The Intellectual Property and Technology Forum (IPTF) marked a significant milestone on April 10 with its inaugural Writers’ Symposium, held in partnership with the Program on Innovation and Entrepreneurship. The event showcased the culmination of a year’s worth of research by five 1L students on a wide range of IP and tech issues. Dean Odette Lienau’s opening remarks began the evening by celebrating academic achievement.
Since its inception in 1997 by BC Law students, the IPTF has remained entirely student-run and student-led. With a focus on Law School students’ work, it typically publishes around ten to sixteen articles per year. Additionally, it annually features one to two articles from authors beyond the BC Law community, including faculty members from other universities and practitioners from diverse firms and government agencies.
Among the five 1L writers, Emma McMillan explored the effectiveness of existing patent regulations in fostering competition within the “Super Shoe” industry. Emily Rockwell shared her findings on the integration of artificial intelligence within the music industry. Lydia Rudden’s examination of fragmented data privacy laws emphasized the urgent need for federal legislation to address this disparity.
Provoking discussion, Justin Sells analyzed Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 and the liability of private online platforms, particularly in the realm of social media. Lastly, Austin Tarullo explored the erosion of military accountability in modern warfare with the new autonomous weapons systems.
Published articles from previous years are accessible on the IPTF’s website (the five 2024 articles in this story will be published soon) as well as through Westlaw. The BC Law Library’s LIRA portal also serves as an archival platform for these contributions.
IPTF also recently launched a LinkedIn page to feature their new articles and connect with students and alumni. Visit the page and follow them here.
Photograph by Kristen V. Cuetos ’24