The CCPA: A Bargain for Data Transparency
Sonia Brunstad The California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA), aims to increase consumer transparency regarding businesses’ use of personal data. Within the bargained-for-exchange relationship between companies and consumers, consumers benefit from data-collecting platforms while unknowingly paying the “price” of sharing personal data. The CCPA assumes that equipping consumers with increased transparency regarding such data-for-service transactions will place consumers in a better bargaining position. In so doing, the CCPA adopts an individualist framework, providing consumers with primarily self-management mechanisms to protect personal data. This essay argues that legislation such as the CCPA may more...
Make “Space” for Innovation
John Thurston As space exploration becomes increasingly privatized, archaic regulations based on Cold-War era treaties are proving unduly burdensome—they threaten to hinder private innovation and handicap a great societal benefit. Although space is best regulated through international treaties, Congress can take the lead in ushering global space law into the modern era by establishing preferred, and hopefully influential, standards here in the United States. Congress ought to amend the Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act of 2015 to centralize regulatory authority, streamline authorization processes, allocate more risk to the private sector, and proclaim limited support for private property rights in space....
Antitrust Implications of the Banning Surveillance Advertising Act
Alisha Parker-Martell The Banning Surveillance Advertising Act, proposed in the 117th Congress of the House of Representatives by Congresswoman Eshoo, would improve consumer data protection but would also have negative consequences on market competition in sectors that utilize user data. This Act is indicative of a growing conflict between antitrust policy and consumer data privacy. This essay argues that future federal consumer data privacy legislation should attempt to balance the competing interests of market health and consumer privacy rights by prohibiting exploitative uses of consumer data and mandating consumer data sharing and a period of exclusive use of collected data....
Remaining Barriers to Accessibility: Americans with Disabilities Act and Websites
Ella G. Clifford The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was enacted in 1990 in order to address discrimination against individuals with disabilities and ensure that individuals are afforded equal access to goods and services. Despite the fact that our society has become increasingly reliant on technology as a form of communication and commerce, websites are not explicitly covered by the ADA. This article summarizes the current state of website accessibility lawsuits under the ADA and outlines varying interpretations of the ADA by the U.S. Circuit Courts. This article advocates for a broad interpretation of the ADA to best serve its...
The Search to Find a Legal Remedy for Regulating Censorship on Social Media
Kristen Cuetos The rise of Big Tech has led to concern over social media companies’ power in regulating user content. Social media users are claiming, more frequently now than ever, that their posts, ideas, and views are being censored by social media platforms. Contrarily, other users are arguing that platforms aren’t doing enough to moderate and curb harmful or offensive speech online. Many have filed lawsuits against social media companies for infringing on users’ First Amendment freedom of speech. These lawsuits fail because of the legal barriers that protect social media companies from such liability. As a result, controversy has...
A Comparative Study of Nuclear Reactor Standardization Policy in the United States and France
Margaret Cooney As the United States moves to reduce its carbon footprint, nuclear energy has become an essential energy alternative to fossil fuels. The current U.S. nuclear fleet is aging and will soon be decommissioned, so building new reactors is essential for U.S. energy production needs. In building a new generation of nuclear reactors, the United States may consider looking to France for inspiration. France’s reactor fleet is highly standardized, meaning that there are only a few reactor designs. There are potential benefits and drawbacks to standardization in nuclear technology. Some scholars argue that a policy of standardization would lower...
Choreographic Works in the Age of Social Media: The Issues and Implications of Copyrighting TikTok Dances
Patricia Garza Gonzalez Keara Wilson, the creator of the “Savage” dance on TikTok successfully registered her dance as a choreographic work with the U.S. Copyright Office, making it the first viral TikTok dance protected under the Copyright Act of 1976. She is one of numerous TikTok dance creators seeking copyright protection for their works as the social media platform has bolstered dance dissemination through dance challenges that encourage users to reproduce and post their versions of short routines. Nevertheless, under the current guidelines for choreographic work copyright, TikTok dances are not entitled to copyright protections because of their categorization as...
Cyberwarfare and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
John Thurston As technology proliferates, cyberspace is becoming increasingly polluted with crime targeted at private enterprises. The escalation is the result of ineffective cybercrime laws. Although an international solution may be ideal, no treaty seems imminent. The U.S. government should focus on a more attainable solution in the short-term: amending the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA). This Essay considers how revising the CFAA to allow qualified private companies to engage in offensive tactics would alter incentive structures. It concludes that such a revision would be an efficient solution to increase deterrence and reduce cybercrime. Read Full Text Here
Digital Art Says: Protect Our “Groove” Too
Annie Kim Digital technology has become one of the most common methods artists use to create art. This advancement in technology causes many copyright difficulties, especially related to artists’ styles. Standardized and common features of digital software have made it far too easy for people to duplicate other people’s work, and more significantly, an artist’s unique style. Current copyright laws are insufficient to address these issues, and there is almost no legal precedent related to protecting an artist’s “art style.” In a groundbreaking case, Williams v. Gaye, the court implemented a two-part test to imply protection for musical styles, the...
From Canvas to Designer Cloth: The Exploitative Nature of the Fair Use Doctrine in the Arts
Victoria Schmidt This Essay examines the controversial launch of the 2020 COACH® x Basquiat Collection featuring the signature image of Jean- Michel Basquiat on Coach purses and clothing. These signature images were part of a larger work of art by Basquiat that aimed to critique racial segregation, police brutality, and the capitalistic pull of American society. Basquiat supporters critique the collaboration as a misappropriation of the artist’s message. Under this assumption, this Essay evaluates the scope of the fair use doctrine through a hypothetical copyright infringement claim against Coach. This Essay examines the provisions of current copyright laws and advocates...