CYBERLAW

Law 276.1 & SIMS 235
Professor Pamela Samuelson 
University of California, Berkeley 
Fall 2001  Boalt Hall
Tuesdays & Thursdays, 3-4:25 pm

The emergence of global digital networks, such as the Internet, and digital technologies that enhance human abilities to access, store, manipulate, and transmit vast amounts of information has brought with it a host of new legal issues that lawyers preparing to practice in the 21st century will need to understand and address. Although many are trying to "map" existing legal concepts onto problems arising in cyberspace, it is becoming increasingly evident that this strategy sometimes doesn't work. In some cases, it is necessary to go back to first principles to understand how to accomplish the purposes of existing law in digital networked environments. The course will explore specific problems in applying law to cyberspace in areas such as intellectual property, privacy, content control, and the bounds of jurisdiction.

Students with familiarity with the Internet and its resources or with backgrounds in some of the substantive fields explored in this course are especially welcome, but there are no formal prerequisites. (Some students might appreciate a tutorial on Copyright law.) Grades for the course will be based on a take home exam..

E-Mail:pam@sims.berkeley.edu 
Office: 434 North Addition or 305B South Hall 
Phone: (510) 642-6775 
Office Hours: 2:30 - 4:00 Wednesdays (Boalt)


TOPICS TO BE COVERED

 
August 21 Introduction to Cyberspace and Modes of Regulating It
August 23 Jurisdiction Over Commercial Websites
August 28 Jurisdiction As to Tortious or Criminal Acts On The Internet
August 30 Legal Regulation of Harmful Speech in Cyberspace
September 4 Virtual Sex and Virtual Violence on the Internet
September 6 Intermediate Liability for Harmful Speech On the Internet
September 11 Legal Ramifications of Filtering Technologies
September 13 Unmasking Anonymous Speech on the Internet
September 18 Why Regulating Spam is Difficult
September 20 Trespass As a Way To Control Unwanted Activities on the Internet
September 25 Legal Protection for Personal Data on the Internet
September 27 Pros and Cons of Stronger Privacy Rules for Cyberspace
October 2 Legal Regulation of Encryption Technologies
October 4 Cybercrimes
October 9 Antitrust in Cyberspace: US v. Microsoft
October 11 Open Source In Cyberspace
October 23 More On Antitrust in Cyberspace (Open Access)
October 25 Copyright in Cyberspace: An Introduction
October 29 Intermediate Liability for Copyright Infringement in Cyberspace
November 1 Digital Music and Copyright in Cyberspace: The Napster Case
November 6 More on Digital Music and Copyright in Cyberspace
November 8 Implications of Digital Rights Management Systems
November 13 Circumvention of Technical Measures Protecting Digital Content
November 15 More on Circumvention
November 20 The Collision of Trademarks and Domain Names in Cyberspace
November 27 ICANN, the UDRP, and WIPO RFC
November 29 Questioning ICANN's Legitimacy
December 5 Challenges of Regulating a Global Internet
Links/Resources A list of Useful Sites

August 21  Introduction to Cyberspace and Modes of Regulating It

For those who would like to know more about the Internet and its technical design, one or more of these readings may be useful. Here are some readings for those who would like to know more about the Internet and its technical design:
For those who'd like a sampling of varying perspectives on regulation of cyberspace, one or more of these readings may be helpful:
For a discussion of recent or likely future regulatory initiatives pertaining to cyberspace, one or more of the following readings may be useful:
August 23   Jurisdiction Over Commercial Websites
Required Readings:
Recommended Readings:
August 28   Jurisdiction As to Tortious or Criminal Acts on the Internet
Required Readings:
Recommended Readings:
August 30   Legal Regulation of Harmful Speech in Cyberspace
Required:
Recommended:
September 4    Virtual Sex and Virtual Violence on the Internet
Required:
Recommended Reading:
September 6     Intermediary Liability for Harful Speech on the Internet
Required Reading: Recommended Reading:
September 11    Legal Ramifications of Filtering Technologies
Required:
Recommended:
September 13   Unmasking Anonymous Speech on the Internet
Required:
September 18   Why Regulating Spam is Difficult
Required:
Recommended:
September 20   Trespass As a Way to Control Unwanted Activities on the Internet
Required:
Recommended:
September 25   Legal Protection for Personal Data on the Internet
Required Reading: Recommended Reading:
September 27   Pros and Cons of Stronger Privacy Rules for Cyberspace
October 2    Legal Regulation of Encryption Technologies
Required:
Recommended:
October 4 Cybercrimes
Required:
Recommended Reading
October 9th - Antitrust in Cyberspace: US v. Microsoft
Required Reading: Recommended Reading
October 11th - OPEN SOURCE IN CYBERSPACE October 23 More on Antitrust in Cyberspace
Required Reading:
October 25 Copyright in Cyberspace: An Introduction
October 29 Intermediary Liability for Copyright Infringement in Cyberspace
November 1 Digital Music and Copyright in Cyberspace: The Napster Case
November 6 More on Digital Music and Copyright in Cyberspace
November 8 Implications of Digital Rights Management Systems
November 13 Circumvention of Technical Measures Protecting Digital Content
Required Reading:
Recommended Reading:
November 15 More on Circumvention
November 20 The Collision of Trademarks and Domain Names in Cyberspace
Required Reading:
Recommended Reading:
November 27   ICANN, the UDRP, and WIPO RFC
November 29    Questioning ICANN's Legitimacy
Required Readings Recommended Reading:
December 5 Challenges of Governing a Global Internet
Required Reading: Recommended Reading: USEFUL SITES:
American Civil Liberties Union, http://www.aclu.org

Center For Democracy and Technology, http://www.cdt.org

Cyberspacelaw, http://www.cyberspacelaw.org

Electronic Frontier Foundation, http://www.eff.org

Electronic Privacy Information Center, http://www.epic.org

European Commission Information Society Project Office, http://www.ispo.cec.be

Global Internet Liberty Campaign, http://www.gilc.org/

Information Technology Association of America, http://www.itaa.org

Internet Corporation for Assigned Names & Numbers, http://www.icann.org

ICANN Watch, http://www.icannwatch.org

Junkbusters, http://www.junkbusters.com

Politechbot, http://www.politechbot.com/

Progressive Policy Institute, http://www.dlcppi.org

Recording Industry Association of America, http://www.riaa.org

Tech Law Journal, http://techlawjournal.com/

World Wide Web Consortium, http://www.w3c.org