13203 research outputs found
Sort by
Content Moderation Regulation as Legal Role-Scripting
Get PDFLawmakers and scholars concerned with content moderation regulation typically appeal to “analogies” to justify or undermine different forms of regulation. The logic goes: law should afford individuals due process rights against speech platforms because speech platforms are “like” speech governors as a matter of objective reality. Other common analogies include common carriers, publishers, distributors, shopping malls, and bookstores.
Commentators attempt to invoke social roles to understand what the content moderation relationship is, what behaviors are “right” and “wrong” within it, and how law should police behavioral deviations. But they do so without relying on foundational sociology theory that explains what social roles are, what they do, and how they come to be. Without this theoretical foundation, the discourse incompletely portrays the project of content moderation regulation. Content moderation regulations do not simply “take” speech platforms’ role as it currently exists––they will also “make” speech platforms’ role by expressing that speech platforms should be speech governors, common carriers, publishers, or something else, based on how lawmakers choose to regulate.
This Article is the first to introduce role theory into the content moderation discourse. Content moderation regulations are poised to define the basic contours of what it means to be a “speech platform” because the role remains unsettled. Earlier, the Communications Decency Act failed to articulate coherent roles within the content moderation relationship. But current content moderation regulatory reforms—including the PACT Act in Congress as well as state platform-common carriage laws and their judicial review—have a renewed opportunity to script social roles for speech platforms and individuals. Foregrounding these reforms’ role scripts directs attention to urgent questions about whether they are likely to produce a desirable content moderation relationship and an online speech ecosystem that meets the public’s needs
Marginalized Laborers: A Study of the Realities and Challenges Faced by International Domestic Workers in Kuwait
Get PDFThe primary impetus for undertaking this inquiry into the legal status of international domestic workers in Kuwait is to furnish them with sufficient legal protection. By conducting a thorough analysis of the system, identifying its shortcomings, and evaluating its overall effectiveness, the proposed research aims to offer a comprehensive legal resolution to address the issue at hand.
Examining the various labor laws, regulations, and policies in Kuwait will facilitate a thorough understanding of the efficacy of the nation’s existing legal framework. Upon comprehending these sources, a detailed assessment of the extent to which they adhere to international human rights norms will be provided. This study will closely examine components pertaining to employment, contractual agreements, the working environment, remuneration, the availability of legal assistance, mechanisms for dispute resolution, and safeguards against mistreatment and harassment.
To achieve the research objective, it is imperative to analyze the issues, limitations, and inconsistencies inherent in the current legal framework as these factors present considerable obstacles to ensuring protection of the rights of international domestic workers. To this end, a thorough examination will be undertaken of the sponsorship system, widely recognized as the kafala system. Moreover, this study will examine the implementation of contractual agreements, length of employment terms, allocation of rest periods, availability of healthcare services, degree of freedom of mobility, and frequency of infringements related to labor rights and legislation concerning labor practices.
Upon the culmination of this research, a comprehensive set of legal recommendations aiming to guarantee sufficient legal safeguards for international domestic workers in Kuwait will be furnished. The recommendations provided will be derived from an empirical analysis of the existing legal framework, with a particular focus on identifying the areas where deficiencies in safety protocols may exist. The proposed plan will prioritize legislative reforms, policy modifications, and institutional enhancements intending to curb labor abuse, ensure equitable treatment for all individuals, and offer efficacious remedies for violations
Taylor is first Indiana Law student to receive Sports Lawyers Association Student Writing award
Get PDFA rising 3L at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law is one of 10 law students nationwide—and the first IU student ever— to receive the Sports Lawyers Association’s Student Writing Competition Award.
Amelia Taylor won the honors for her work “A Critical Analysis of Name, Image, and Likeness Policies and Their Implications for International Student-Athletes.”
While American student-athletes have been allowed to earn compensation through NIL deals since July 2021, international student-athletes have faced major hurdles due to immigration laws and policies.
“I chose to focus on international students’ NIL rights because this issue is often overlooked, with media and politicians focusing on higher-profile topics like athlete compensation, employment, and recruitment/inducements,” Taylor said. “Despite the attention these issues receive, they do not address the unique challenges faced by international students.
Dean Christiana Ochoa and 12 Maurer alumni named Indiana 250 honorees
Get PDFWhat do Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark, record-setting racecar driver and team owner Michael Andretti, Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay, broadcasting icon Pat McAfee, and Indiana Law Dean Christiana Ochoa have in common?
All are among this year’s list of Indiana 250 honorees, recognizing some of the most influential and impactful leaders across the state, a list that also includes a number of Maurer School of Law alumni.
“The evolution of the Indiana 250 over time is one of our favorite things about it—and the reason we update the list annually,” said Nate Feltman, CEO and owner of IBJ Media. “The changes represent the way our state and the people who live and work here are growing and progressing. And as we developed the list, we looked for people who are making an impact now.
Framing Online Speech Governance as an Algorithmic Accountability Issue
Get PDFAutomated tools used in online speech governance are prone to errors on a large-scale yet widely used. Legal and policy responses have largely focused on case-by-case evaluations of these errors, instead of an examination of the development process of the tools. Moreover, information on the internet is no longer simply generated by users, but also by sophisticated language tools like ChatGPT, that are going to pose a challenge to speech governance. Yet, legal and policy measures have not responded adequately to AI tools becoming more dynamic and impactful. In order to address the challenges posed by algorithmic content governance, I argue that there is a need to frame a regulatory approach that focuses on the tools used in both content moderation and content generation contexts—which can be done by viewing this technology through an algorithmic accountability lens. I provide an overview of the various aspects of the technical and normative features of these tools that help us frame the regulation of these tools as an algorithmic accountability issue. I do this in three steps: First, I discuss the lack of sufficient attention towards AI tools in current regulatory approaches. Second, I highlight the shared features of both content moderation and content generation to offer insights about the interlinked and evolving landscape of online speech and AI Governance. Third, I situate this discussion of speech governance within a broader framework of algorithmic accountability to guide future regulatory interventions
Helping Students to Organize Their Thoughts About the Erie Doctrine
Get PDFThis little Essay presents a framework for teaching the Erie Doctrine. It is not a grand analysis of the federal courts’ puzzle. It does not even offer a wondrously insightful vision of one of the puzzle’s colorful pieces. Rather, the purpose is quite modest. The essay simply aims to help students to organize their thoughts about whether a particular legal issue is governed by state or federal law. Given the Essay’s limited and wholly heuristic purpose, the usual endless parade of all possible cases and the careful rehearsal of exquisite and finely-tuned factors and considerations are eschewed
Authenticating Social Media Evidence in Chinese Criminal Procedure Law -- A Comparative Study
Get PDFAuthentication requires the proponent to provide sufficient proof that the proposed social media evidence is, indeed, what it is claimed to be. The rapid proliferation of social media evidence has posed significant challenges for its authentication. This dissertation explores the authentication challenges for social media evidence in a comprehensive manner.
This research employs a qualitative research methodology, including theoretical and analytical methods, to examine the theoretical approaches, statutory provisions, and recent judicial rulings related to the authentication of social media evidence within the legal frameworks of China and the United States. Through a comparative analysis, this study reveals significant commonalities and discrepancies in the authentication processes of the two legal systems, attributable to their distinct legal traditions, evidence rules, trial systems, and criminal proceedings.
While this study advocates for the localization of the U.S. authentication rule within the Chinese legal context, it recognizes that some essential factors of the U.S. model cannot be seamlessly integrated into China’s legal framework. The significance of this research lies in its potential to promote further legislative amendments concerning authentication. Therefore, this analysis offers invaluable insights for legal practitioners, policymakers, and scholars, facilitating a deeper understanding of the continuously evolving landscape of social media evidence authentication
The Criminal Metaverse
Get PDFVirtual worlds are no longer science fiction. New technologies that promise a world lacking physical or mental boundaries are finally becoming a reality. Commonly referred to as the metaverse, this innovative technology opens a world of opportunities for individuals everywhere to experience an almost unlimited virtual dimension where they can play, work, own property, engage in sexual activities, and fulfill their dreams. Unlike previous virtual worlds, the metaverse could be a gamechanger as it offers an immersive experience. It feels authentic to the users and will become even more realistic with advancements in haptic technology. With its benefits, the technology also raises the fear of criminal activities. These may include financial or property crimes (e.g., theft or fraud), crimes against the person (e.g., stalking or harassment), and sex crimes (e.g., sexual harassment and potentially even rape), to name but a few examples.
Unlike previous virtual worlds and its related scholarship, the metaverse’s immersive capabilities could be disruptive to criminal law: they could lead to atypical offenses that, while lacking physical harm, could activate the nervous system much like a conventional crime. If the mind cannot tell the difference, how should criminal law treat such conduct? In light of such immersion, this Article proposes a taxonomy for metaverse crimes and suggests further scrutiny of the metaverse’s enforcement. Upon defining the criminal metaverse, this Article identifies some conducts as in superposition—whereas their existence and scope are currently undetermined—and offers ways to assess their harm. It then examines enforcement challenges and concludes that much of the rulemaking and enforcement will be in the realm of metaverse platforms, while some must remain under the state\u27s prerogative. Ultimately, enforcement of the criminal metaverse will take on an unprecedented dynamic that has yet to be seen in criminal law
State Taxes and Pike Balancing
Get PDFFor many decades, the Supreme Court has applied different doctrinal frameworks in evaluating whether state laws violate the dormant Commerce Clause depending on whether the law at issue was a regulation or a tax. For state regulations, the Court’s test has included asking whether the regulation imposes costs on interstate commerce that are “clearly excessive” relative to its local benefits. But the Court has never applied this so-called “Pike balancing test” to state taxes. In its most recent state tax decision, however—South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc.—the Court indicated Pike offers a basis for challenging state tax schemes under the Commerce Clause. Wayfair has thus created a puzzle: How should undue burden analysis apply to state taxes?
Contrary to the positions of several courts and scholars, this article contends that the best understanding of governing constitutional law is that state tax liabilities themselves—independent of any costs of compliance—are categorically incapable of imposing burdens that are constitutionally “undue.” A survey of the different types of incidental costs state taxes might impose on interstate commerce shows that those costs cannot be “clearly excessive” in a constitutional sense—either because precedent forecloses that conclusion or because the inquiry Pike posits is not amenable to judicial resolution. This explains why the Court has never invalidated a state tax liability due to its incidental burden on interstate commerce. And it explains why the Court mentioned Pike specifically in Wayfair, which concerned the burden of a tax compliance obligation, not a tax liability.
In short, the only state tax disputes for which undue burden analysis is appropriate are those involving the costs of tax compliance obligations. In every other type of state tax case, “Pike balancing” is beside the point