Commercial Law in the Digital Age
Program Description:
Emerged and emerging technological developments have created the potential for commercial transactions that may not be adequately addressed by existing commercial laws. Such innovations include distributed ledger technologies like the blockchain, new forms of digital assets like cryptocurrencies, and dynamic electronic transactions like those involving smart contracts and e-debt.
Admittedly some areas of law might already have sufficient flexibility and need only be modified in order to accommodate these new transactions, while others may need significant changes or a complete overhaul. Smart contracts involving the sale and lease of goods may require changes to Articles 2 and 2A of the Uniform Commercial Code. New ways of processing payments and transferring value raise the possible need to fill gaps in Articles 4 and 4A. The use of digital assets, including cryptoassets, in secured lending entail changes to Article 9. Additionally, the increasing prevalence of electronic promissory notes likely requires a reimagining of the largely paper-based Article 3 system. For some or all of these, changes to federal law might also be required.
The Section on Commercial and Consumer Law seeks to promote a careful and creative exploration of these and related issues at the 2020 AALS Annual Meeting during its program panel titled Commercial Law in the Digital Age.
Call for Papers:
The Section invites the submission of abstracts or full papers dealing broadly with issues related to commercial/consumer law and technology, payment systems, the sale and lease of goods, electronic transactions, e-commerce, and commercial transactions using distributed ledger technologies and smart contracts. There is no formal paper requirement associated with participation on the panel, but preference will be given to those submissions that demonstrate novel scholarly insights that have been substantially developed. Untenured scholars in particular are encouraged to submit their work. Please email your submissions to Chris Odinet at [email protected] by Friday, August 16, 2019. The selection results will be announced in early September 2019. In additional to the confirmed speakers below, the Section anticipates selecting two to three papers from the call.
Confirmed Speakers:
Neil B. Cohen, Jeffrey D. Forchelli Professor of Law, Brooklyn Law School
Carla L. Reyes, Assistant Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Law, Technology & Innovation, Michigan State University College of Law
Amy J. Schmitz, Elwood L. Thomas Missouri Endowed Professor of Law, University of Missouri School of Law
Eligibility:
Per AALS rules, only full-time faculty members of AALS member law schools are eligible to submit a paper/abstract to Section calls for papers. Faculty at fee-paid law schools, foreign faculty, adjunct and visiting faculty (without a full-time position at an AALS member law school), graduate students, fellows, and non-law school faculty are not eligible to submit.
All panelists, including speakers selected from this Call for Papers, are responsible for paying their own annual meeting registration fee and travel expenses.
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