At the 2020 Cyberspace Law Institute and Winter Working Meeting, the Smart Contracts and Blockchain Technology Subcommittee had another interesting discussion. David McCarville, our guest speaker, discussed potential applications of blockchain technology and smart contracts and potential liability issues in various areas. David is a practicing attorney in Arizona and an Adjunct Professor at Sandra Day O’Connor School of Law at Arizona State University.
The subcommittee also discussed several projects. These are:
- Developing a policy platform to be adopted by the ABA House of Delegates discouraging state legislators from amending the versions of UETA to account for blockchain technology and smart contracts. The consensus of the subcommittee is that these existing laws already cover these technologies and that the new laws, passed by legislators to encourage high-tech business in their districts, are counter-productive and confusing.
- Preparing a whitepaper for legislators discussing UETA and its application to blockchain technology.
- Professor Carla Reyes also has requested that members provide specific examples of smart contracting in actual use. She is collecting these for a UCC project for which she is attempting to update the Uniform Commercial Code to consider new technologies.
Please let us know if you are interested in working on any or all of these projects. We look forward to engaging subcommittee members and newcomers at our next telephonic meeting on Thursday, March 26 at 4:00 p.m. ET. Stay tuned for call-in details.