game, Grand Theft Auto 6, when a hacker uploaded dozens of videos of the game’s early production footage online. Rockstar Games subsequently confirmed the veracity of the leak in a press release stating that they had fallen victim to an unauthorized network intrusion. While Rockstar has said they do not anticipate long-term harm caused by the intrusion, the leak should serve as a wake-up call to companies of the risks associated with weak cybersecurity measures.

For some, nothing compares to getting the latest Air Jordan 1 Retro, or Travis Scott x Nike collaboration. The hype surrounding certain sneakers, brands, and styles has consumers waiting in line for hours, or creating multiple profiles on the SNKRS app (Nike’s shoe app) just to try and get their hands on the latest sneaker drop. The rise of social media has only fueled the hype around collectible sneakers as consumers are eager to post their success of “copping” the latest sought after shoe for the world to see. Before the creation of online platform apps, consumers would wait in line for hours or try to stay informed about where and when the latest sneaker drop was going to take place.

Emerging developments in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) field have the potential to solve many existing global healthcare challenges. In 2019, the World Medical Association acknowledged the broad potential of AI and suggested “augmented intelligence” as a narrow form of AI to emphasize its support. In addition, recent studies regarding the intersection of AI and the medical field have shown “promising results in dermatological diagnosis of skin cancer, in predicting the risk of emergency admissions, or in detecting breast cancer, outperforming radiology practitioners.” However, it is outwardly difficult to develop ethical and regulatory frameworks as healthcare AI progresses.

As a professional musician, you will find no love lost between myself and music streaming services. In my opinion, it is wonderful that more people can experience more music more conveniently. But as digital consumption becomes the overwhelming consumer preference, it is crucial that creatives get a fair deal.

Online privacy is an issue often discussed but rarely acted upon. A majority of Americans are concerned about the collection and use of their personal data. However, how many people actually go out of their way to protect their online presence?

While this new Intel manufacturing site is extremely beneficial for Ohio and the US semiconductor field, there is an environmental concern for New Albany and Jersey Township. Semiconductor chips permeate almost every facet of modern life, and the current shortage emphasizes the need for a new manufacturing site. However, for this new site to be built, the Ohio EPA needs to grant multiple permits including a wetlands permit and a draft air permit.

Internet users often click and accept their fair share of user agreements, privacy policies, and cookie policies. By agreeing to these often one sided policies, users are likely blindly agreeing to their data being stored, shared, or sold without a complete understanding of the process. What happens to consumer data, and who is responsible when it ends up in the hands of bad actors? The California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) attempts to answer these questions and help consumers understand their rights when it comes to their personal data.

The metaverse is the new wave of technology. This virtual landscape has expanded drastically in the past few years as it extends to all aspects of our lives, even the legal industry. The metaverse can be described as a mix of different virtual reality spaces, each with “its own access, avatars, interactions and currency.” Out of all industries that have tapped into this new real estate, one industry has been on the forefront: fashion.

Back in 2020, when advancements in technology and science weren’t the most pressing issue that faced the United States, the Biden-Harris Administration implemented an industrial strategy to revitalize domestic manufacturing. This strategy was projected to create good-paying American jobs, strengthen American supply chains, and accelerate future industries. Fast forward to August 2022, this plan is set to come into effect with President Biden signing into law the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Acts of 2022.

In a world changing daily, staying at the forefront of technology and innovation is key for most major industries. The legal field may not be seen as a leader in implementing new technology, but new technology, such as blockchain technology, can still be implemented in the legal field. Through the use of blockchain technology, the legal field can not only save time and money but also improve overall operational efficiency.

Legislators are combatting the climate crisis head-on through means that some may find to be unconventional: codified tax credits.

As we now enter the 21st Century, a new technological race has begun. Instead of being pushed to explore the infinite vacuum of space, engineers are now scrambling to conquer the new endless frontier of artificial intelligence. 

Artificial intelligence is causing disruptions and controversy in many career fields. One of the most publicized disruptions, at the moment, is in the entertainment industry. Unionized writers and actors have been striking throughout the summer as they attempt to negotiate better contracts with film and television studios.

Three independent designers have filed this complaint in the California federal court in which they claim Shein’s repeated copyright infringements are so aggressive they could amount to racketeering.This lawsuit alleges not only that Shein has engaged in large-scale intellectual property theft but it also criticizes how Shein uses technology, specifically AI, to contribute to these infringements.

Autonomous vehicles pose inherent road safety problems. While one of the purported advantages of self-driving cars is that their integration in society will lead to increased safety, the reality now is that there are a number of accidents associated with the technology. As a result, states have begun regulating AVs on their roads.

Our current energy storage technology is mostly based on chemical batteries that are expensive and are energy intensive to produce themselves. These chemical batteries are also composed of chemicals and heavy metals that if released into the environment, would cause many detrimental effects. However, several researchers think they have found a solution to this problem, and it is a very simple one. Their solution is using hot rocks.

While there are cybersecurity regulations protecting personal data collected by businesses, like the Gramm-Leach Bliley Act, personal data regulation and cybersecurity is an area in which the law must catch up. The advancement of technology is so quick that it will probably take years to answer all the big questions, but, for now, I will be following the process of protecting consumer data one case or regulation at a time.

As if what we see on our social media feeds daily isn’t bad enough, a data scientist whistleblower has exposed internal documents that demonstrate that Facebook chooses its financial interests over the general good of the public. In other words, if harmful content makes money, then the algorithm will promote it regardless of its effects on society.

TikTok’s popularity has changed the way that artists promote their songs, and the way new talent is scouted. TikTok, understanding its star making power, has also began creating its own ways to impact the music industry directly.

In 2021 the Biden-Harris Administration signed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal to ensure every American has access to reliable and affordable high-speed internet. Access to high-speed internet is an integral part of US and global society. The power of the internet seems endless, and contributes to improving a person’s health, educational, and employment outcomes and opportunities.

In May of 2023, plans were announced for the construction of a first of its kind Small Modular Reactor, known as an SMR, in southern Ohio. While many plans are in motion for these SMR’s, plenty of questions abound. Since they are so new, it is yet to be determined how viable they are either technologically or economically speaking. Many regulatory hurdles also remain, as only one SMR design has been approved by federal regulators.

This article explores the complicated topic of gene patentability within patent law. More recently, the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act of 2023 was introduced in Congress. This Bill seeks to broaden what can be patented, including genes. Despite the various ethical, legal, and economic concerns gene patenting raises, this article focuses on the legal and economic arguments, putting aside moral and ethical considerations.

33 states are suing Meta claiming that their tactics lure children onto its social media platforms. As a result, a bipartisan legislative effort is taking place to bring the Kids Online Safety Act to life. Until then, online child protection regulations will have to depend on big tech companies creating internal regulations by forgoing profits in order to keep children safe.

There is a long history of comic book creators being effectively, well, screwed. Therefore, comic book creators need protections. Comic book writers and artists rarely reap the vast monetary benefits of the stories and character designs they are creating that go on to gross billions of dollars.

In response to the growing concerns about exposure to PFAS, in March of 2023, the EPA proposed the first regulations setting maximum allowable standards for PFAS in drinking water. While the EPA means well in establishing maximum standards for some of the PFAS, water treatment technology is not yet advanced enough for most water treatment facilities to meet these standards.

Armed with a cache of 40 billion photographs scrubbed from the internet, Clearview created a program that can take a photo of an unidentified person at various locales, such as at an ATM robbery or a political protest, process it through the algorithm, and obtain output of other photos of the individual from other locations, such as Venmo accounts or a university’s website.

Outside word of mouth or the internet, it is difficult to make an informed decision without spending money for advice. To help make these decisions easier, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has proposed a rule to shift towards open banking. 

Routinely, women who dared enter comms to make in-game callouts were quickly berated, and nothing was off the table. The experience of female gamers is wrought with hatred despite making up almost half of the multi-player gamers

This blog post will serve an introduction to what educational technology is, the issues present with it and the impact it has on students, what is currently being done to combat it, and some ways in which readers can protect themselves from some of the hyper surveillance in these tools. 

The issue of online behavioral tracking of internet users while accessing websites and apps has seen a steady rise over the past two decades. Various online tracking technologies are employed to collect data on consumer activities posing significant concerns that internet users should acknowledge when navigating various websites.

If you’ve spent any time on the internet within the last year or two, then you’ve most likely encountered a deepfake. A lot of the time they can be pretty harmless and very obviously fake. The trouble with deepfakes comes when they are created and distributed more surreptitiously and with malicious intent.

Because of the difficulty posed by calling offside, a new process in European Football called “Video Assistant Refereeing”, or “VAR” is utilized. Acting similar to plays being reviewed in American football, VAR involves specific eligible plays to be reviewed after the fact by referees observing the game from a separate location via monitors. When a “clear and obvious error” is detected, they summon the on-field referee to the sideline to review the play themselves and makes the call of whether to give the foul.

Advances in assistive technology and accessible software present growing opportunities for people with disabilities as society shifts towards a digital world. To ensure equal access, Congress has enacted legislation in several areas such as education, employment, assistive technology, and electronic communication services.

Investigative Genetic Genealogy (IGG), the process of creating genetic profiles from crime scene samples and uploading them to genealogy websites to map out family trees has been used in about 200 criminal investigations in the past four years. Although this may seem innovative initially, the concern is now heightened as law enforcement turns to newborn blood samples, a move that threatens not only privacy but also the delicate balance of public trust in the newborn screening program.

Lawyers have begun utilizing AI as a collaborative assistant or co-pilot in several processes such as predictive analytics in litigation and contract analysis. However, such use relies on responsible AI practices to ensure that these AI tools operate transparently, free from bias, and under the guidance of legal professionals.

President Joe Biden’s October 30, 2023 “Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence” has an expansive scope and touches on many of the intricacies and impacts of the growing Artificial Intelligence (AI) industry. Critics claim the Executive Order should do more in terms of changing the law governing AI in an immediate sense, as the effects of AI’s integration into American society have already begun to take shape.

The ADA ensures that all aspects of public life are accessible, including jobs, schools, transportation, and other places that are open to the public. At the time of its enactment, the internet was not such a significant part of our lives. However, its core principles of accessibility and inclusion are more relevant than ever in today's digital world.

On September 26, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and seventeen states filed a combined lawsuit alleging that Amazon has committed anti-competitive actions that have inflated prices, harmed third party sellers, and damaged others’ ability to compete. The success of a lawsuit like this one could have widespread implications for Big Tech and e-commerce, though similar lawsuits have been mostly futile in the past.

Using the internet means opening not only yourself, but others in your home, up to potential attacks, such as online viruses and hackers. Everyday people try their best to protect their online security by using passwords to prevent access to their internet and by steering clear of online scams. Therefore, finding different ways to stay safe and protected on the internet means staying up to date on cybersecurity.

Video games have undergone an incredible evolution in the last 50 years and has not always produced positive reactions, and over the years, large debates have taken place regarding the potential negative impact of video games on young consumers. As the debate rages on, sandbox games like Roblox and Minecraft have found their way into grade school classrooms, but this isn’t necessarily a new phenomenon.

Amazon was hit by a lawsuit by the Federal Trade Commission, in one of Amazon’s largest lawsuits in its history. This blog post will summarize the 172-page complaint and educate consumers (or even sellers) about the key things they should know regarding this lawsuit. 

AI has already taken jobs from humans, and with time and technological advancement, AI will likely be capable of performing jobs traditionally dominated by humans including its potential to fulfill the role of a mediator. 

In today’s extreme political polarization, one issue is becoming more and more bipartisan: regulation of the U.S. technology industry. Tech companies are under increased scrutiny because they lack government oversight. As a result, this summer, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Sen. Lindsey Graham called for Congress to create a new regulatory body to oversee the tech industry.

There have been many changes in the social media world lately, such as Meta’s development and use of AI and Twitter’s rebrand to X, with many more to come. Some of these forthcoming changes could come from state legislatures and maybe even the Supreme Court and will have a major impact on social media platforms and First Amendment rights.

We’ve all seen them, whether you know their name or not. On our phones, our computers, and especially our game consoles. Loot-Boxes, a feature believed to have been implemented first in the Chinese free-to-play game ZT Online, are a fundamental part of modern games. With their prevalence and accessibility, particularly to minors, countries around the world are now considering how to handle Loot-Boxes. Their primary question, how are these Loot-Boxes any different than online gambling?

To date, tens-of-thousands of robot “waiters” have been deployed in restaurants worldwide. Some are waist-high, some are taller. Some have faces, some do not. Whatever their appearance, these restaurant robots can greet guests, lead guests to their dining tables, deliver drinks, and even buss tables. 

To leverage new luxury fashion resale trends and stay compliant with environmental and consumer protection laws, resale platforms must embrace sustainability as a guiding principle in their operations. As a result, it has come under increased scrutiny, and legal considerations play a pivotal role in shaping its future. 

Should lawyers really be using AI? Even though it could surely be a useful tool, it comes with just as many risks as it does rewards. Specifically with regard to the ethical implications of using AI in the legal field.

The traditional process of wetland determinations can be arbitrary and lead to unknown results since the definition of a water of the United States is still unsettled. However, landowners may be able to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a solution to this intensive and often arbitrary process by allowing property owners to make these determinations for themselves without relying on expensive experts or risking a determination from the Army Corps of Engineers.

A recent decision in the D.C. District Court determined that images made by Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be copywritten. This decision raises a policy issue regarding whether AI should be able to hold copyrights. The following discussion provides some context surrounding the issues and arguments for and against AI’s right to receive copyright for its generations.

The expanded use of artificial intelligence in healthcare has increased privacy concerns over compliance with HIPAA standards. AI has the chance to increase healthcare technology, but it also comes with its own risks.

Within the healthcare industry, it’s said that AI will propel the field as a whole to new heights in terms of diagnoses and the normative standard of care. However, this integration raises a plethora of questions with no tangible answers at the moment. Since there are currently no recorded cases regarding AI in medicine, the law is lagging behind the exponential innovation in medicine.

AI has become a major topic of conversation, largely from ChatGPT, which allows human-like conversations with anything from a chatbot. People are not only using AI to create contracts, but are now contracting with AI personalities themselves in the form of brand deals. This opinion will explore whether this kind of contract should be allowed by discussing what an AI influencer is, and what it means to form a contract.

A quick Google search of fast fashion will quickly produce imagery of expansive textile landfills, polluted water sources, and destroyed ecosystems forced to their knees by discarded pieces of clothing. The environmental impact of fast fashion cannot be understated. This problem needs a strong solution that AI may or may not be able to provide. This piece investigates AI's benevolent and malevolent contributions towards fashion sustainability, beginning with the benevolent contributions.

A combined suit between the Department of Justice and 38 U.S. States and Territories against Google alleges that Google's search engine marketing tool is being used to gain an unfair advantage over competitors, and more importantly that Google’s default search agreements amount to monopolistic activity.

In 1963, years before the development of the internet, Justice Earl Warren stated, “The fantastic advances in the field of electronic communication constitute a greater danger to the privacy of the individual.” His words ring ever louder as the twenty-first-century economy becomes more and more fueled by personal data.

Earlier this year, a one-minute snippet of a new single by Canadian artists Drake and The Weeknd. The two minute and 16 second song,2 “Heart on My Sleeve,” had fans buzzing. Two weeks after being uploaded, the song was removed from streaming services, TikTok, and YouTube by music publisher Universal Music Group (UMG). UMG’s senior vice president of communications said that streaming platforms have a “legal and ethical responsibility to prevent the use of their services in ways that harm artists.”

Athletes are constantly seeking to get stronger, faster, improve technique, and avoid injuries. However, finding a way to accomplish these goals may prove difficult, especially for high-level athletes, if their training regimens are not individually and personally tailored. Now, artificial intelligence (AI) may offer an easier—and faster—solution than a team of athletic trainers and sports medicine therapists could provide.

As we now enter the 21st Century, a new technological race has begun. Instead of being pushed to explore the infinite vacuum of space, engineers are now scrambling to conquer the new endless frontier of artificial intelligence. 

Artificial intelligence is causing disruptions and controversy in many career fields. One of the most publicized disruptions, at the moment, is in the entertainment industry. Unionized writers and actors have been striking throughout the summer as they attempt to negotiate better contracts with film and television studios.

Three independent designers have filed this complaint in the California federal court in which they claim Shein’s repeated copyright infringements are so aggressive they could amount to racketeering.This lawsuit alleges not only that Shein has engaged in large-scale intellectual property theft but it also criticizes how Shein uses technology, specifically AI, to contribute to these infringements.

As the world accelerates its transition towards sustainable energy sources, the growth of renewable energy infrastructure like solar panels, wind turbines, and batteries is rapidly increasing. However, this shift also brings forth new challenges related to the disposal and recycling of these components once their operational lifespans end. Developing and implementing comprehensive legal frameworks and regulations is crucial to mitigate the environmental impact and promote a circular and sustainable economy for this infrastructure.

So, what’s the problem with new innovations in sports technology? Outside of the occasional plunder (looking at you VAR), what could possibly be wrong with introducing more technological aids and utilizing analytical data to improve the game? The answer lies in privacy.

Cookies (not the tasty dessert) are digital morsels that we routinely accept without much thought. They quietly track our online activities, yet their true nature remains a mystery to many users.

The healthcare sector remains under siege from criminal cybercrime groups targeting providers with disruptive ransomware, data breaches, and other malicious hacking activities. These unrelenting attacks critically impair hospital operations, putting patient care and sensitive data privacy at grave risk.

The prevalence of the use of dating apps does not prevent, however, the dangers associated with meeting a stranger from the internet in person. People, especially women, have come up with creative ways to keep themselves safe while navigating the dating scene. This blog will quicky highlight some of the dangers of online dating, the creation of the Facebook community Are We Dating The Same Guy, and the subsequent lawsuit.

The quality of sewing and other manufacturing machines chosen in manufacturing determines, by a large margin, the quality of your garments. Loose threads, seams coming apart, or poorly fitted garments are all symptoms of poor-quality sewing machines. This is not only frustrating as a consumer who would like to enjoy everyday life without unraveling. It can also be frustrating to the brand associated with the poor quality. Sewing machines can teach us much about our clothing and how we can participate in more sustainable fashion.

The ambitious Grain Belt Express project is a $2.5 billion endeavor, spearheaded by a consortium of utilities and energy companies including Invenergy Transmission, Renewable Transmission Organization, and Horizon Transmission, has garnered significant attention due to its potential impact on the energy landscape and the legal challenges it faces.

Fourteen states currently require that voters have an excuse in order to receive an absentee ballot. Additionally, there are states, such as Ohio, that require a written, rather than online, application be filled out in order to receive an absentee ballot. This blog explores the possibility of online voting and its likelihood of implementation. 

A class-action lawsuit has just been filed against one of the major dating app owners, Match Group Inc. The complaint alleges that Tinder and Hinge, two of the most popular dating platforms, employ “psychologically manipulative features” to ensure users become addicted to those apps and remain on them as paying subscribers. Ironically, the complaint was filed on Valentine’s Day.

Current research reveals possible links between human exposures to certain PFAS and adverse health outcomes including altered metabolism and body weight regulation, risk of childhood obesity, increased risk of some cancers, and reduced ability of the immune system to fight infections. Because of the adverse health outcomes associated with PFAS, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has labeled PFAS as an emerging contaminant on the national landscape.

The modern technology that enables the digital age and our transition to renewable energy comes at a steep environmental cost from the mining of rare earth elements (REEs), which make these innovations possible.

While company spokesmen boast of the interconnectivity and advancement of society as a result of their platforms, there are many concerns which bubble up under the surface. I plan to discuss how social media has fueled criminal and oftentimes violent conduct, in something sometimes referred to as “performance crime".

It would appear that augmented reality is the next big thing in technological advancements, but, other than the hefty price tag, what is the cost to consumers or society as a whole should this technology become more accessible?

Biometric facial recognition technology has improved over the years and can now identify individuals faster than it could in the past. While this advancement is exciting for everyday uses, like unlocking your phone, it is also the source of a few concerns including mistaken identity, inaccuracy, bias, and security risks.

The rise in social media use has also correlated with an increase of the spread of incorrect or misleading information – misinformation. As a result, states like Texas and Florida have implemented laws regulating social media sites’ ability to monitor content on their platforms. Given the First Amendment challenges these laws pose, the Supreme Court's decision regarding their legality is expected this summer. 

In an era where social media platforms such as TikTok shape cultural conversations and redefine professional landscapes, it should come as no surprise that the legal field is also being redefined by social media. This blog will briefly discuss lawyers on TikTok, the ethics of lawyers using social media, and then briefly offer some recommendations for lawyers to safely utilize social media.

Analysis of the past five years of USPTO data reveals a clear pattern in the frequency of patent rejections by section. Patent applicants must ensure that their inventions meet the criteria of being on patent-eligible subject matter, novel, and non-obvious to avoid rejection from the USPTO. If not, the patent application will not be deemed “Veeerrry Nicee!”.

In this blog post, I will walk you through the sign-stealing scandal that rocked the Michigan Football program. Sign-stealing deals with college football play calling which is done predominantly by team staffers on the sidelines and provides an advantage by decoding the other team’s signals. What does this have to do with technology? The answer might be tied in a particularly fascinating twist of this story to a pair of Ray-Ban Meta Smart glasses.

Streaming platforms despite its significant entertainment value, is a ripe platform for cybersecurity attacks. Many streaming platforms require account creation in order to view live content and require payment information to send financial support to streamers. As a result, these platforms store names, email addresses and payment information of millions of subscribers.

Record labels are starting to become fed up with the conditions of TikTok’s current music use and are demanding some changes. For example, UMG claims there are three critical issues that they can’t find common ground with TikTok on: appropriate compensation for UMG’s artists and songwriters, protection of human artists from the harmful effects of AI, and online safety for TikTok’s users.

As a follow up to my two-part blog series, late in the day on February 29th, co-founder of OpenAI Elon Musk filed a complaint against OpenAI and his fellow cofounders CEO Sam Altman and President Greg Brockman in California Superior Court.

The high demand for meal-kit services, like Hello Fresh and Blue Apron, to fulfill weekly deliveries can contribute to a variety of regulatory issues for food tech companies as explored in this blog. 

In the realm of Intellectual Property, trademarks serve as indispensable tools for brand identification and differentiation. The fashion industry has long recognized the power of color as a distinctive branding element. This blog, based on the article "Color as a Calling Card", dives into the intricate world of color trademarks, offering valuable insights for law practitioners and businesses navigating this evolving landscape.

As autonomous vehicle technology advances and automakers race to bring self-driving cars into the mainstream, a complex new landscape of questions emerge regarding legal liability. The arrival of driverless cars is fundamentally shifting who or what is responsible when accidents occur. 

Parent content creators or “vloggers” have gained significant online followings through content based on their children. However, this has increasingly created opportunities for exploitation. Consequently, there is a need for robust measures to protect the privacy and well-being of minors online.

For now, one’s innermost thoughts are considered to be private, inaccessible, and as such, they remain unregulated. Emerging neurotechnology is looking to change that by utilizing brain scans and brain wave analysis for all kinds of products. 

OpenAI, in its non-profit form, found that it could not compete with tech giants like Meta and Google. As a result, OpenAI’s leadership transformed the company into a capped “for-profit” institution in 2019. Shortly thereafter, OpenAI partnered with Microsoft, receiving $1 billion and granting Microsoft the right to commercialize OpenAI’s solutions.

Cybersecurity and cybercrime pose concerns for individuals and businesses alike. Consequently, many choose to purchase cyber insurance to protect against cyber risks. However, insureds may find themselves helpless concerning certain cyber losses if they do not thoroughly familiarize themselves with their cyber insurance policies.

A federal judge has ruled that Ohio’s new social media law may violate the First Amendment rights of minors and tech companies. This preliminary injunction, issued by U.S. District Court Judge Algenon Marbley, will prevent Ohio officials from enforcing the statute.

Quantum computers have the potential to surpass traditional computers in a variety of areas, including the speed at which problems will be solved, enhanced simulations, and machine learning. Practically, this translates to developments in cryptography and cybersecurity, drug discovery, and optimization of financial modeling and portfolios.

With the looming threat of global warming caused in part by carbon dioxide emissions, the world has been looking for a solution. However, there is a potential new technology that has been gaining a lot of momentum. It is known as carbon capture.

OpenAI’s extreme transformation form a non-profit entity to a for-profit company, and the recent removal and reinstatement of Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman, demonstrate the impracticality of self-regulation and need for a federal system of regulation in the aggressively innovative and fiercely competitive artificial intelligence (AI) industry.

In this article I will share a bit more about privacy law regarding the use of publicly available location data to track commercial and private flights and compare the availability of this kind of data to countries outside the United States, and elaborate on the flight tracking social media user, Jack Sweeney. 

For decades people have been attempting to defeat death by participating in cryogenic preservation. Cryonics is the practice of deep freezing the bodies of people who have recently died with the hopes that scientific advancements will allow them to be revived in the future. This blog will divulge more into the practice of cryonic preservation, who is participating in this practice, and briefly discuss the impact that cryonics is beginning to have on trusts and estates law.

In the realm of Intellectual Property, the path to securing a patent is often filled with challenges and complexities. This article navigates through the different phases of patent applications from the initial submission to the final decision by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

The months of October and November were a tumultuous time in college football. Beginning with a staff member of the Michigan Wolverines Football Team resigning, before building all the way to a 3-game suspension for the team’s head coach Jim Harbaugh. Over the course of two blogs, I plan on offering the reader a guiding hand through these bumpy and heated questions: What is sign-stealing? Why is it that Michigan fans purport the practice to be rampant? Is this some sort of witch hunt? 

Circa 2019, it was hard to imagine a reality where additional services could rival Netflix’s standard $12.99 a month cost and vast video library. Now, given the numerous streaming giants, many could call the current state of streaming services an oligopoly, at least from an antitrust perspective.

In October 2023, 23andMe experienced a significant cybersecurity breach, impacting nearly seven million individuals who had utilized their genetic testing platform. Despite initial speculation that the breach might be linked to vulnerabilities in 23andMe's cyber infrastructure, investigations revealed that the intrusion was external.

In the rapidly evolving landscape of digital commerce, the integration of augmented reality (AR) technology has revolutionized the way consumers interact with products, particularly in the cosmetics industry. The recent lawsuit against Estée Lauder, alleging violations of the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) due to its use of virtual try-on tools, serves as a case study in navigating the legal intricacies surrounding biometric data usage in emerging technologies.

The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), enacted in 2008, protects what makes us who we are, our DNA. However, in the 16 years since GINA’s enactment, science and technology have made significant advancements in the field of genetics.

Once COVID-19 reached American shores, many aspects of our daily lives began to change. Concerts and events I planned were promptly and appropriately canceled. That is, until entertainment companies introduced virtual concert experiences. With a good internet connection, a Zoom account to video chat with friends, and maybe twenty bucks for the ticket, you too could see your favorite artist(s) virtually! No traffic, no hotel rooms, no crowds, no large expenses. Just music and fun.

This blog discusses what cryptocurrency is and the growing concern for regulation of cryptocurrency in the future. Additionally, the current system for regulation of securities and ways in which this system’s focuses may transfer to cryptocurrency is also discussed.

In today’s world, past mistakes are only a click away. Social media has revolutionized our ability to connect with the world, streamlining marketing, networking, and enabling quick access to vast quantities of information. Although many see this as a positive, there may be some long-term drawbacks. Most notably, social media users are losing something through their engagement that is often overlooked—their ability to control what information is carried forward into the future.

In late 2023, The New York Times filed suit against OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement. New York Times is alleging that OpenAI and Microsoft are stealing its copyrighted content to train their large language models and profiting from it. Depending on who you ask, the stakes of the lawsuit are very high, with the potential to change the future of the news business, copyright law, innovation, and of OpenAI and other generative AI companies. 

The Federal Trade Commission recently proposed substantial changes to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (“COPPA”). COPPA restricts internet tracking of children by several sources such as social media, video games, and digital advertisers. While Congress has attempted to introduce more comprehensive children data safety legislation, COPPA is the main federal law that protects children’s online data. 

In the evolving landscape of medical science and biotechnology, the question of whether genetic patents are morally justified presents a complex ethical issue. The story of Henrietta Lacks and the use of her cells, known as HeLa cells, serves as a pivotal case study in understanding this issue. 

This blog will briefly explore why artists even choose to utilize music streaming services, issues with artist compensation, and how music artists and music streaming services have tried to solve this problem.

In an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, there was a call for new “renewable” energy sources to be developed that in the process of producing energy did not have greenhouse gases as a byproduct. One of these new power sources was solar energy.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) published a Policy Statement on biometric information in May 2023. It addressed new risks that accompany the advancement of biometric information technology, along with important considerations for assessing its use in surveillance under Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act. These guidelines are necessary, since at least one entity, Rite Aid, has been found to violate these considerations through their use of facial recognition technology. This blog will briefly explain Section 5 and the FTC’s Policy Statement and discuss how Rite Aid exemplified improper use of facial recognition technology in surveillance under the Policy Statement considerations and Section 5. Further, this blog post will give a broad overview of some foremost concerns in the use of biometric information, specifically facial recognition technology, in surveillance.

As technology advances alongside societies understanding of the negative effects detention has on juveniles, activists and law enforcement have looked to how technology can assist in keeping juveniles in the community and out of jails. As a result, the use of electronic monitoring has increased. But just because electronic monitoring is a better alternative to a bad option does not mean that it, and any technological improvements to it, can be uncritically seen as a benefit to society.

As AI has become ever present in our daily lives, its role in the 2024 election has sparked an ongoing debate along with changes to legislation. Election Day looms large, and concerns of AI-generated content, commonly known as deepfakes are increasing. Deepfakes are AI-generated images, audio, or video depicting a candidate saying or doing things they never did. With the goal of damaging that candidate’s reputation and deceiving voters. Both the Republican and Democratic parties have expressed concerns over deepfakes being used in election communications. As they have the potential to shake voter confidence and undermine election integrity. Perhaps what is most concerning is that there is no comprehensive federal legislation to address this issue, leaving states to deal with the consequences.

Whether a person needs to pay their bills on an online portal, turn in homework online, or simply stream a new television show, access to reliable, high-speed internet has become a necessity. Unfortunately, there is a growing gap between those who have the access and knowledge to safely and effectively use the internet and those who do not. This gap is often referred to as the “digital divide.”

On the battlefields of Libya, soldiers were targeted not by human adversaries but likely, by autonomous drones—heralding a new era of warfare. During the Second Libyan Civil War, “logistics convoys and retreating [Haftar Affiliated Forces] were subsequently hunted down and remotely engaged by unmanned combat aerial vehicles or the lethal autonomous weapons systems” (AWS). These systems “were programmed to attack targets without requiring data connectivity between the operator and the munition … a true ‘fire, forget and find’ capability.” As these systems evolve, it is important to examine the current legal framework regulating armed conflict. While AWS are difficult to define, this blog will refer to the House of Lords Artificial Intelligence in Weapon Systems Committee definition: “weapon systems which can select, detect, and engage targets with little to no human intervention, or which possess some degree of autonomy in one or more respects.”

Technology has forever changed how we live our lives. The capabilities of smartphones have allowed us to share more than ever. From tweeting an idea or taking silly photos, to video-chatting with co-workers or locating your friends in real time, our daily lives are constantly being shared and updated digitally. But what happens when we have no idea what we are sharing or with who we are sharing it?

As of 2022, energy from fossil fuels made up 79% of the energy consumed in the United States. Nuclear energy was used for 8% of America’s energy, and renewable sources produced 13.1%. Fossil fuel energy and nuclear energy have been linked to numerous environmental issues such as air pollution, global climate change, and radioactive waste. Renewable sources of energy include wind energy, hydroelectric energy, geothermal energy, biomass energy, and solar energy. This blog will focus on the development of wind energy in America, as well as how the use of wind energy is regulated.

A “Content Creator” is someone who creates entertaining or educational digital content that is mostly expressed and consumed through social media. While I would not call myself a Content Creator, I would say that I am a very active social media user over various platforms. I am embarrassed to admit that I have never taken the time to read a social media company’s data privacy policy. I felt the pros of using the platform would outweigh the possible privacy concerns. However, my opinion on this topic has been swayed after the recent privacy data policy changes made by various social media platforms concerning their use of my data. In this day and age where content ownership seems like a given, several social media companies have distorted that idea.

Online dispute resolution (ODR) is a rapid-growing topic within the field dispute resolution. Both public dispute resolution and private dispute resolution engage ODR, namely through alternative dispute resolution (ADR). While ADR generally implies negotiation, mediation, or arbitration, ODR may involve any of these techniques, or a combination of them in an online setting. As ODR begins to advance, so too does the potential use of artificial intelligence (AI). Some scholars suggest that AI will bridge the gap between public and private dispute resolution as a new form of “AI-DR.” This blog post will provide an overview of new uses of AI-DR in settings that largely take on a mediation-like role.

In May 2024, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center conducted a nationwide survey that polled, via web and telephone, 1,006 participants about the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in health care. Out of those polled, 75% believed “using AI to minimize human errors is important”. Further, 71% of participants voiced a desire for AI to reduce wait times, 70% were comfortable with AI notetaking during their appointments, and 66% believed “AI should improve work-life balance for health care providers”. Microsoft Dragon Ambient eXperience (DAX) Copilot, the application the Wexner Medical Center is piloting, creates clinical notes within each patient’s electronic medical record by securely recording audio of patient interactions. With this technology, providers can rely on the application’s recordkeeping during patient visits, so patients can receive more focused care.

The First Amendment is a precious and fiercely protected right from the US Constitution. This amendment states that “Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech[.]” There is a debate about the role of free speech and the government’s ability to combat misinformation on social media. To monitor what happens on these websites, the government must use the social media companies as a middleman. Some people believe that the government should not be barred from doing so, and that requiring social media companies to counter false information does not violate the First Amendment. Others see this as the government utilizing social media companies as puppets to censor free speech in violation of the First Amendment. Other countries are seeing governmental efforts to stop the spread of misinformation on social media. This begs the question of whether something like that would be possible in the United States.

Mediation is a process where a neutral third-party mediator helps disputants improve their understanding of their situation and one another, and then explore mutually acceptable solutions. Artificial intelligence (AI) can assist in mediation by facilitating communication between parties, efficiently processing vast volumes of data in a case, and identifying the pertinent information useful for the case. AI-based mediation systems can rapidly and efficiently analyze large volumes of data, learn from its patterns, and enhance the mediation process by providing insights into potential settlement options and facilitating effective communication between parties.

New artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities seem to emerge daily, and these capabilities can affect the way we live. But now, there is growing concern about how AI can impact the deceased, and the entertainment industry. Many performers fear they will lose jobs if studios can freely reanimate and use dead actors or generate new synthetic actors cheaply. So, what is being done to protect performer’s livelihoods from being consumed by the ever-growing advancements of generative AI?

Simply put, Myanmar has had a difficult decade. The combination of COVID-19, a military coup, and an ethno-religious genocide has led to violence and the destabilization of Myanmar’s economy. In 2021 the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), the military’s political proxy, regained power via coup. Since then, technology has been utilized to surveil and suppress the Burmese population. The military has implemented technology to monitor the internet activity of Burmese citizens and to censor the availability of information. Burmese citizens have attempted to combat the military’s oppressive restrictions and surveillance by accessing private virtual networks (VPNs) that cloak users’ online activity.

As it becomes apparent that autonomous weapons systems (AWS) are going to play a role in future conflicts, it is important to develop a legal framework that can assign accountability when these weapon systems break international law. Who is to blame, for instance, when an AWS is unable to distinguish between a civilian truck and a military vehicle and unlawfully attacks the civilian? Who should be held accountable for this infraction of the laws of armed conflict? Should the soldier who initially launched the weapon be held accountable? Or what about the officer who ordered the strike, or even the programmer who coded the targeting system in the AWS? This blog will examine this question and attempt to ascertain how accountability should apply when AWS break the law.

Imagine this: you invent a process for making an artificial sweetener. You keep the process a secret but start selling the sweetener. After more than a year has passed, you decide to seek a patent covering your then-secret process. A wise patent attorney tells you that the purpose of granting patents is to promote the progress of science. One way to achieve this goal is by teaching the public about your invention through a patent disclosure, thereby “stimulat[ing] ideas and the eventual development of further significant advances.” Since nobody could reverse engineer your sweetener to learn how you made it, disclosing your secret process amounts to teaching new knowledge to the public. Thus, you believe your sweet, new process is worthy of patent protection. In many countries, you would be correct, but not in the United States.

On July 29, 2024, the American Bar Association (ABA) released guidance for the use of generative artificial intelligence (GAI) in legal practice through Formal Opinion 512. This opinion emphasized the potential benefits of this technology for practicing attorneys, while also outlining important ethical considerations for mitigating risk. Since this was released, many states have published their own guidance that mirrors the ABA. The ABA guidelines set out six main categories of obligations, rooted in the Model Rules of Professional Conduct: competence, confidentiality, communication, candor toward the tribunal, supervisory responsibilities, and fees. In this blog post, I wish to address how these obligations interact with emerging GAI and client representation, and how the trends of forthcoming state guidelines are similar and different.

After a months-long feud between Elon Musk and the Brazilian courts, X (owned by Musk and formerly known as Twitter) will be allowed back online in Brazil…after paying one more fine. As ordered by the Brazilian Supreme Court, X must pay a fine of 10 million reais, which is approximately $1.9 million dollars. This is in addition to the 18.3 million reais, which is approximately $3.4 million dollars, that X must pay in fines that were previously ordered by the Brazilian Supreme Court.

As courts recuperate from the chaos of the Covid-19 pandemic, they are turning to innovative solutions to keep pace with modern disputes. One of the most transformative changes is the surge of Online Dispute Resolution (ODR), a digital forum that complements and sometimes replaces traditional courtroom proceedings. ODR uses web-based platforms and digital tools the public can use to resolve conflicts more efficiently. Emerging from similar foundations as alternative dispute resolution (ADR), ODR offers tools that mirror many ADR mechanisms, such as negotiation, mediation, and arbitration. With its potential to streamline processes and expand access to justice, ODR is reshaping how courts handle disputes. This blog post explores the different forms of ODR and examines how courts can integrate these technologies into their systems.

In the summer of 2016, attorneys in Philadelphia learned that numerous local police officers had posted Facebook content appearing to endorse racism and bigotry. As a result, they launched The Plain View Project. The project documents the systemic nature of the conduct across several departments, compiling posts, comments and other public activity that could undermine community trust in police. The systemic and overwhelming nature of these posts produces distrust in the community when it comes to the police. David Kennedy, a criminology professor at John Jay College, called the results of The Plain View Project “dire” in an InjusticeWatch article and states that the posts “confirms the worst suspicions on the part of communities about the police.”

It is well known that artificial intelligence (AI) has taken the world by storm in recent years. There are claims that people have obtained patents for inventions generated by AI since the 1980s, but no one ever disclosed AI’s role. As patents are aimed at protecting the rights of human inventors, inventions in which AI played a role are a more recent phenomenon. This blog will address how the legal field has adapted to the use of AI in the invention process.

On October 1, 2024, thousands of dockworkers with the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) union went on strike—threatening to disrupt trade and the economy if their demands were not met. The strike was called off two days later when a tentative agreement on wages was reached with the U.S. Maritime Alliance. The parties agreed upon a 62 percent wage increase over six years and an extension of the existing contract until January 15, 2025. Both parties will return to negotiate issues remaining on the table, specifically the ILA union’s demand of “absolute airtight language that there will be no automation or semi-automation” in the union’s next contract. Automation, the substitution of human services with mechanization, is not a new concern amongst workers. Despite longstanding concerns, it remains unknown which forms of automation the ILA union considers as job-killer technologies. Nonetheless, this most recent strike implicating automation issues highlights areas of concern in labor and employment law.

On October 7, 2024, the Supreme Court of the United States announced that it would not hear an appeal from Elon Musk’s social media platform X (formerly Twitter), relating to an investigation into former President Donald Trump. Adding yet another chapter to Trump’s historic ongoing legal battles. This blog will give an analysis of the legal, political and technological implications of this decision. Particularly the role of tech companies in criminal investigations.

The Federal Circuit recently held that where an inventor sells a product made by a secret process, the inventor is barred from patenting that secret process more than a year after their first product sale. While this holding is consistent with jurisprudence before patent law reforms under the America Invents Act (AIA), statutory changes introduced by the AIA suggest the on-sale bar should no longer apply to secret processes.

The twenty-first century has increasingly seen states have engaged in “gray zone” or “hybrid” warfare. Gray zone warfare can be defined as “competitive interactions among and within state and non-state actors that fall between the traditional war and peace duality.” Gray zone warfare renders “the line between war and peace” obsolete, making it hard to identify “the war threshold.” Hybrid warfare has no clear definition, but is often “characterized by ambiguity about the nature of the conflict [and] opacity of the parties involved.” One of the key tools in hybrid warfare is the use of cyberattacks.

On August 23, 2024, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and the Attorney Generals of North Carolina, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Minnesota, Oregon, Tennessee, and Washington filed an antitrust lawsuit against the real estate company RealPage, Inc. RealPage has been accused of unlawfully scheming to decrease competition among landlords for apartment pricing and create a commercial revenue management software monopoly. The complaint alleges that RealPage’s algorithmic pricing software was used to allow the landlords to collude together to set rents above market rate which reduced competition on apartment leasing terms and harmed renters. In addition, the suit also alleges that the company monopolized the market for commercial revenue management software.

Hydropower is a valuable energy source in the United States, and hydropower projects can provide a clean and renewable fuel source, backup power during electricity outages, flood control, irrigation, and water supply. The removal of the Lower Klamath Hydroelectric Project was one of the largest dam removal projects. This project was made up of four hydroelectric dams built between 1922 and 1964 as means of flood control and generation of hydroelectric power.

States have relied on information operations as a way to advance their interests in lieu of more direct means such as armed conflict or economic pressure. An information operation is “the deployment of digital resources for cognitive purposes to change or reinforce attitudes or behaviors of the targeted audience in ways that align with the authors’ interests.” Information operations can use deceptive or open means to influence the targeted audience to adopt the authors’ goals These information operations breach the international legal principles of non-intervention and sovereignty, and thus are illegal in nature. One example includes Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, dating back to 2014. The Russians extensively used information operations against Ukraine as a way to divide and confuse Ukrainians, and their western partners. This blog will examine how information operations can violate the international legal principles of non-intervention and sovereignty.

Immigration is a leading political topic in the United States. How’s that for an uncontroversial statement? More controversial, however, is the way in which immigration authorities often digitally track migrants awaiting a decision on their asylum claim. Take for example Elizabeth, a Central American woman who fled to the United States after her parents were killed by gangs. After being released from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Elizabeth was subjected to a number of digital tracking methods. She was forced to wear an ankle monitor (as well as making sure it was always charged) and had to download an app on her phone that allowed ICE to track her. If the ankle monitor stopped working or if her phone died, Elizabeth would be locked up again.

Now that November 5th has come and gone, and we are witnessing the aftermath of one of the most historic elections in U.S. history. This is the perfect time to reflect on a groundbreaking development: the new legal right to bet on election outcomes. On September 12, 2024, U.S. District Court Judge Jia Cobb permitted New York startup Kalshi to offer bets on the outcome of the November 2024 Congressional elections. The offered bets were specific to which party wins control of the Senate and the House. Shortly after the decision, Kalshi’s markets went live, accepting an unknown number of bets, known as “contracts.”

Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company and the world’s fourth largest company with a market capitalization exceeding $2 trillion, is facing increasing scrutiny from competitors and antitrust regulators. It commands over 90% of the U.S. search engine market, dwarfing competitors like Bing and Yahoo, which hold only about 3% each. By the second quarter of 2024, revenue from “Google Search & Other” reached $48.5 billion- which represents 57% of Alphabet's total revenue.

Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) works by retrieving documents and information from massive datasets, and using this information, it will generate a response to user queries. This is used with a Large Language Model (LLM) and can be helpful for improving the quality of LLMs and their predictions or outputs. This technology could provide incredible benefits to attorneys, improving efficiency and accuracy. As with all technology, however, it is important to be cognizant of the risks.

The lobbying group NetChoice has utilized a First Amendment argument to challenge various state laws across the country that seek to regulate social media companies. NetChoice, which has received backing from large companies such as Meta and Google, has argued that the state regulations it is challenging amount to censorship and that they restrict free speech. Among scholars, there is now a debate over whether NetChoice has stretched the definition of the First Amendment too far. The scholars that oppose the lobbying group argue that the group’s argument benefits large technology companies and that NetChoice’s argument goes against the original intent of the First Amendment.

Digitization of records has improved general document management in the legal field in many ways. It has reduced the amount of physical storage required for firms with large volumes of documents. Digitized records also allow for documents to be organized differently and in a more accessible way, improving the efficiency of the legal field generally. E-filing has also improved efficiency, as the need for physical paperwork and in-person document submission has been reduced. “The transition from paper-based to digital records enhances efficiency, accessibility, and overall workflow.”

Surveillance pricing changes fundamental fairness in creating a world where consumers are left in the dark on how much they will have to pay for goods compared to their counterparts. Surveillance pricing defies normal supply and demand and instead uses consumer algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI) to set personalized prices based on a customer’s ability or willingness to pay. Surveillance pricing can use data factors such as an individual consumer’s location, personal demographics, virtual history, and credit history to then categorize the consumer’s data to a set of different targeted prices for products and services.

Uber has launched a nationwide social media campaign against state laws requiring rideshare drivers to have commercial auto insurance. On Uber’s website, they specifically list California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, and Texas as some of the states with the highest insurance costs for ridesharing. Uber has especially targeted their lobbying efforts towards California, whose insurance mandates, “have resulted in rideshare coverage costs to be approximately 30 times higher than personal vehicles and 10 times higher than taxis.”

Imagine this: you start a company that designs, patents, and sells tweezers in the United States, but all manufacturing happens overseas. When foreign knock-offs start flooding the market, you weigh your options to stop this infringing activity. Suing for patent infringement in district court could secure damages against an infringing importer, but this relief could take years. On the other hand, the International Trade Commission (ITC) offers a much faster route to stem the influx of infringing knock-offs. But there is a catch: a patent holder seeking an importation exclusion order from the ITC must show they meet the “domestic industry” statutory requirement.

Flock cameras are car tracking cameras from Flock Safety, a company formed in 2017. The company is one of the fastest-growing Atlanta-based companies and has infiltrated thousands of cities across the United States, including Columbus suburbs like Powell, Grandview Heights, Hilliard, Worthington and Dublin. The cameras have even infiltrated college campuses, with The Ohio State University installing more than 60 Flock cameras on and near campus.

It’s safe to say that social media has become a big part of our everyday lives. It’s a space where we connect with friends and family, stay updated with the latest news, and keep up with trends in culture. It’s also where we can learn new things, discover hobbies, or just unwind with a good laugh. But beyond the social interaction, social media has also become a constant stream of advertisements, whether from brands promoting their own products, celebrities sharing their latest endorsements, or the influencers we follow for lifestyle inspiration.

On President Trump’s first day in office, he signed Executive Order 14172, titled “Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness.” Among the order’s demands was for the Secretary of the Interior to take all “appropriate actions to rename as the ‘Gulf of America’ the U.S. Continental Shelf area” and the seaward boundary of Mexico and Cuba, formerly known as the “Gulf of Mexico.” The U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN), the U.S. agency in charge of making official maps, is also tasked with carrying out this act. Other countries will likely not reciprocate the renaming, with Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum claiming that for the rest of the world, it is still the Gulf of Mexico. But can President Trump unilaterally rename a shared location?

The twenty-first century has been defined by rapid advancements in technology, particularly communications technologies that have dramatically changed the world. Technological advancements have sparked a revolution in how people communicate, how businesses operate, and how states conduct diplomacy. This blog will focus on the role that private technology and communications corporations, such as SpaceX, play in international competition between states.

Weather technology has come a long way in America. What is now the National Weather Service was established by President Ulysses S. Grant in 1870. By signing a joint resolution of Congress, he authorized the Secretary of War to establish the National Weather Service and required them to provide meteorological observations taken at military stations and notice of approaching storms.

House Bill 315 (HB 315), signed by Governor Mike DeWine, allows police to charge money for the “estimated cost” of processing a video when body cam footage is requested. Beginning this month, both state and local law enforcement agencies can charge up to $750 for the preparation of their video records for inspection or production. The money is supposed to cover the costs of things such as blurring, redacting, producing the video records, and any other staff time that goes into compliance with a request. In this blog, I will address the background of HB 3115, along with some of the purported state interests for it. Then, I want to explain the consequences of HB 315 on chilling access to information, along with some of the other significant arguments against it.

Should artwork created by artificial intelligence get intellectual property protection? A federal appeals court recently said no, and did so unanimously. With the rapid increase in original work produced by AI, some are wondering whether this decision should be reconsidered. Is the U.S. Copyright Office’s human authorship requirement outdated, or even unconstitutional? One computer scientist certainly thinks so. This blog will discuss a recent court decision denying a copyright for a painting that was created using generative AI.

There are all sorts of negative headlines floating around the internet at all times. Not many of them are fun to read. There are enough articles about tragedy and suffering, so here’s an article about whales.

As cybercrime, which is “any illegal activity carried out using computers or the internet,” becomes more prevalent in day-to-day life states, individuals, and private businesses are having to adapt to a host of new threats. The nature of cybercrime and the internet allows criminals based anywhere in the world to steal money or damage infrastructure in the United States or elsewhere. Domestic criminal justice systems have shown to be the most effective at preventing and prosecuting cybercriminals, this is especially true when these domestic systems are working together within a larger international framework. The principal international law of due diligence, and treaties such as the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime, encourage states to use domestic systems to prevent international cybercrime.

After cryptocurrency companies like Coinbase and Ripple contributed over $119 million to the 2024 elections, comprising nearly half of all corporate donations, President Donald Trump has prioritized pro-crypto regulation. Trump signed an executive order emphasizing the importance of digital assets to U.S. innovation and economic development by declaring his administration’s support for “the responsible growth and use of digital assets, blockchain technology, and related technologies across all sectors of the economy”. Key policy actions include safeguarding the right of individuals and private entities to use open public blockchain networks for lawful purposes, promoting the sovereignty of the U.S. dollar through dollar-backed stable coins, protecting fair access to banking services, providing regulatory clarity for digital assets, and protecting Americans from the risks posed by Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs).

Technology plays an important role in monitoring compliance, and some specific technologies have been employed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) specifically to ensure compliance with environmental statutes such as the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, and the Safe Drinking Water Act. This blog will explore how a statute of this kind is constructed and how some of these technological systems play an important role in monitoring compliance.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (S.E.C.) sued Elon Musk in federal court in Washington on January 14, 2025, claiming that he failed to disclose his ownership of X (formally known as Twitter) stock in early 2022 before he bought the site for $44 billion. The complaint from the S.E.C. contends that Musk violated securities laws by amassing a large stock position in the company without filing proper notification. The S.E.C. requires these regulatory filings so shareholders can “monitor large investors and potential takeover bids.” Alex Spiro, Musk’s lawyer, called the lawsuit a “sham,” citing what he believes to be a “campaign of harassment” against Musk. This lawsuit marks the third time the S.E.C. has sued Musk. The first lawsuit “arose from inappropriate market-moving social media posts where Musk mused” about taking Tesla, his car company, private.

Trump signed an Executive Order on January 23, 2025 (the “AI Order”), that aims to make the United States the world capital for artificial intelligence (AI) and to develop AI that is free from “ideological bias.” This overturns many of Biden’s policies, including his sweeping 2023 Executive Order 14110 (EO 14110). In this blog, I aim to address the apparent goals from Trump’s AI Order, what will change, and what will stay the same.

On January 1, 2025, Matthew Livelsberger exploded his rented Tesla Cybertruck in front of the Trump International Hotel. Within hours after the explosion, Tesla was able to track all of Livelsberger’s movements in detail and confirm to the FBI that the explosives in the truck were the problem, not the truck itself. While the information collected by Tesla was essential to the case, it highlighted the sheer amount of data cars are able to store and share with others. David Choffnes, the executive director of the Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute at Northeastern University, said the event “[revealed] the kind of sweeping surveillance going on.” He warned that “[w]hen something bad [like this] happens, it’s helpful, but it’s a double edged sword. Companies that collect this data can abuse it.”

You ever feel like your phone is listening to you? You ever mention a product in casual conversation, and then suddenly start seeing ads for it? There’s a good chance that’s exactly what’s going on—or at least that’s what a lawsuit against Apple says.

Imagine this: you have invented your wonderful, new widget and filed a patent application. You are eager to start negotiating licensing deals with widget manufacturers, but you are stuck in a holding pattern until the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) grants your patent application. Without knowing the exact scope of your patent claims, it is difficult to convince potential licensees of the value of your invention and of the necessity of a license.

The practice of gathering intelligence from publicly accessible sources, known as open-source intelligence (OSINT), has been a tool for intelligence services for decades. Gathering OSINT has become increasingly prevalent in recent years, particularly by social media users who are not associated with an intelligence service or law enforcement agency. These private citizens are able to use publicly available tools that were previously only available to military, intelligence, or police agencies, to investigate matters. This growth is due in part to the growth of the internet and social media, making it easier to collect and disseminate information, as well as public access to new tools such as access to commercial satellites. OSINT has become a valuable tool in tracking conflicts as well as documenting and investigating war crimes. While OSINT has provided useful information and has proven effective at identifying perpetrators who violate the laws of armed conflicts or international human rights laws, there are unresolved legal and ethical questions concerning that practice.

It is tricky to determine the extent to which LexisNexis and Thomson Reuters Westlaw, two of the largest commercial providers of electronic legal research materials, are intertwined with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). In 2022, Thomson Reuters said it would reevaluate its work selling personal data to ICE—but that it had “no intention of severing ties with the government agencies.” A year later in 2023, a group of 80 civil society, racial justice, and immigration advocacy organizations urged the Department of Homeland Security to cancel ICE’s $22 million contract with Lexis, which was set to renew that year. Both instances were the cumulation of years of advocacy work that included coordinated multicampus law student protests, but it is unclear if these actions had the tangible effect of cutting ties between ICE and the data brokers law students and lawyers are forced to rely on.

The dawn of the digital era happened long ago. Yet courts still struggle to deliver a demand for remedies that move at a faster pace––like the internet. Some courts have discovered that the internet is the answer in the form of online dispute resolution (ODR). Courts in at least 40 U.S. states are considering ODR programs, and the market share of ODR is expected to increase over 350% by 2028. ODR uses digital technologies, such as web-based platforms, chatbots, and other tools that the public can use to resolve conflicts more efficiently. More specifically, “ODR includes automated decision-making, as well as online negotiation, mediation, arbitration, community courts, and variations thereof. Its efficiency, accessibility, and ease expand access to justice that moves at the pace of technology, thus allowing for innovation.” This blog focuses on how court-sponsored ODR can decrease the distance gap and provide access to justice for rural communities.

It is no secret that oppressive regimes often utilize technology to suppress and surveil certain populations. A poignant example of this concept is the way Israel implements surveillance and weapons technologies to assert power and control over those living in occupied Palestine. Israeli forces have used advanced technology, including artificial intelligence, to create a surveillance state and to train weapon programs used against Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

On January 20, 2025, the White House released a Presidential Action stating that executive branch Government employees would be required to return to in-person work full time, subject to necessary exemptions. Working remotely existed prior to the pandemic but increased dramatically beginning in 2020. As the number of remote workers increased, so did legal issues. The legal landscape had to adapt to the new norm during the pandemic. As people have returned to the office and, now with the Presidential Action requiring many Government employees to return to the office, additional legal issues will likely arise. This blog will focus mainly on some prevalent legal issues that surfaced with the rise of remote work, as well as some of the forward-looking issues that may come up as people return to the office.

On January 13, 2025, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton brought suit against Allstate and its subsidiary Arity for illegally collecting, using, and selling the geolocation and movement data of Texan drivers. Allstate and Arity are alleged to have paid millions of dollars to app developers to integrate Allstate’s tracking software into their apps to gather consumers’ driving data. The Texas Attorney General’s Office claims that Allstate and Arity targeted apps with built-in location-based features, such as Routely, Life360, and Fuel Rewards, to discreetly collect data without alerting consumers. The data collected from customers’ phones included geolocation, accelerometer, magnetometer, and gyroscopic information, recording precise details such as a phone’s “altitude, longitude, latitude, bearing, GPS time, speed, and accuracy.” In total, Allstate amassed location data spanning trillions of miles from over 45 million consumers and created the “world’s largest driving behavior database.”

As soon as Trump took office, his administration empowered U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to expand its reach and activities. ICE put out a request for contractors to provide them with technological tools to surveil and monitor non-citizens. This is not anything new, ICE and the FBI have been using facial recognition in driver’s license databases in their surveillance for years. The actions of ICE, both past and present, raise serious issues concerning safety and constitutional rights of both non-citizens and citizens alike. In this blog, I want to talk about previous surveillance efforts and some of the recent developments in ICE action, along with the constitutional and ethical risks that accompany these developments.

By settling lawsuits, are tech giants creating a new Big Tech playbook? Is this a dangerous precedent or just business as usual? This blog will explore Meta’s recent settlement with President Trump, and its potential implications.

On February 19, 2025, Microsoft unveiled its Majorana 1 chip, a groundbreaking advancement in the field of quantum computing. According to Microsoft, this chip utilizes a topoconductor, known as a topological superconductor, which can create an entirely new state of matter. This topological state of matter is used to produce more stable qubits, the units that quantum computers use to store data.

On July 9, 1962, the United States detonated a nuclear warhead 400 kilometers above the Earth’s surface. This test aimed to study the impacts of a nuclear detonation in space on satellite surveillance, communications systems,  and the “basic characteristics of a high altitude nuclear blast.” The test, known as Starfish Prime, resulted in a 1.4 megaton explosion, which was far more powerful than anticipated, causing unexpected havoc in the Earth’s low orbit and on the surface. The blast created radiation belts which significantly damaged satellites in orbit, and as a result of the test seven satellites were destroyed within months of the detonation.

The Trump administration sent employees at the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) deferred resignation offers, raising concerns about cybersecurity. Similar resignation offers directed towards intelligence officers from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Central Intelligence Agency, and the National Security Agency has sparked fear among cybersecurity experts. Established by President Trump in 2018, CISA played a key part in discovering and responding to the “Salt Typhoon” espionage campaign by Chinese state-sponsored hackers. Despite its role in national security, Kristi Noem, President Trump’s pick to lead DHS, has vowed to shrink the agency.

“Discovery is the formal process by which the parties to a case in court exchange information about the case. This includes information about the witnesses and evidence to be presented at trial. Its purpose is to make the parties aware of the evidence which may be presented at trial.” Electronic discovery (e-discovery) is an ever growing and evolving part of the discovery process. In many cases, the discovery process for legal cases will involve electronically stored information (ESI) which may be requested for production.  Examples of ESI are emails, electronic documents, voicemails, social media, and websites. Since emails, electronic documents, social media, and other forms of e-discovery are widely used, the volume of data available for discovery is extensive, which can raise challenges for parties handling this process. This blog will cover the basics of e-discovery, the challenges associated with e-discovery, and some programs that have been developed in order to help with the complex e-discovery process.

A geofence warrant is the information that the government compels from large data companies, such as Google, that provides information about who was present in a given area at a specified time. This data about mobile devices in certain areas is often in an anonymized form, but it can be identified without much difficulty. This raises serious constitutional concerns surrounding the Fourth Amendment and warrants. This blog will go further in depth about what a geofence warrant is, how it might be an unconstitutional search, and how it might be unconstitutional for warrant purposes.

The misuse of user data by Big Tech has been a growing concern for the past decade and continues to be a hot button issue. A recent report reaffirmed Big Tech’s personal data overreach, going past acceptable boundaries in their handling of user data. This report validates the long-standing concerns voiced by consumer advocates, shedding a light on how tech companies handle user data in ways that lack transparency and violate data privacy. This blog will summarize the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) report and the effect of these exploitative data practices.