From regulating cryptocurrency and breaking apart large expertise corporations to proscribing abortion rights and defending pregnant employees, UC Legislation SF college members shared what they suppose would be the greatest authorized points to observe for in 2023.
Alice Armitage, Scientific Professor & Director of Utilized Innovation: The regulation of cryptocurrency shall be probably the most hotly debated authorized problems with the yr. 2022 has been a tough yr for crypto, together with not solely the dramatic lack of the worth this previous spring but in addition the general public implosion of FTX, one of many largest exchanges on which cryptocurrencies had been traded. The outcome shall be elevated scrutiny by lawmakers in addition to widespread press protection of the numerous lawsuits more likely to be filed on the idea of those occasions. To reply this want for authorized experience, legislators and legal professionals must turn into extremely versed in each the advantages and limitations of cryptocurrency and the expertise on which it exists. Rules and trial outcomes will take years to be finalized. Consequently, I shall be broadening the protection of cryptocurrency and blockchain in my programs on regulation and expertise in 2023 in order that our new graduates will be capable to hit the bottom working on these sophisticated points.
Paul Belonick, Professor of Observe; Director, Startup Legal Garage; and Deputy Director, Center for Innovation: Will probably be very fascinating to see if the FTX implosion results in extra requires cryptocurrency and cryptocurrency change regulation, and with what outcome. At current, the SEC and different regulatory our bodies have been fastidiously analyzing crypto exchanges, and this incident will solely enhance scrutiny. Based on a number of information experiences, FTX’s inside books and governance requirements had been incoherent or non-existent. That’s particularly ironic as a result of FTX held itself out because the mediation level between the wild west of unregulated crypto and extra historically regulated industries. After all, a part of crypto’s attraction has lengthy been its claimed means to evade authorities management. However that declare has at all times been overstated, and we might now see if governments will are available in with a heavy hand, and with what success. If Enron gave delivery to Sarbanes-Oxley (and it’s the identical chapter administrator in FTX’s case!), will the FTX debacle result in comparable laws? And the place will the crypto trade go from there?
Marsha Cohen, The Honorable Raymond L. Sullivan Professor of Legislation: Submit-Dobbs, as quite a few states proceed to limit abortion, demand has unsurprisingly elevated in neighboring states, placing stress on well being care suppliers and techniques. With half of abortions now executed utilizing drugs fairly than surgical procedure, will these states act to extend entry by increasing the authority of non-physicians (akin to doctor assistants, nurses, and pharmacists) to be licensed healthcare suppliers in accordance with FDA necessities for abortion medication? States acted to make “Plan B” (post-coital emergency contraception) obtainable past physician’s places of work earlier than these medication had been allowed to be bought over-the-counter. California’s superior apply pharmacist designation is a helpful mannequin in that occupation. Will necessity result in legislative/regulatory improvements – and can they much more broadly increase well being care entry, past the necessity for abortion care?
Scott Dodson, James Edgar Hervey Chair in Litigation, Geoffrey C. Hazard Jr. Distinguished Professor of Legislation, and Director of the Center for Litigation and the Courts: In civil process, the most important difficulty that may possible be determined subsequent yr is whether or not a state can extract from a company consent to basic private jurisdiction in change for doing enterprise within the state. Within the wake of the Supreme Court docket’s narrowing of basic private jurisdiction, and the narrowing of particular private jurisdiction, the variety of potential locations to carry a lawsuit have diminished dramatically. This diminishment is very essential when the defendant is a international company. Some have responded by passing registration statutes that require a company to consent to private jurisdiction within the state as a situation to doing enterprise within the state. The supreme courtroom heard oral arguments in Mallory v. Norfolk, which presents the query of whether or not such statutes are constitutional, and a call is anticipated within the spring.
Richard Marcus, Distinguished Professor of Legislation and Horace O. Coil Chair in Litigation: Litigation-related points proceed to be distinguished, and significantly in complicated litigation. Amongst them are the right dealing with of multidistrict litigation (which now consists of about half of all pending civil instances in federal courtroom), confidentiality of supplies exchanged in discovery and filed in courtroom, class motion certification, and the suitable dealing with of discover relating to supplies sought by discovery however withheld on grounds of privilege.
Sam Miller, Affiliated Scholar on the Center for Innovation: Large Tech corporations will face persevering with assaults on antitrust grounds in 2023. A significant DOJ case in opposition to Google, alleging monopolization claims, is expectedto go to trial within the Fall. Varied State Attorneys Basic are additionally pursuing a case based mostly on Google’s dominance within the advert tech area.The Federal Commerce Fee (FTC) is suing Fb (now Meta), looking for to undo Fb’s acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. The Ninth Circuit Court docket of Appeals ought to difficulty its opinion in Epic Video games v. Apple, the place Epic — the maker of the favored online game Fortnite — is difficult Apple’s “walled backyard” management of the App Retailer. On the legislative entrance, we might even see motion on proposed main amendments to antitrust legal guidelines, together with laws proposed by Sen. Amy Klobuchar, which might prohibit main tech platforms from favoring their very own apps and make it simpler for the federal government to problem mergers.
Lois A. Weithorn, Raymond L. Sullivan Analysis Professor of Legislation, Consortium Senior Scholar, UCSF/UC Law SF Consortium on Law, Science and Health Policy: Previously yr, a number of states have adopted measures proscribing minors’ entry to gender affirming medical care. The mechanisms of those initiatives range. Most forged a large internet, threatening dad and mom and well being care practitioners with legal and/or civil legal responsibility for offering or accessing such 
remedy for minors. Mother and father, youngsters, and well being care practitioners have initiated authorized challenges, and the U.S. Division of Justice characterised these measures as “illegal discrimination” based mostly on “gender identification” in a letter to all State Attorneys Basic. Preliminary injunctions have stayed enforcement in some jurisdictions. These state restrictions are unprecedented in scope. Moreover, they battle with scientific proof of remedy security and efficacy and the scientific pointers on gender affirming care established by the main nationwide medical societies. These measures additionally depart from the authorized framework that guides health-care decision-making for minors within the U.S. Prevailing doctrine presumes deference to parental choices, not often authorizing the state to override choices which are in accord with the consensus medical suggestions. The brand new yr will undoubtedly carry additional developments relating to the authorized standing of those state measures.
Joan Williams, Distinguished Professor of Legislation Emeritus and UC Legislation SF Basis Chair and Director of the Center for WorkLife Law: Congress’s failure to cross the Pregnant WorkersFairness Act (regardless of having the votes to take action) implies that pregnant employees will nonetheless face being fired after they want easy lodging, akin to when a pregnant cashier’s physician orders use of a stool to be able to keep away from eight hours of standing. We hear from pregnant employees on our Hotline who’ve misplaced their jobs –or, alas, typically their infants—when they’re denied easy lodging their docs have ordered, like the flexibility to hold a water bottle on the job. As well as, Congress’s failure to cross the PUMP Act implies that thousands and thousands of girls nonetheless are excluded from the necessities (underneath the Reasonably priced Care Act) to cheap time and area for nursing. In consequence, we are going to proceed to listen to from girls pressured to stop, or to stop nursing. This was not the intention of the Reasonably priced Care Act (ACA). It’s broadly acknowledged that the ACA drafting that led thousands and thousands of girls to be excluded from protection resulted from a drafting error—one we’re nonetheless ready for Congress to right.