LAW 661 - Privacy Technological Age Sem

New technologies are changing the ways information is gathered, used, shared and disseminated. This course will review the laws that have emerged in response to these developments and cases that have attempted to apply them. Particular emphasis will be given to (1) the historical roots of privacy law in the United States and elsewhere; (2) the balance between the individual’s right to protect and control personal information and the corresponding duty placed on public and private entities possessing such information; and (3) the shifting balance of these rights and duties in rapidly changing technological contexts. The course will examine these issues in a variety of settings (in the workplace, court record rooms, doctors’ offices, police databases, etc), and across legal disciplines (tort law, criminal law, constitutional law, etc.). Finally, the course will examine the shortcomings of legal solutions in protecting privacy and emerging technological alternatives some think are better. Grades will be determined by class participation and a final paper.