Category: Technology

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BIPA VS. CUBI: COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF MAJOR BIOMETRIC PRIVACY ACTS IN ILLINOIS AND TEXAS

A Note by Anastasiia Cheban

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Over the past several years, the Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) has expanded in scope and other states have adopted similar acts.[1] BIPA requires businesses and private entities that collect any biometric information from individuals to disclose that collection.[2] The act prohibits collecting, capturing, purchasing, or obtaining an individual’s biometric information without a written disclosure of the nature of the collection.[3]

Other states have also been influenced by Illinois’ legislation on the collection, retention, and sale of biometric information.[4] For example, Texas adopted a similar statute in 2009, titled, the “Capture or Use of Biometric Identifier Act” (CUBI).[5] The act is structured similarly to BIPA; however, it has significant differences that affect its enforcement, which has affected the number of lawsuits brought under the act.[6] Although there are only three states that … Read the rest

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THE COPYRIGHT CONUNDRUM: EXPLORING THE LEGAL CHALLENGES TO THE COPYRIGHTABILITY OF AI-GENERATED WORKS AND THE FUTURE OF THE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY

A Note by Reilly Alridge

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The Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) strikes of 2023 sparked major controversy over the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in the entertainment industry.[1] Writers have fears of AI being used to take over their script-writing jobs and reduce their bargaining power for pay.[2] Actors have fears of AI being used to replace the work of background actors and using their scanned body images posthumously without permission from the actor or the actor’s estate.[3]

[1] See Andrew Dalton, The Hollywood Writers Strike is Over After Guild Leaders Approve Contract with Studios, The Associated Press (Sept. 26, 2023, 10:24 PM), https://apnews.com/article/writers-strike-deal-hollywood-vote-actors-d3119d670a4fd3449773bf8f4026fb2b; see also Megan Cerullo, SAG-AFTRA Reaches Tentative Agreement with Hollywood Studios in a Move to End Nearly 4-Month Strike, CBS News (Nov. 9, … Read the rest

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LARGE LANGUAGE MODELS AND ETHICAL PITFALLS: TESTING THE LEGAL LIMITS OF “ROBOLAWYERING”

A Note by Lee Walter

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Over the past several months, advanced machine learning algorithms called “large language models” (LLMs) have led to the creation of a variety of AI-powered legal software services.[1] LegalZoom leverages a simple LLM to interpret user responses to online questionnaires and generate boilerplate forms for estate planning and new business registration.[2] EU-based LegalAi uses the technology to provide prelitigation assessments of lawsuit validity to consumers.[3] And Casetext provides document drafting and review for attorneys.[4] But by far the buzziest and highest profile of these large language models is Open AI’s ChatGPT (short for “generative pre-trained transformer”). Launched in 2015, ChatGPT has rapidly become synonymous with LLMs, and many legal tech companies have already integrated ChatGPT into their platforms.[5] Most recently, Casetext announced a contract with Am Law 20 firm DLA Piper to provide a ChatGPT-powered … Read the rest

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CRIMES WITHOUT CONSEQUENCES: EXPLORING THE METAVERSE AS A CRIMINAL FRONTIER

A Note by Doyeon Oh

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A conception of digital worlds in the form of virtual and augmented realities has been a science-fiction vision since the 20th century.[1] As of 2023, that vision has become more than just a reality.[2] Established tech giants like Meta and Google are already taking the next step in developing the “metaverse”—a universal platform promising a fully immersive real-life experience within a network of multiple virtual worlds.[3] Theoretically, the metaverse will allow users, or their “avatars,” to live, work, and socialize as they would in the real world.[4] Casual users may think of it as a “digital playground;” others may see potential business opportunities.[5] Ideas of its use are limitless and exciting,[6] and the metaverse hype seems more than deserving.            

However, this exciting prospect brings forth a dangerously overshadowed issue: violent crimes.… Read the rest

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DELINEATING DIGITAL MARKETS IN ANTITRUST CONTEXTS

A Note by Lindsey Robin

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As digitization and technology increasingly affect all aspects of life, law makers and academics alike continue to consider how antitrust law can be applied to digital markets. Concerns over big data, data security, monopolization, privacy, and unfair competition practices have garnered much attention across the globe in the last decade.[1] How and whether antitrust law should effectively address these concerns remains a hotly debated topic in the antitrust community.

[1] See generally, Benjamin M. Fischer, The Rise of the Data-Opoly: Consumer Harm in the Digital Economy, 99 Wash. U. L. Rev. 729 (2021); Mason Marks, Biosupremacy: Big Data, Antitrust, and Monopolistic Power over Human Behavior, 55 U.C. Davis L. Rev. 513 (2021); Joshua P. Zoffer, Short-Termism and Antitrust’s Innovation Paradox, 71 Stan. L. Rev. Online 308 (2019)… Read the rest

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ROBOTS DON’T TAKE BATHROOM BREAKS: ANALYZING THE APPLICABILITY OF CALIFORNIA’S A.B. 701 LEGISLATION IN ILLINOIS

A Note by Kevin Estes

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On September 22, 2021, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law A.B. 701[1] intending to further protect the health and safety of warehouse workers in the state of California.[2] Authored by California Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, A.B. 701“strengthen[s] warehouse workers’ rights against arbitrary and abusive work quota systems by requiring companies to disclose work quotas to employees and state agencies, and establish statewide standards to minimize on-the-job injuries for employees working under strict quotas.”[3] Although the bill places restrictions on all single warehouse distribution center with 100 or more employees or 1,000 or more employees at one or more warehouse distribution centers in the state,[4] the bill specifically targets Amazon Inc. and their “extreme high-churn model, continually replacing workers in order to sustain dangerous and grueling work pace demands.”[5] To achieve its purpose, A.B. 701 … Read the rest

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I THINK YOU ARE MUTED, YOUR HONOR: THE RISE OF REMOTE LEGAL PROCEEDINGS AND WHAT IS IN STORE

A Note by Austin Bull

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On October 28, 2021, Mark Zuckerberg announced Facebook’s new focus on the “metaverse.”[1] Facebook and its counterparts now belong to Meta Platforms, Inc. and will emphasize and move toward a virtual reality future.[2] This novel endeavor came about a year and a half after the COVID-19 pandemic forced the world to adapt to new, remote mediums.[3] Digital landscapes became an immediate necessity rather than a distant, futuristic concept.[4] Many industries were affected; the legal sector was no exception.[5]

In an unprecedented fashion, law firms and courtrooms alike moved entirely remote.[6] For the first time, depositions, hearings, and even entire trials were conducted by video conference from participants’ homes.[7] Attorneys and their clients no longer commuted to an office but instead conducted their business through programs such as Zoom or Microsoft Teams.[8]… Read the rest

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Net Neutrality: Individual Privacy at Risk

By Jason Shultz

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Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have gained power to limit people’s access to the internet. In March 2017, Congress reversed regulations imposed on ISPs under the Obama Administration. These regulations protected internet consumers from having their access to the internet restricted by ISPs. This note examines the history of net neutrality and why removing regulations on ISPs is dangerous for internet consumers. People are now at risk of having their data sold and being limited in which websites are available through their ISP.… Read the rest

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Equating Cybertravel with Physical Travel: the Key to Preserving a Borderless Internet Without Violating U.S. Copyright Law

By Michal Nowicki

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This Note explores the legality of cybertravel— the use of technological measures to trick a website into believing that the user is accessing it from a different location — under § 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) to access territorially-restricted, copyright-protected digital content not available in the user’s physical location. Internet users cybertravel to bypass territorial restrictions for several reasons, including to access television shows and movies before they lawfully become available in their home country, and to access otherwise unavailable live streams of live events with less commercial interruptions. Although this Note concedes that the plain language of the DMCA seems to outlaw copyright-infringing cybertravel, it encourages courts to exclude such cybertravel from DMCA coverage by equating it with physical travel. If adopted, this approach would shield cybertravelers from civil liability because they would be legally deemed within the authorized … Read the rest

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Staying the Night: Integrating Home-Sharing Platforms into the Hospitality Industry

By Bryan Boccelli

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Home-sharing platforms such as Airbnb have taken the hospitality industry by storm over the last decade, and show no signs of slowing down in terms of use and popularity. This note argues for a better integration of the home-sharing economy into the hospitality industry. An integration such as the one proposed would streamline regulations and taxes applied to short-term living situations such as those applied to the hotel industry. Conversely, there are some aspects of home-sharing that would be beneficial if applied to the hotel industry that would be mutually beneficial. By working to better integrate these two portions of the hospitality industry, the result could be a great benefit to not only the consumer, but to hotel owners, home-sharing patrons, and state economies.… Read the rest