The Faculty Lounge

Taboo Trades Podcast: Marielle Gross on NFTs for Biobanking (with guest host Brian Frye)

This episode has two fabulous guests: Marielle Gross, Assistant Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh, and renaissance man, Brian Frye, the Spears-Gilbert Professor of Law at the University of Kentucky.

 

 

Marielle provides clinical care at UPMC Altoona and her research focuses on the application of technology and elimination of bias as a means of promoting evidence-basis, equity and efficiency in women’s healthcare. Today, we’re discussing heny, Inc., a start up that Marielle founded that utilizes NFTs to allow breast cancer patients to remain connected to their biopsy results. When patients participate in research studies, their names and identifying features are taken off of their samples – in other words, they are deidentified. What this means is that if researchers find medically relevant information, they can’t pass that on to the patient. Nor can patients share in any of the profits that research on their tissue might generate. As we discuss in this episode, Marielle was inspired by the infamous Henrietta Lacks case to create a non-fungible NFT-like token that allows breast cancer patients to track and learn about research on their donated tumor and tissues.

 

That’s where Brian Frye comes in: he teaches courses on patent and intellectual property law, and has published widely about NFTs. Many of his articles are linked in the show notes. Brian is also a filmmaker. He produced the documentary Our Nixon (2013), which was broadcast by CNN and opened theatrically nationwide. His short films and videos have shown in the 2002 Whitney Biennial, the New York Film Festival, and the San Francisco International Film Festival, among other venues, and are in the permanent collection of the Whitney Museum of American Art. If you don’t get enough of Brian in this episode, then make sure to listen to my earlier bonus episode: The Plagiarism Taboo with Brian Frye.

 

Further reading and listening:

 

Marielle S Gross, MD; Amelia J Hood, MA; Robert C Miller Jr, BA, Nonfungible Tokens as a Blockchain Solution to Ethical Challenges for the Secondary Use of Biospecimens: Viewpoint, JMIR Bioinform Biotech 2021;2(1):e29905) doi: 10.2196/29905; https://bioinform.jmir.org/2021/1/e29905

 

This Pitt professor’s startup applies NFTs to bioethics, Technical.ly, Sept. 13, 2022; https://technical.ly/startups/heny-nfts-bioethics-marielle-gross/

 

The Plagiarism Taboo with Brian Frye, https://www.buzzsprout.com/1227113/episodes/11050801

 

Frye, Brian L., NFTs & the Death of Art (April 19, 2021). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3829399 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3829399

 

Frye, Brian L., How to Sell NFTs Without Really Trying (September 25, 2021). 13 Harvard Journal of Sports and Entertainment Law 113 (2022), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3930430

 

Frye, Brian L., After Copyright: Pwning NFTs in a Clout Economy (November 25, 2021). 45 Colum. J.L.& Arts 341 (2022), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3971240 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3971240

 

Frye, Brian L., The Art of the Token (March 16, 2022). Stanford Journal of Blockchain Law & Policy, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4059574

 

Frye, Brian L., After Andy Warhol? (June 28, 2022). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4149015 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4149015

 

Ryan, Christopher and Frye, Brian L., Patents & Legal Expenditures (August 12, 2019). 51 U. Pac. L. Rev. 577-592 (2020), Roger Williams Univ. Legal Studies Paper No. 193, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3436410

 

Frye, Brian L. and Ryan, Christopher, Technology Transfer and the Public Good (November 3, 2018). Research Handbook on Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3277721

 

Ryan, Christopher and Frye, Brian L., An Empirical Study of University Patent Activity (February 10, 2017). 7 NYU Journal of Intellectual Property & Entertainment Law 51-84 (2017)., Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2915243 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2915243

Drexel University Kline Law Seeks Associate Dean for Online/Non-JD Programs

Drexel University's Kline School of Law is seeking a new Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Online Education.  This individual will manage, and continue to strategically expand, the Law School’s online Master of Legal Studies, LL.M, and post-bac certificate programs and will strive to advance the Law School’s stake in the online learning space, while ensuring the delivery of a superior and accessible learning experience for the Law School’s online student population.  The law school's non-JD program is large and extensive, and it does not currently partner with an online program management company.  The law school creates, delivers and markets these programs exclusively using law school and university faculty and resources.  The Associate Dean will lead these efforts.

The law school prefers a candidate based in Philadelphia but is open to other candidates seeking a hybrid work engagement.  Interested candidates should apply ASAP.  Please direct any questions to Dean Dan Filler.

For further details, and to apply, go here

CFP: HODL and Horizons: How Technology is Changing the Legal Landscape

This just in:

Artificial Intelligence, Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), ChatGPT.  Over the last few years, the world has seen an exponential proliferation of technology across all industries. With new inventions comes new legal territory as our judicial system begins to determine the boundaries within which these new technologies must operate. How will NFTs work under data privacy and copyright law? What laws govern the Metaverse? How will law firms adapt to the changing work environment brought on by COVID, work automation, and hybrid-office demands? The Elon Law Review invites submissions for our Symposium exploring such legal developments involving tech and law.

The Fall 2023 Symposium will be held on Friday, September 22, 2023 with a reception the evening before on Thursday, September 21, 2023. The central topic of papers must revolve around technology and the law. An abstract of the scholarly paper to be presented should be submitted no later than Friday, March 24^th, 2023, to Chief Symposium Editor, KimberMarie Faircloth, at kfaircloth4@elon.edu. Please attach a resume or CV to your submission. Accepted proposals will be organized into symposium panels around the proposed themes. Final papers will be due by Friday, June 30^th, 2023, for both presentation at the Symposium and publication in the Symposium issue of the 2023 Elon Law Review.

Liberty University School of Law Seeks Assistant Professor and Adjunct Professor

This just in:

Liberty University School of Law invites applicants for a full-time assistant professor in the residential Juris Doctor program.  The most competitive applicants will demonstrate a commitment to excellence in teaching and possess a strong Biblical worldview.  Additionally, faculty need to passionately support our mission to equip future leaders in law with a superior legal education in fidelity to the Christian faith expressed through the Holy Scriptures.  Liberty University School of Law is part of the broadest community in the world, namely the kingdom of God which encompasses every nation, ethnic group, and language. Accordingly, we welcome and encourage faculty candidates from across this diverse spectrum to apply.

Essential Functions:

• Teach first-year, upper division required, and elective classes
• Engage in scholarship
• Mentor students
• Provide timely feedback in the form of assessments, grading, and other requested formats
• Follow guidelines, policies, and procedures as outlined in the faculty handbook

Qualifications and Credentials

• J.D. Degree from an ABA accredited law school
• Recognized academic and professional background
• Superior scholarly promise
• Practice and/or judicial clerkship experience
• Experience teaching in legal education is preferred, but not required
• Commitment to student mentoring and professional development
• Enthusiasm for working with law students

Interested parties may submit an application here: https://careers.liberty.edu/?job_posting=R0000657 

 

Coal Miners' Music [UPDATED with vintage David Crosby at bottom of the post]

 

Hiring Announcement: Wayne State University Law School

From an email message I received today:

Wayne State University Law School invites applications for an Assistant Professor (Teaching) to teach jointly in our Legal Research and Writing Program and non-J.D. programs in law.  The position entails teaching a combination of first-year Legal Research and Writing at the Law School and courses in non-J.D. programs in law. Applicants must have a J.D. degree and a strong academic record. Ideal candidates should have demonstrated excellence in legal writing; one year of court clerkship, practice experience, and/or experience teaching legal writing; and a passion for teaching future legal advocates. 

Wayne State University is a premier, public, urban research university located in the heart of Detroit where students from all backgrounds are offered a rich, high quality education. Our deep-rooted commitment to excellence, collaboration, integrity, diversity, and inclusion creates exceptional educational opportunities and prepares students for success in a diverse, global society. WSU encourages applications from women, people of color, and other underrepresented groups. WSU is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer.

Candidates should send a cover letter, CV, writing sample, a list of references, and any other relevant materials to Professor Sarah Abramowicz, Teaching Faculty Committee Chair, at sabramowicz@wayne.edu.

Hiring Announcement: Wayne State University Law School

From an email message I received earlier today:

WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY LAW SCHOOL is seeking to hire an Assistant Professor of Teaching. We encourage applications from candidates who will enhance the diversity of our faculty and whose scholarship engages with questions of social justice.

The Assistant Professor (Teaching) would serve as instructor in courses in the Masters of Law program, taught to mid-career professionals, as well as the Minor in Law and B.A. in Law, taught to Wayne undergraduates. Other teaching opportunities may arise in the regular Law School curriculum as needed. This is a renewable contract position.

Applicants must hold a JD from an accredited American law school and have practice experience across a range of legal fields. Prior teaching experience is also a plus. 

Wayne State University is a premier, public, urban research university located in the heart of Detroit where students from all backgrounds are offered a rich, high quality education. Our deep-rooted commitment to excellence, collaboration, integrity, diversity, and inclusion creates exceptional educational opportunities and prepares students for success in a diverse, global society. WSU encourages applications from women, people of color, and other underrepresented groups. WSU is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer.

Candidates should send a cover letter, CV, writing sample, list of references and any other relevant materials to Professor Sarah Abramowicz, Teaching Faculty Committee Chair, at sabramowicz@wayne.edu.

Zachary Kramer Named Dean of Elon Law

Elon University School of Law has announced that Zachary Kramer will be its new dean.  He is currently the interim dean at Arizona State Law.  Kramer, who holds a JD from the University of Illinois College of Law, will  take over in June.

Hiring Announcement: Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law (Assistant Director)

From an email message that I recently received:

Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law invites applications for the position of Assistant Director of Academic Success and Bar Preparation, with an anticipated start date of May 1, 2023.  This is a 12-month, full-time, non-tenure-track position, with an initial one-year appointment. The salary range for this position is $50,000 to $55,000 (plus benefits). 

The Assistant Director’s primary responsibility will be to work with the Director of Academic Success and Bar Preparation to help students develop the skills needed to reach their full academic potential for performance in law school and on the bar exam.  Responsibilities include: (1) assisting with the designing and implementing of academic support programs; (2) assisting with the law school’s bar exam preparation programs; and (3) assisting with the teaching of the law school’s academic support and bar preparation courses. Candidates must be willing to provide academic support for students in the evening division. 

Hiring Announcement: Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law (Director)

From an email message that I recently received:

Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law invites applications for the position of Director of Academic Success and Bar Preparation, with an anticipated start date of May 1, 2023.  This is a 12-month, full-time, non-tenure-track position, with an initial one-year appointment. The salary range for this position is $80,000 to $90,000 (plus benefits). 

The Director’s primary responsibility will be to help students develop the skills needed to reach their full academic potential for performance in law school and on the bar exam. Responsibilities include: (1) designing and implementing of academic support programs; (2) directing the law school’s bar exam preparation programs; and (3) teaching the law school’s academic support and bar preparation courses, along with other members of the Chase faculty. The Director will supervise and collaborate with of the Assistant Director of Academic Success and Bar Preparation. Candidates must be willing to provide academic support for students in the evening division. 

Drexel University Kline Law Seeks Tax Faculty

The Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law invites applications from entry-level and pre-tenure lateral candidates for a full-time, tenure-track position teaching and researching in the area of tax law.  Candidates must have a demonstrated record of significant scholarly achievement and a demonstrated commitment to excellent teaching. Because the law school is part of an R1 research university, tenure stream faculty are expected to engage in significant research and demonstrate educational, methodological, or practice backgrounds that add vitality to their work. .

Applications are particularly encouraged from people of color, individuals with disabilities, people of all sexual and gender identities, and anyone whose background, experience or viewpoint will contribute to the diversity of the faculty. 

To apply, please send a cover letter, research and diversity statements, and curriculum vitae (with references) to Faculty Appointments Chair David S. Cohen at dsc39@drexel.edu.  Applicants should submit materials as soon as possible.

Montana Law Names Four Dean Finalists

And they are:

University of Montana GC Lucy France, Interim Dean Elaine Gagliardi, attorney Kari Hong, and Professor Eric Christiansen (Golden Gate Law.)  Deets are here. 

Touro Law Seeks Legal Research and Writing Faculty

This just in:

The Touro University Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center is pleased to announce that it is again seeking applicants for an appointment to its Legal Process (Legal Research and Writing) faculty starting in August 2023. We have already hired one Legal Process professor for next year; however, we are now able to hire another one.  

Legal Process is a six-credit, first-year course. Students receive three credits in the fall semester and three credits in the spring semester. In addition to the standard focus on predictive writing in the fall and persuasive writing in the spring, students are introduced to client interviewing. They are also introduced to client counseling and/or negotiation.

After two successive one-year contracts, Legal Process professors can apply for presumptively renewable three-year contracts. Following a successful three-year contract, LP professors with a record of scholarly publications and/or substantial service outside of the law school may apply for renewable five-year contracts. Legal Process is a directorless program; professors enjoy the same level of autonomy as the doctrinal faculty, as well as the same access to travel, scholarship, and other professional development funds.

 

CFP: Harvard/Stanford/Yale Junior Faculty Forum

This just in:

Harvard, Stanford, and Yale Law Schools are soliciting submissions for the 2023 Harvard/Stanford/Yale Junior Faculty Forum, to be held at Yale Law School on June 29-30, 2023. Twelve to twenty junior scholars (with one to seven years in teaching) will be chosen, through a double-blind selection process, to present their work at the Forum. A senior scholar will comment on each paper. The audience will include the participating junior faculty, senior faculty from the host institutions, and invited guests. The goal of the Forum is to promote in-depth discussion about particular papers and more general reflections on broader methodological issues, as well as to foster a stronger sense of community among American legal scholars, particularly by strengthening ties between new and veteran professors.

TOPICS: Each year the Forum invites submissions on selected topics in public and private law, legal theory, and law and humanities topics, alternating loosely between public law and humanities subjects in one year, and private law and dispute resolution in the next. For the upcoming 2023 meeting, the topics will cover these areas of the law:

Administrative Law

Antidiscrimination Law and Theory

Constitutional Law—theoretical foundations 

Constitutional Law—historical foundations
Criminal Law

Critical Legal Studies 

Environmental Law 

Family Law

Jurisprudence and Philosophy 

Law and Humanities

Legislation and Statutory Interpretation 

Public International Law

Workplace Law and Social Welfare Policy

Workshop CFP: Secularism as a Value (4-6 May 2023, Princeton)

From an email I received:

"Secularism is a central feature of many constitutions. Over the last several decades, critical scholars have mounted highly effective challenges to secularism – arguing that it is ethnocentric and oppresses minorities. But the rise of populist and authoritarian nationalism movements, which have co-opted religious institutions and traditions, has given legal and political guarantees of secularism a new salience. These developments make understanding secularism, and whether and why it is valuable, particularly important. 

This two-day workshop aims to create a forum for scholars (including graduate students) to offer and obtain feedback on new or ongoing theoretical accounts of secularism as a legal and political value. The workshop will be an opportunity to bring new voices and perspectives on secularism into conversation with the work of more established scholars. Importantly, it will be an opportunity for cross-disciplinary discussions on secularism. We aim for the workshop to extend beyond the typical legal jurisdictions studied (France and the US) to particularly invite theoretical scholarship on legal and political secularism in jurisdictions in South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

We invite the presentation of work at all stages, including short papers or synopses, article-length drafts and book proposals. Please upload a single file containing a CV and an abstract of under 500 words to https://www.dropbox.com/request/AcxZUxRXJIWUYdc1FW0h by 1 March 2023. Please include your last name in the file name. 

The workshop will be held between 4 and 6 May 2023 in Princeton, New Jersey. Limited funds are available to support speakers’ travel costs. Online participation will be considered where speakers are otherwise unable to attend. 

Organisers: Dr Nathaniel Mull, Princeton Writing Program and Professor Farrah Ahmed, Melbourne Law School and the Princeton University Center for Human Values. This workshop is sponsored by the Princeton University Center for Human Values."

Jan. 6 Panel Transcripts Highlight Attorney Ethics Issues

Here is my new essay on Law360, with the story of Stefan Passantino's representation of Cassidy Hutchinson as a cautionary tale for other lawyers.

Law360, January 23, 2023

Jan. 6 Panel Transcripts Highlight Attorney Ethics Issues

Cassidy Hutchinson's testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee to Investigate the Jan. 6 Attack on the U.S. Capitol appears to have inspired a criminal investigation by special prosecutor Jack Smith. As recently reported by The Washington Post,[1] an extensive new grand jury subpoena has been served on a number of Trump's associates, seeking two dozen categories of information, some of which has not previously been requested. One new question, according to the Washington Post, "asks recipients to reveal if anyone other than themselves are paying for legal representation," which appears to follow up on Hutchinson's testimony that her attorney — who was being paid by Save America PAC, a PAC affiliated with former President Donald Trump — had attempted to steer her testimony away from implicating Trump's coterie, at the expense of telling the full story.

The select committee's final report[2] noted that lawyers "receiving payments for the representation from a group allied with President Trump" may have engaged in "efforts to obstruct the Committee's investigation." The new subpoenas now signal the special prosecutor's concern that some of these efforts may have crossed into conduct that merits further investigation.

In the meantime, Hutchinson's account of her experience demonstrates how easily a lawyer's own political agenda can shape a witness's testimony. Hutchinson ultimately provided considerable information about Trump's behavior before, during and after the Capitol insurrection, but it did not come easily.

The former aide to chief of staff Mark Meadows was represented at three committee interviews by Stefan Passantino, former ethics counsel[3] in the Trump White House and an attorney for the Trump campaign[4] in a 2020 Georgia election challenge. As Hutchinson later alleged, Passantino attempted to convince her to avoid giving testimony damaging to Trump, with the admonition "the less you remember, the better."[5] Only after retaining a new attorney was Hutchinson able to describe everything she observed about White House activity surrounding the Jan. 6 attack.

The special prosecutor's subpoenas now suggest that other witnesses' testimony may have been influenced by lawyers being paid by Trump-linked organizations. Following the release of Hutchinson's complete interview transcripts, appended to the select committee's final report,[6] we can see some of the ways in which Passantino sought to guide her testimony, as she put it, "to focus on protecting the president."[7] According to the report, Passantino instructed Hutchinson to feign ignorance and poor
memory to avoid implicating Meadows "and the boss."

Taboo Trades Podcast: Season 3 Sign-off

And so concludes another season of the Taboo Trades podcast, courtesy of me, Kim Krawiec, and the fabulous students at the University of Virginia. But never fear, I have some wonderful bonus episodes lined up over the coming months, with interesting guests, and I’ve invited some very special colleagues to join me as guest co-hosts.

 

As always, I’m devastated to have to say goodbye to this wonderful group of students. I hope that you’ve enjoyed getting to know them as much as I have.

 

 

Thanks to our co-hosts this season (all UVA Law 3Ls):

 

Bryan Blaylock

Bridget Boyd

Makenna Cherry

Reidar Composano

Ryan Fitzgerald

Rahima Ghafoori

Caroline Gozigian

Marley Peters

Meghana Puchalapalli

Jennifer Scoler

Mary Talkington

Lawyers, Zeal, and the Unpopular Client (Part V)

Guest post by Michael Ariens:

            This is the fifth and final post related to the idea that American lawyers have a duty to representing unpopular clients, for the sake of both those clients and in the interests of a public that despises those clients. These stories come from my book, The Lawyer’s Conscience: A History of American Lawyer Ethics (2023).

            In a sympathetic 1970 magazine portrait of lawyer William Kunstler, he declared, “I am not a lawyer for hire. I only defend those I love.” The editors of the ABA Journal opined that Kunstler’s position was “anti-professional.” The profession’s “ideal is to provide competent counsel for any person with a legitimate cause.” A lawyer’s decision to represent the unpopular client to the best of the lawyer’s ability was “a badge of honor,” as it demonstrated independence from the community which the lawyer served.  This independence from the passions of the community demonstrated lawyers served as “guardians of the law” who “play a vital role in the preservation of society.” Representing only those one loved tied the lawyer to the views and values of one’s client, a position lawyers traditionally rejected.

            The editorial received mixed reviews from lawyers, a number of which were published in letters to the editor. Some argued that the profession’s ideal was largely rejected in everyday practice. This was due in significant part to the focus of lawyers on monetary rewards rather than concern about “the public good.” Others embraced the ideal.

            This division among lawyers was partly a result of one’s interpretation of recent historical events. Not long after the crisis of representing the unpopular client during the Second Red Scare dissipated, a similar crisis arose in finding lawyers to represent those arrested for pressing issues of civil rights, particularly in southern states. A 1961 report of an ABA committee hostile to the civil rights movement acknowledged, “persons under criminal charges in certain sections of the South have been deprived of their right to effective counsel because of the refusal of lawyers of the Caucasian [sic] race to appear in the defense of colored [sic] defendants.” In June 1963, President John F. Kennedy hosted a gathering of a number of lawyers regarding this problem. The result of this meeting was the creation of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights under Law.

            The creation of the Lawyers’ Committee had no effect on the inability of civil rights proponents to find lawyers to represent them in Mississippi in 1963. Hundreds unsuccessfully sought lawyers in order to vindicate their first amendment rights; all “local lawyers refused to represent black activists.” Local lawyers refused to defend the unpopular client because they feared for the physical safety of themselves and their families, as well as economic ruin.