Science and Technology Law Commons^™

Assessing Access-To-Justice Outreach Strategies, J. J. Prescott

Articles

The need for prospective beneficiaries to “take up” new programs is a common stumbling block for otherwise well-designed legal and policy innovations. I examine the take-up problem in the context of publicly provided court services and test the effectiveness of various outreach strategies that announce a newly available online court access platform. I study individuals with minor arrest warrants whose distrust of courts may dampen any take-up response. I partnered with a court to quasi-randomly assign outreach approaches to a cohort of individuals and find that outreach improves take-up, that the type of outreach matters, and that online platform access …

Scientific Trials--In The Laboratories, Not The Courts, Nicholas Bagley, Aaron E. Carroll, Pieter A. Cohen

Articles

In 2015, one of us published a peer-reviewed study, together with colleagues at the University of California, San Francisco, replicating prior research from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) detecting a designer stimulant, β-methylphenylethylamine, in sports, weight loss, and “cognitive function” supplements sold in the United States. The confirmatory study prompted the FDA to take enforcement action against companies selling the stimulant as a dietary ingredient. One of the companies that received an FDA warning letter sued the study’s authors for $200 million in damages for libel, claiming, without supporting scientific evidence, that multiple statements in the article were …

How Do Lawyers Think Differently From Stem Professionals When Approaching Problems And Risk?, Jessica Silbey

Faculty Scholarship

Conference: Bridges II: The Law-STEM Alliance & Next Generation Innovation

Following the Bridges II conference, a select group of scholars met to discuss challenges facing law and technology. NULRO, along with David Schwartz and Leslie Oster, asked the participants to respond to prompts generated from that meeting.

Touch Dna And Chemical Analysis Of Skin Trace Evidence: Protecting Privacy While Advancing Investigations, Mary Graw Leary

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

This Article addresses touch DNA, chemical analysis of skin traces, and the implications for crime scene investigation, arguing that changes in how trace evidence is analyzed require alterations in the law’s approach to its use. Part I discusses the history of traditional DNA analysis. Part II examines the emergence of touch DNA and related technologies and how they differ from traditional DNA analysis. Part III outlines the specific risks created by the collection and storing of results under the current outdated jurisprudence. Part IV focuses on specific risks to suspects and victims of crime. Part V proposes a legal framework …

Breadcrumbs: Privacy As A Privilege, Prachi Bhardwaj

Capstones

Breadcrumbs: Privacy as a Privilege Abstract

By: Prachi Bhardwaj

In 2017, the world saw more data breaches than in any year prior. The count was more than the all-time high record in 2016, which was 40 percent more than the year before that.

That’s because consumer data is incredibly valuable today. In the last three decades, data storage has gone from being stored physically to being stored almost entirely digitally, which means consumer data is more accessible and applicable to business strategies. As a result, companies are gathering data in ways previously unknown to the average consumer, and hackers are …

Artificial Intelligence: Application Today And Implications Tomorrow, Sean Semmler, Zeeve Rose

Duke Law & Technology Review

This paper analyzes the applications of artificial intelligence to the legal industry, specifically in the fields of legal research and contract drafting. First, it will look at the implications of artificial intelligence (A.I.) for the current practice of law. Second, it will delve into the future implications of A.I. on law firms and the possible regulatory challenges that come with A.I. The proliferation of A.I. in the legal sphere will give laymen (clients) access to the information and services traditionally provided exclusively by attorneys. With an increase in access to these services will come a change in the role that …

Regulating Black-Box Medicine, W. Nicholson Price Ii

Michigan Law Review

Data drive modern medicine. And our tools to analyze those data are growing ever more powerful. As health data are collected in greater and greater amounts, sophisticated algorithms based on those data can drive medical innovation, improve the process of care, and increase efficiency. Those algorithms, however, vary widely in quality. Some are accurate and powerful, while others may be riddled with errors or based on faulty science. When an opaque algorithm recommends an insulin dose to a diabetic patient, how do we know that dose is correct? Patients, providers, and insurers face substantial difficulties in identifying high-quality algorithms; they …

Universal Design: Stop Banning Laptops!, Ruth Colker

Cardozo Law Review

The article argues that banning laptops in university classrooms, particularly in law schools, is unnecessary and counterproductive. The author advocates for a permissive laptop policy as part of Universal Design principles, which aim to create inclusive learning environments. While acknowledging concerns about distractions and note-taking effectiveness, the author presents empirical data suggesting that laptop use does not harm academic performance and can benefit students with disabilities without stigmatizing them.

Making Accessible Futures: From The Capitol Crawl To #Cripthevote, Faye Ginsburg, Rayna Rapp

Cardozo Law Review

The article examines the evolving recognition and integration of disability rights in American society, emphasizing the transformative impact of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the cultural shift towards inclusivity. It highlights the growing demographic presence of individuals with disabilities, the role of activism, and the importance of inclusive design and representation in media and politics. The authors argue that while significant progress has been made, ongoing advocacy is crucial to address persistent challenges and ensure the full recognition of disability as a valued aspect of human diversity.

Risk And Resilience In Health Data Infrastructure, W. Nicholson Price Ii

Articles

Today’s health system runs on data. However, for a system that generates and requires so much data, the health care system is surprisingly bad at maintaining, connecting, and using those data. In the easy cases of coordinated care and stationary patients, the system works—sometimes. But when care is fragmented, fragmented data often result. Fragmented data create risks both to individual patients and to the system. For patients, fragmentation creates risks in care based on incomplete or incorrect information, and may also lead to privacy risks from a patched together system. For the system, data fragmentation hinders efforts to improve efficiency …

Artificial Intelligence In Health Care: Applications And Legal Implications, W. Nicholson Price Ii

Articles

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly moving to change the healthcare system. Driven by the juxtaposition of big data and powerful machine learning techniques—terms I will explain momentarily—innovators have begun to develop tools to improve the process of clinical care, to advance medical research, and to improve efficiency. These tools rely on algorithms, programs created from healthcare data that can make predictions or recommendations. However, the algorithms themselves are often too complex for their reasoning to be understood or even stated explicitly. Such algorithms may be best described as “black-box.” This article briefly describes the concept of AI in medicine, including …

Background Note: Standard Essential Patents, Innovation And Competition: Challenges In India, Arpan Banerjee

IP Theory

In September 2014, a few months after a landslide election victory, the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the launch of “Make in India,” an ambitious program designed to turn India into a global manufacturing hub. One of the factors widely thought to be responsible for Modi’s victory was support from India’s “neo-middle class”—a young, newly- urbanized section of the electorate seeking employment and improved living standards but struggling amidst an economic downturn. In a speech inaugurating Make in India, Modi linked the program with the aspirations of this section of society. Modi stated the need to elevate the status …

Rethinking Ucita: Lessons From The Open Source Movement, Matthew D. Stein

Maine Law Review

For those within the information technology (IT) industry, the phrase “open source” has been as prominent at water cooler and boardroom discussions over the last several years as the phrase “out source.” Open source is at once a software development model, a business model, a social movement, and a philosophy that has recently garnered attention from outside of the IT sphere. As such, the topic has become increasingly fertile ground for academic scholarship from several disciplines. Economists, legal academics and practitioners, computer engineers, and social commentators have offered their varying perspectives on open source software. Whether or not this attention …

Rembrandts In The Research Lab: Why Universities Should Take A Lesson From Big Business To Increase Innovation, Kristen Osenga

Maine Law Review

Universities are typically considered to have two complementary goals: providing education and performing research. While the determination of which objective deserves primacy has long been debated and is not within the scope of this paper, it is indisputable that productive research serves to further a university's goal of education, both directly by adding to the body of knowledge to be dispensed to the students and indirectly by increasing the university's prestige, thereby attracting lucrative grants, quality students, and competitive faculty members to the university. It is, at the very least, safe to say that research is the heart of the …

Open Source Approaches In Biotechnology: Utopia Revisited, Yann Joly

Maine Law Review

Tracing its origin to Greek antiquity, intellectual property has become an institution in modern legal systems worldwide. This growing importance of intellectual property was confirmed with the 1994 adoption of the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Agreement by the World Trade Organization (WTO), which harmonized the rules of intellectual property amongst the various members of the international community on the model of developed countries. However enshrined in the legal tradition, intellectual property law has also had its share of detractors and has recently come under severe criticism. The exercise of intellectual property rights in such diverse fields of creation …

Road Map To Revolution? Patent-Based Open Science, Lee Petherbridge

Maine Law Review

The contemporary approach to innovation in the life sciences relies on a patent-based proprietary model. Limitations on patent rights and business concerns often focus innovation to markets where the near-term monetary rewards are highest. This is “efficient” under an austere understanding of the term, but the proprietary model can be problematic from a practical perspective because it may not focus innovation to certain deserving markets. This Article contends that the property rights conferred by patent law may still serve as a positive base for innovation directed to underserved markets. The comparatively strong rights conferred by patent law provide upstream or …

A Virtue-Centered Approach To The Biotechnology Commons (Or, The Virtuous Penguin), David W. Opderbeck

Maine Law Review

The instrumentalist emphasis of the current biotechnology intellectual property rights (IPR) debate is not surprising. In the American tradition, intellectual property law has long been justified primarily by instrumentalist concerns. Thomas Jefferson famously acceded to the “embarrassment of patent and copyright monopolies because he believed a limited monopoly would encourage the production of new scholarship and inventions. The framers' willingness to allow this embarrassment for the greater good is enshrined in the Intellectual Property Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Countless judicial opinions refer to intellectual property law as a tool that provides necessary incentives to creators and innovators. Intellectual property …

The Experimental Use Exception To Patent Infringement: Do Universities Deserve Special Treatment?, Elizabeth A. Rowe

Maine Law Review

Inventor Ivan owns a patent on a new Gizmo. He has spent a substantial portion of his time and resources to develop the Gizmo. He has also spent thousands of dollars on his patent attorneys to obtain the patent. Ivan had to wait over two years for the patent application to be processed and approved. But it was all worth it. Our patent laws grant Ivan a negative right-the right to exclude others from practicing his invention during the period of the patent. The local university is using Ivan's invention to further its own research. The university's research will allow …

Adoption Of The Bayh-Dolye Act In Developed Countries: Added Presure For A Broad Research Exemption In The United States?, Michael S. Mireles

Maine Law Review

Numerous developed countries, most if not all members of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), including Japan, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Spain, and Finland, have or are considering adopting legislation similar to the Bayh-Dole Act. These countries apparently believe that passage of legislation similar to the Bayh-Dole Act will lead to the transfer of government funded research results from the university laboratory to the marketplace and other economic activity. In the United States, the birthplace of the Bayh-Dole Act (the Act), it is not entirely clear whether its passage is the direct result …

Property Rights In Augmented Reality, Declan T. Conroy

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

Increasingly, cities, towns, and even rural communities are being slowly reshaped by a dynamic yet initially imperceptible phenomenon: the elaboration of augmented reality. Through applications that place virtual features over specific, real-world locations, layers of augmented reality are proliferating, adding new elements to an increasingly wide range of places. However, while many welcome the sudden appearance of arenas for battling digital creatures in their neighborhood or the chance to write virtual messages on their neighbor’s wall, the areas being augmented oftentimes are privately owned, thereby implicating property rights. Many intrusions, of course, are de minimis: an isolated, invisible Pikachu unexpectedly …