Winter 2018

Features

Science & Engineering

Art: A Brief Retrospective on the Legal Term

By Michelle Pham

Art is exceptionally hard to define, yet judges and legislatures throughout the world are called upon to decide whether an object qualifies as a work of art or a cultural object for different legal purposes, such as avoiding customs duties, defending against obscenity or pornography charges, or distinguishing fakes from originals.

Science & Engineering

Can Blockchain Technology Disrupt the Trade in Illicit Antiquities?

By Derek Fincham

If archaeologists and nations of origin could use blockchain networks to record basic object identification data, such a comprehensive system if widely utilized would render any matching object unmarketable, and could deeply disrupt the market in stolen antiquities.

Science & Engineering

Gilbert “Gil” F. Whittemore, 1950–2017

Compiled by Larry W. Thorpe

The Section celebrates the life of past Chair Gil Whittemore, a beloved friend, mentor, and colleague who was an active leader and participant in the Section.

Science & Engineering

Handbook of System Safety and Security, Edited by Edward Griffor

Reviewed by Michael Aisenberg

Book reviews are an infrequent feature of this publication, as exigencies of timeliness dictated by publication schedules make identification of review-worthy volumes difficult.

Science & Engineering

Mobile Devices, Public Spaces, and Freedom of Panorama

By Barron Oda

To reconcile today’s accepted social norms of content creation and online sharing with the present Copyright Act, Congress should give serious consideration to expanding freedom of panorama to exempt from infringement reproductions of works of visual art, photographs, and architectural works located in spaces held open to the public.

Science & Engineering

Rendering Authenticity of Artworks Nonjusticiable through Science and Technology

By Lawrence M. Shindell

A positive legal conclusion that an artwork is an authentic work created by the attributed artist will turn on competing opinions about what is ultimately a subjective question based on applying a factually imperfect evidentiary burden of proof. Only science and technology can solve this problem, assuming that science and technology can take the question to absolute zero and render it nonjusticiable.

Science & Engineering

The Future Leaders Are Now: SciTech’s Ascending Stars Building Tomorrow’s ABA

David Z. Bodenheimer

A column from the Chair of the Section of Science & Technology Law. Once again, The SciTech Lawyer looks over the horizon at the marvel of tomorrow’s technologies accelerating past yesterday’s laws.

American Bar Association TM American Bar Association

The SciTech Lawyer, Winter 2018: Art Law

Features

Art: A Brief Retrospective on the Legal Term

Can Blockchain Technology Disrupt the Trade in Illicit Antiquities?

Gilbert “Gil” F. Whittemore, 1950–2017

Handbook of System Safety and Security, Edited by Edward Griffor

Mobile Devices, Public Spaces, and Freedom of Panorama

Rendering Authenticity of Artworks Nonjusticiable through Science and Technology

The Future Leaders Are Now: SciTech’s Ascending Stars Building Tomorrow’s ABA

About the SciTech Lawyer

The SciTech Lawyer Archive