UC Law SF LexLab Helps Law Students, Professionals Grasp New Privacy Laws
Data privacy legal expert Lothar Determann (left) moderated a panel of data privacy professionals – Jeewon Kim Serrato, Mariam Abdel-Malek, Barbara Lawler, and Leila Golchehreh (left to right) – at a Privacy Day event co-hosted by LexLab at UC Law SF on Sept. 29.
As a center focused on law and innovation, is tackling the most pressing technology issues of the day, including how new California privacy laws could change the way businesses handle personal data for decades to come.
To help law students and data professionals better understand the new laws, LexLab this fall co-hosted an event 鈥 — that brought legal and technology experts to campus. The experts helped break down the new rules, explaining what they mean for small to large business in California and across the globe.
Drew Amerson is director of LexLab at UC Law SF.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important that our students not just understand the basics of the law but see how it is actually being put into practice鈥 said LexLab Director Drew Amerson.
LexLab teamed up with the California Lawyers Association Privacy Law Section and the Silicon Valley and San Francisco Bay Chapters of the to host the in-person and online event on Sept. 29.
Regarded by most experts as the strongest privacy protections in the United States, California passed two laws over the last few years that limit what data companies can collect, use, share, and sell. Much of the conference was focused on the impact of these two laws 鈥 the (CCPA) of 2018 and the (CPRA) of 2020. Key provisions of the CPRA will take effect in January 2023.
Lothar Determann gave the keynote speech and moderated a panel of data privacy experts.
Keynote speaker , the author of five books on data privacy laws, explained how the CPRA expands the definition of 鈥減ersonal data鈥 and places new restrictions on certain companies. Determan has been practicing and teaching in the field since 1998.
A panel of data privacy experts discussed the practical steps businesses must take to comply and avoid harsh civil penalties. One panel member – Mariam Abdel-Malek, a director in 鈥 said businesses will have two options: stop selling or sharing data, or continue the practice but give users the power to opt out.
Mariam Abdel-Malek is a director within Privacy Legal at Pinterest.
鈥淧erhaps this company doesn鈥檛 want to make the statement that they sell or share data,鈥 Abdel-Malek said. 鈥淭hey might prioritize the PR benefit of not having to make that statement over the revenue impact.鈥
Lydia de la Torre, a board member of the who teaches a course on comparative privacy law at UC Law SF, discussed other recent changes to data privacy laws, including in Europe, in a conversation with Alastair MacTaggart, board chair and founder of .
UC Law SF LexLab Director Drew Amerson led a discussion between Lydia de la Torre and Alastair Mactaggart.
Mactaggart, who led efforts to pass the two California privacy laws, said he expects the regulations will shape national policy for years to come. De la Torre voiced concern about another privacy issue 鈥 the potential for law enforcement in certain states to use women鈥檚 private data to prosecute them for seeking abortion care.
Hannibal Huntley ’23, a student in the Technology and Innovation in Law concentration at UC Law SF, said he gained valuable knowledge from the exchange about an expanding field of law that promises to offer exciting careers for future lawyers.
鈥淧rivacy is a rapidly growing field of regulation, both in Europe and in California, and thus throughout the rest of the U.S.,鈥 Huntley said. 鈥淭he California Consumer Protection Act will lead to a burgeoning of in-house regulatory compliance jobs and an entire new sector of privacy compliance-focused firms.鈥