UC Berkeley Law
@ucberkeleylaw.bsky.social
Official account for UC Berkeley School of Law. #BerkeleyLaw #LawSchool #GoBears🐻 Website: law.berkeley.edu
A wardrobe grant can make all the difference for 1Ls preparing for interviews and networking opportunities. Help ensure that Berkeley Law 1Ls can put their best foot forward. Suit Up Our 1Ls! Donate: https://crowdfund.berkeley.edu/project/50219 #BerkeleyLaw
Suit Up Our 1Ls
Help UC Berkeley raise $5,000 for the project: Suit Up Our 1Ls. Your gift will make a difference!
crowdfund.berkeley.edu
"A proposed California law would provide essential protection of privacy and prevent mass surveillance by the police in limiting how the government can keep and use information from automated license plate readers." —Opinion by Dean Chemerinsky via @sacbee.com: https://bit.ly/4pTZHHu
California bill curbs license plate surveillance, protects public privacy | Opinion
The Automated License Plate Recognition Data Accountability Act balances the interests of law enforcement with the need to protect privacy.
sacbee.com
Policy Advocacy Clinic Celebrates a Decade of National Success Ending Juvenile System Fines and Fees: https://bit.ly/3RSbn0R #BerkeleyLaw
Policy Advocacy Clinic marks a decade of nationwide success in ending juvenile fines and fees
Juvenile courts no longer charge youth and families more than $61 million in fees each year, and they have discharged a staggering $783 million in debt.
law.berkeley.edu
Listen: Professor Prasad Krishnamurthy and San Francisco Public Bank Coalition member Halah Ahmad joined "State of the Bay" on @kalwradio.bsky.social to discuss a proposal to create a public bank in San Francisco: https://bit.ly/4pTO8QR #BerkeleyLaw
Preparing for Extreme Heat / Should SF Create a Public Bank? / SF Boom & Bust
State of the Bay explores the risks of extreme heat and how our city can prepare, delves into the debate over whether San Francisco should establish a public bank and hears about SF's boom and bust hi...
kalw.org
Upcoming Event: The Edley Center on Law & Democracy hosts the Thomas David and Judith Swope Clark Symposium on Constitutional Interpretation on August 28 to discuss ways states can fight back to counter authoritarianism. Register: https://bit.ly/4h7CuiR #BerkeleyLaw
Our Student Organization for Advanced Legal Studies (SOALS) held a recent event called Lawyering in the Age of AI, which focused on emerging tools, new skills, and the practical AI decisions attorneys and law firms now need to make: https://bit.ly/4q4llZN #BerkeleyLaw #AI
Getting Ahead on AI: Program Helps Students Gain Expert Insights
Our Student Organization for Advanced Legal Studies (SOALS) held a recent event called Lawyering in the Age of AI, which focused on emerging tools, new skills, and the practical AI […]
law.berkeley.edu
Early recruiting means Berkeley Law 1Ls need professional interview attire sooner than ever. Help provide wardrobe grants so 1Ls can prepare for interviews and networking opportunities beginning this fall. Give today: https://crowdfund.berkeley.edu/project/50219 #BerkeleyLaw
Suit Up Our 1Ls
Help UC Berkeley raise $5,000 for the project: Suit Up Our 1Ls. Your gift will make a difference!
crowdfund.berkeley.edu
“Every state should implement it because no matter where you are on the political spectrum, I think it gives citizens choices on whether or not they are included in thing” says Vincent Joralemon, Director of the Life Sciences Law & Policy Center, to @abc10news.bsky.social: https://bit.ly/4ch7pWu
California data brokers must start deleting personal data requests Aug. 1
Starting tomorrow, Californians can request data brokers to delete their personal data through the DROP system, enhancing privacy and protection against data misuse.
abc10.com
“In terms of a civil penalty from a company to journalists, this is unprecedented on an order of magnitude,” says Vincent Joralemon, director of the Life Sciences Law & Policy Center, to @financialtimes.com: https://bit.ly/3Tz8xhW #BerkeleyLaw
‘Crush this lady’: how eBay harassment campaign led to $56mn payout
Employees’ cyberstalking of Boston couple involving macabre deliveries ended in jail time and financial settlement
ft.com
“It’s really unclear right now whether the United States has legal authority to do this, to issue these permits,” says Professor Holly Doremus, Faculty Director of the Law of the Sea Institute, to SiliconValley.com: https://bayareane.ws/4fFbsNq
Silicon Valley venture capitalist helps lead controversial race to start mining ocean floor
Company received a major boost in April when Trump issued an executive order asserting America’s right to mine beneath the ocean wherever it chooses.
siliconvalley.com
A $500,000 commitment from Ruth Bell ’67 and her husband Joseph Bell aims to expand @cleeberkeley.bsky.social’s impact in guiding California policymakers on vital issues: https://bit.ly/4wF5Xpq #BerkeleyLaw
Major gift launches Climate Action Fund to bolster Berkeley Law’s environmental leadership work
The $500,000 commitment from Ruth Bell ’67 and her husband Joseph Bell aims to expand the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment’s impact in guiding California policymakers.
law.berkeley.edu
New from @sfchronicle.com: “No library can buy every book,” Dean Chemerinsky said, but a library that chooses to acquire only books that support the current presidential administration would clearly violate the Constitution. “Where is the line to be drawn?” https://bit.ly/4x9ydjz
Latest ban on books in school probably headed to U.S. Supreme Court
The firing of a school’s social worker with anti-trans books in his office has survived another legal challenge, but the final decision could come from the U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative...
sfchronicle.com
"It’s really one branch that is really sort of questioning the legitimacy of the other one. I think the judges are trying to stand up for the legitimacy of their branch,” says Jeremy Fogel, Executive Director of @bji.bsky.social, to @salon.com: https://bit.ly/4pLIujF #BerkeleyLaw
Judges call out Trump DOJ for “unlawful,” “unethical” and “unseemly” conduct
Federal judges have criticized the administration's prosecutors in hundreds of cases since Trump took office.
salon.com
“The right to counsel means nothing if the lawyer assigned to your case is overwhelmed by hundreds of other cases,” says Chesa Boudin, founding executive director of the Criminal Law & Justice Center to @vanguardnewsgroup.bsky.social: https://bit.ly/4vYRWBE #BerkeleyLaw
Report Finds Kings and Madera Counties Exemplify California's Failing Public Defense System - Davis Vanguard
A new analysis by The Wren Collective and UC Berkeley Law's Criminal Law & Justice Center contends that California's indigent defense system, particularly in Kings and Madera counties, exemplifies a s...
davisvanguard.org
Hundreds of criminal cases are managed by private attorneys under flat-fee contracts in Kings and Madera counties, according to a report by The Wren Collective and UC Berkeley Law's Criminal Law & Justice Center.
Report Finds Kings and Madera Counties Exemplify California's Failing Public Defense System - Davis Vanguard
A new analysis by The Wren Collective and UC Berkeley Law's Criminal Law & Justice Center contends that California's indigent defense system, particularly in Kings and Madera counties, exemplifies a…
davisvanguard.org
"If I was to find a theme for the U.S. Supreme Court term, which ended June 30, it would be about the impact of its decisions for American democracy." —Opinion by Dean Erwin Chemerinsky via @americanbar.org Journal: https://bit.ly/4w0MZbs
Chemerinsky: How the Supreme Court's decisions have had an impact on democracy
If I was to find a theme for the U.S. Supreme Court term, which ended June 30, it would be about the impact of its decisions for American democracy.
abajournal.com
Lakshita Bhargava LL.M. ’26, who helped develop an AI-powered learning platform in India, and LL.M. classmate Anže Erbežnik aim to streamline criminal proceedings and improve efficiency in bilingual legal environments: https://bit.ly/44Tq1rK #BerkeleyLaw
AI Expert Lakshita Bhargava LL.M. ’26 works to improve judicial cooperation in European Union cross-border enforcement
Bhargava and LL.M. classmate Anže Erbežnik aim to streamline criminal proceedings and improve efficiency in bilingual legal environments.
law.berkeley.edu
“The government has stipulated that grants were cut off to states that voted against Trump. As far as I know, this blatant politics in cutting off grants is unprecedented. It also is illegal,” says Dean Erwin Chemerinsky to @latimes.com: https://lat.ms/3U0jaKE
Trump administration targeted California and other blue states for clean energy cuts
Trump administration agreed in court documents that it targeted California and other blue states when it slashed clean energy projects last year
latimes.com
"Sometimes concurring opinions of justices add little to what is in the court’s decision. Other times, however, they take a very different approach and urge a major change in the law." —Opinion by Dean Erwin Chemerinsky via his Courtly Observations series on @scotusblog.com: https://bit.ly/3RFOM7M
Notable concurring opinions from this term
scotusblog.com
"As far as we know, Solano County is still profiting off this video call system, so part of our case intends to end that kickback situation," says Rio Scharf, staff attorney at the Criminal Law and Justice Center, to @kqednews.kqed.org: https://bit.ly/4pK3J57 #BerkeleyLaw
KQED Newscast - KQED
KQED newscast for Monday, July 27, 2026 at 10:00 AM
omny.fm
Dean Erwin Chemerinsky was one of five recipients — including music icon @brucespringsteen.net and former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick — of the @aclu.org Ralph Ellison Award for Defenders of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties: https://bit.ly/44W0bmX #BerkeleyLaw
ACLU Honors Dean Chemerinsky, Springsteen, Kaepernick, Two Others
Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky was one of five recipients — including music icon Bruce Springsteen and former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick — of the ACLU’s Ralph Ellison […]
law.berkeley.edu
"Popular constitutionalism reflects a simple ideal: The Constitution belongs not just to the courts, but to all of us. The American people can and should shape the meaning of the Constitution." —Opinion by Professors Joy Milligan and Bertrall Ross via @slate.com: https://bit.ly/4hycUDI
How the Supreme Court Swiped the Constitution From We the People
This project was decades in the making.
slate.com
"Does anyone really believe that Todd Blanche, if confirmed as attorney general, would say no to President Donald Trump?" —Opinion by Dean Erwin Chemerinsky via @sacbee.com: https://bit.ly/3RkwkBA
Todd Blanche is more loyal to Trump than Constitution. He must be rejected | Opinion
“Blanche has shown that his loyalty is to Trump’s personal agenda, not to upholding the Constitution and the rule of law.”
sacbee.com
“For the federal government to announce that it will no longer consider particular kinds of discrimination to violate the law ... is an incredible diminution ... ” says @catherinelhamon.bsky.social, Exec. Director of Edley Center on Law & Democracy, to @insidehighered.com: https://bit.ly/4fHWE0z
ED Scraps Tool to Investigate Discrimination
For decades, the Office for Civil Rights investigated whether educational institutions’ policies disparately impacted minority groups in discriminatory ways. Not anymore.
insidehighered.com
“For the first time since 1964, the federal government is closing its eyes to some forms of discrimination, and that leaves more people more vulnerable,” says @catherinelhamon.bsky.social, Executive Director of the Edley Center on Law and Democracy to @edweek.org: https://bit.ly/4x5O7vo #BerkeleyLaw
Education Department Scraps Longstanding Discrimination Rules
Districts will no longer be liable for "disparate impact"—in discipline, course access, or CTE programs.
edweek.org
“What the district attorneys or the defense attorneys say to you as members of the press, and what ultimately comes out in the courtroom, often are very, very different things,” says Charles Denton, Lecturer via @sacbee.com: https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article316634354.html #BerkeleyLaw
Why juries rejected murder charges in K Street shootout and Davis stabbings
Prosecutors say some crimes are so heinous the community — that is, a jury — must decide a defendant’s fate. But it’s hard to do.
sacbee.com
"The @ucbconsumerlaw.bsky.social has called standing 'a threshold issue,' noting that corporate attempts to redefine who has standing to have their day in court is 'an affront to this Nation’s dual judicial system.'" — via @bloomberglaw.com Read more: https://bit.ly/4x306cW #BerkeleyLaw
Companies Shouldn’t Win Case Dismissals After They Break Laws
Opinion: Corporations are increasingly arguing that alleged consumer protection law violations should go unpunished if plaintiffs can't prove a specific, concrete harm beyond the statutory violation.
news.bloomberglaw.com
"Every ton of carbon dioxide that we can stop will make the world just a little bit better. Even if things get very bad, it will still be true that we have the power to stop them from getting worse." -- Prof @dfarber1950.bsky.social on the @weneedtoact.bsky.social podcast youtu.be/6YWuh7omPBw?...
Environmental Law and Climate Change: Why Collective Action Is Our Most Powerful Tool |Daniel Farber
YouTube video by We Need to Act
youtu.be
Leading sociologist and Berkeley Law alum Laura Beth Nielsen (JD & PhD in JSP) to lead the @abfresearch.bsky.social as the next (11th) Executive Director www.americanbarfoundation.org/leading-soci...
Sociologist Laura Beth Nielsen to Lead ABF into 75th Anniversary - ABF
ABF named Laura Beth Nielsen its eleventh Executive Director, effective September 1. Nielsen will be the first woman to lead the organization where she has been a Research Professor for 25+ years.
americanbarfoundation.org
‘It is Influencing Everything’: New AI in Biotechnology Law Course Expands LL.M. Certificate Curriculum www.law.berkeley.edu/article/ai-a...
New AI in Biotechnology Law course expands LL.M. certificate curriculum
The class, part of the groundbreaking Certificate in AI Law and Regulation program, is preparing students to handle the fast-moving and high-impact issues at the intersection of AI and biotechnology.
law.berkeley.edu