Science and Technology Law Commons^™

Machine Speech: Towards A Unified Doctrine Of Attribution And Control, Brian Sites

University of Miami Law Review

Like many courts across the country in 2023, courts in the Eleventh Circuit were met with novel claims challenging ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence tools. These cases raise common questions: How should courts treat the speech of machines? When a machine generates allegedly defamatory material, who is the speaker—mortal or machine? When a machine generates expressive creations, who is the artist, and does that shape copyright eligibility? When a machine makes assertions about reality through lab analyses and other forensic reports, who is the accuser, and how does the answer impact a defendant’s rights at trial? Should those answers stem …

Ethical Algorithms: Navigating Ai In Legal Practice For A Just Jurisprudence, Bree'ara Murphy, Rachel Gadra Rankin, Joseph Rios

Law Review Blog Posts

Exploring the professional obligations practitioners may face in light of developing AI technology by examining state and federal model rule language, current judicial treatment of AI, and AI best practices.

Sacramento Suburban Water District V. 3m Co., Loui E. Amos

Public Land & Resources Law Review

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”), popularly known as “forever chemicals,” have seeped into drinking water supplies across the country. Almost all Americans have an accumulation of these substances in their blood, creating serious health risks. This exposure has created a vast unknown liability for the manufacture of these chemicals. But who should pay for the remediation of the water supply and the health effects of PFAS exposure? Mass toxic tort litigation has become ineffective, with jurisdictional hurdles and defendants’ creative techniques to sidestep judgments, such as corporate bankruptcy strategies. This ineffectiveness demonstrates the need for a long-term strategy comprising legislative …

A Toothless Tcpa: An Analysis Of Article Iii Standing, Personal Jurisdiction, And The Disjuncture Problem’S Impact On The Efficacy Of The Telephone Consumer Protection Act, Sebastian W. Johnson

University of Cincinnati Law Review

No abstract provided.

Computationally Assessing Suspicion, Wesley M. Oliver, Morgan A. Gray, Jaromir Savelka, Kevin D. Ashley

University of Cincinnati Law Review

Law enforcement officers performing drug interdiction on interstate highways have to decide nearly every day whether there is reasonable suspicion to detain motorists until a trained dog can sniff for the presence of drugs. The officers’ assessments are often wrong, however, and lead to unnecessary detentions of innocent persons and the suppression of drugs found on guilty ones. We propose a computational method of evaluating suspicion in these encounters and offer experimental results from early efforts demonstrating its feasibility. With the assistance of large language and predictive machine learning models, it appears that judges, advocates, and even police officers could …

Judges Should Be Discerning Consensus, Not Evaluating Scientific Expertise, David S. Caudill, Harry Collins, Robert Evans

University of Cincinnati Law Review

One of the most constructive critiques of the Daubert admissibility regime is Professor Edward Cheng’s recent proposal for a new Consensus Rule in the Federal Rules of Evidence. Rejecting the notion that judges and juries have the capacity to evaluate scientific expertise, Cheng’s proposal would eliminate Daubert hearings—and judicial gatekeeping concerning expert testimony—and require judges and juries, in their verdicts, to follow consensus in the relevant scientific community. Significantly, Cheng argues that judges and juries would have an easier time identifying consensus than they have in deciding between experts who disagree.

We find Cheng’s emphasis on consensus compelling, and …

The Missing Links: Why Hyperlinks Must Be Treated As Attachments In Electronic Discovery, Lea Malani Bays, Stuart A. Davidson

University of Cincinnati Law Review

This Article sheds light on a unique but centrally important “twenty-first century” issue involving electronic discovery in federal civil litigation that is just beginning to percolate in federal district courts. Historically, courts have held that a document attached to or enclosed with another document must be produced together when produced in response to a discovery request, as that is how the document was “kept in the usual course of business” and how it is “ordinarily maintained or in a reasonably usable form,” as the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure have required for decades. Today, parties are pushing back on whether …

Generative Ai, Plagiarism, And Copyright Infringement In Legal Documents, Amy B. Cyphert

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Artificial Intelligence: Legal Reasoning, Legal Research And Legal Writing, S. Sean Tu, Amy Cyphert, Samuel J. Perl

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Clearing The Darkened Air: Regulating Dark Patterns As Air Pollution, Michael Rosenbloom

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Arbitrary And Capricious X Artificial Intelligence, Zoe E. Niesel

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Generative Artificial Intelligence And The Practice Of Law: Impact, Opportunities, And Risks, John Villasenor

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Practice Guide: How To Integrate Ai And Emerging Technology Into Your Practice And Comply With Model Rule 3.1, Kevin Frazier

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Corpus Enigmas And Contradictory Linguistics: Tensions Between Empirical Semantic Meaning And Judicial Interpretation, Peter Henderson, Daniel E. Ho, Andrea Vallebueno, Cassandra Handan-Nader

Minnesota Journal of Law, Science & Technology

No abstract provided.

Decoding Cryptocurrency Taxes: The Challenges For Estate Planners, Max Angel

Duke Law & Technology Review

In this article, Angel explores the unique challenges of estate planning with cryptocurrency, which include accurately valuing those assets, preserving their value, and addressing the complex tax implications of transferring cryptocurrency to heirs.

Solar Energy Industries Association V. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Brandy Keesee

Public Land & Resources Law Review

In Solar Energy Industries Association v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“Solar Energy”), the court grappled with a complex web of regulatory and environmental considerations. The overall dispute was the promulgation and implementation of Order 872, a directive issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC” or “Commission”), and its alignment with the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (“PURPA”) and the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”). The dispute in Solar Energy is about FERC’s interpretation and application of PURPA in managing qualifying facilities (“QFs”). The crux of the contention was whether FERC’s 2020 rule revisions set forth in Order 872 …

Train Or Restrain? Using International Perspectives To Inform The American Fair Use Analysis Of Copyright In Generative Artificial Intelligence Training, Serena Lightstone

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

The rise of generative artificial intelligence (“AI”) has brought questions regarding the permissibility of using copyrighted materials in training generative AI systems around the globe. This article examines whether such use constitutes infringement under the American fair use doctrine, drawing insights from the regulatory approaches of the European Union (EU) and Japan.

Ultimately, this article advocates for United States courts to recognize the permissibility of using copyrighted materials in training generative AI models, rejecting the EU’s rights-holder-centric approach, and going beyond Japan’s limited-permissibility solution. Through a detailed four-factor fair use analysis, this article demonstrates that training generative AI on copyrighted …

Judges Should Be Discerning Consensus, Not Evaluating Scientific Expertise, David S. Caudill, Harry Collins, Robert Evans

Faculty Publications

One of the most constructive critiques of the Daubert admissibility regime is Professor Edward Cheng’s recent proposal for a new Consensus Rule in the Federal Rules of Evidence. Rejecting the notion that judges and juries have the capacity to evaluate scientific expertise, Cheng’s proposal would eliminate Daubert hearings—and judicial gatekeeping concerning expert testimony—and require judges and juries, in their verdicts, to follow consensus in the relevant scientific community. Significantly, Cheng argues that judges and juries would have an easier time identifying consensus than they have in deciding between experts who disagree.

We find Cheng’s emphasis on consensus compelling, and …

“Can I Have It Non-Personalised?” An Empirical Investigation Of Consumer Willingness To Share Data For Personalized Services And Ads, Monika Leszczynska, Daria Baltag

Faculty Scholarship

European regulators, courts, and scholars are currently debating the legality of data processing for personalization purposes. Should businesses require separate consent for processing user data for personalized advertising, especially when offering free services reliant on such ads for revenue? Or is general consent for the contract enough, given personalized advertising’s role in fulfilling contractual obligations? This study investigates whether these legal distinctions reflect differences in people’s willingness to share data with businesses for personalization. Are consumers less willing to share their data for personalized advertising than for personalized services that they clearly contracted for? Does that change if the service …

Where To Test A Nuclear Bomb, Tyler Kliegl

The Purdue Historian

The United States detonated three underground nuclear bombs on a far-off Alaskan island called Amchitka in the 1960s and 70s. The goal is to understand what the motive of the United States in selecting Amchitka over the endless potential sites to test at were. What makes a place worthy in being tested on, or unworthy in being left alone. How does the United States deal with resistance from locals and other organizations, fighting to prevent their tests.