Data Brokers: How Much is Your Fourth Amendment Right Worth?

The ability to purchase private data through commercial data brokers has become increasingly easy. Data brokers originally gained popularity as a way to assist marketing and advertisements, allowing companies to better communicate with their consumers. Lawmakers worry data brokers’ products have begun to cater towards law-enforcement, causing constitutional concerns.

Landmark Settlement for a Privacy Violation Brings Big-Tech to its Knees

On Friday, February 26, 2021, U.S. District Court Judge James Donato approved a 650 million-dollar settlement against tech giant Facebook for violating the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act. Chicago attorney Jay Edelson filed the class action lawsuit in 2015, alleging that Facebook had failed to obtain consent from users before using facial recognition technology to scan and digitally store uploaded photos.

New Body-Worn Camera Requirements in Effect for New Jersey Police

On June 1, 2021, a new policy went into effect in New Jersey, requiring police officers to wear body cameras. In November 2020, Governor Phil Murphy signed legislation mandating and regulating law enforcement officers’ use of body-worn cameras during encounters with the public. Specifically, the governor signed two bills: S1163 and A4312. The former establishes the requirement for officers to wear body-cameras, while the latter regulates their use. These bills have received support from both law enforcement officials and civilians.

Professional Sports Leagues and Vaccine Mandates

Following President Biden’s announcement mandating vaccinations for companies with over one hundred employees, major professional sports leagues may be required to ensure compliance with the mandate. This mandate has the potential to have sweeping implications throughout professional sports, from the athletes, to staff and even spectators. The NFL, NBA, and MLB all have high vaccination rates among their players and the staff that works closely with them, since many teams have already mandated that players and those working in “close proximity” to them be vaccinated. However, their back-office staff are less protected, as those employees have yet to be subjected to strict protocols of the rest of the leagues. Despite these high vaccination rates among athletes and certain staff members, the leagues have been reluctant to institute absolute mandates. But that doesn’t mean that athletes don’t still have a responsibility not only to get vaccinated but also encourage others to do so as well.

The Bulls vs. The Bears: The Legality of Short Selling “Stonks”

The Bears of Wall Street have always used their paws to swipe down on financially weak companies by further driving down their stock price. However, the Bulls, recently led by retail investors and Wall Street Bet users, have begun thrusting their horns up into the air to lead an attack on bearish institutions by forcing them to buy back the “Stonks” that they shorted. This stock trading phenomenon, backed with the subjective ethical obligation to protect the little guy on Wall Street, is called the “The Short Squeeze.” While the Bears’ strategy of short selling stocks in the financial market faces public criticism, it is entirely legal. Therefore, financial regulators should encourage these millennial Bulls to take precautions in understanding the legality of trading strategies in the free market.

Should the United States Government Continue Subsidizing the Fossil Fuel Industry?

In his proposed American Jobs Plan, President Biden has stated that if the United States wants to achieve its decarbonization targets and get climate change under control, cutting off government support to the fossil fuel industry is a crucial first step. Eliminating government subsidies for fossil fuels is the most logical step in fighting back against climate change, but Biden is facing an uphill battle to get his American Jobs Plan passed through Congress.

Abort Texas’ New Abortion Law

Under Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court found that states could not create onerous requirements which interfered with a patient’s right to an abortion up to the point of viability of the fetus, which was around 24 weeks. However, Texas’ new law erodes that decision. On May 9, 2021, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed Texas’ new abortion law commonly known as the fetal “heartbeat” bill, and on September 1, 2021, the Supreme Court refused to block Texas’ “heartbeat” bill. The new law bans abortions as soon as cardiac motion can be detected in the embryo, roughly six weeks into a pregnancy.

The “heartbeat” bill contradicts the purpose of standing and adversely impacts not only the patients but people working in the medical field, families and friends of the patients, people who support a person’s right to choose, and society as a whole. Congress cannot continue to idly sit by. Congress must codify the principles of Roe v. Wade to protect an individual’s right to health care.

NCAA Name, Image and Likeness Legislation Raises Concerns

On June 29, 2021, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed a bill into law that allows collegiate student-athletes to hire agents and sign endorsement deals effective as of  July 1, 2021. This bill puts Illinois among a number of states which have begun to pass legislation allowing student-athletes to receive payment for the use of their name, image, and likeness (“NIL”). While these laws open opportunities for student-athletes, they also present several potential challenges to the NCAA, the governing body for collegiate athletics in the United States, and its member institutions barring any Congressional assistance.

The Questions of Scotland’s Independence: The Rise of Scottish Nationalism, Trade Concerns, and the Future of Economic Regulatory Policies 

Collectively, four countries make up the United Kingdom (U.K.), including England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. In 2016, an overwhelming number of Scottish citizens voted to remain in the European Union (E.U.) during the U.K. referendum, which resulted in a 51.89 percent vote in favor to leave. After departing from the E.U. in January of 2020, Scottish industries suffered economic losses due to the ‘red tape’ policies imposed by the U.K., making it more difficult to sell Scottish products to E.U. member countries. As a result, Scotland’s independence and nationalist movement grew exponentially, with forty-five of the fifty-nine Scottish seats in the House of Commons going to the Scottish Nationalist Party, with strong support of seceding from the U.K. Additionally, in 2019, Scotland’s Parliament reconvened for the first time since 1707, signaling the Scotland’s desire for self-autonomy and sovereignty. The possibility of seceding poses questions over the future of economic and social regulatory policies for an independent Scotland.