Stetson Law Review Symposium Explores Elon Musk & the Law

A room full of people during a Stetson Law Review Symposium presentation in Great Hall.
The 2023 Stetson Law Review Symposium

There was an air of excitement on campus as students, faculty, and other members of Stetson Law and the legal community gathered to discuss the timely topic of the 2023 Stetson Law Review Symposium: Elon Musk and the Law.

Throughout the day, esteemed legal scholars examined legal aspects of the famous and controversial billionaire’s many endeavors, from Space-X to Twitter. Speakers included experts from across the U.S. such as The University of Tennessee Rick Rose distinguished Professor Joan Heminway, Stetson Law Bruce R. Jacob Visiting Assistant Professor of Law Tomer Stein, and Florida Supreme Court Justice John Couriel, who gave the event’s thought-provoking keynote address.

One topic, countless perspectives

The symposium covered a range of topics and issues, all exploring an aspect of the eccentric entrepreneur’s multitude of business endeavors through a legal lens.

In the first discussion, for example, Duncan School of Law Vice President and Associate Dean Matt Lyon and Southern University Associate Professor of Law Kenya Smith talked about accountability, from the role of directors and regulators to First Amendment questions surrounding Musk’s purchase of Twitter. It was titled “The Untouchable Elon Musk.”

A woman speaks at a podium in Stetson Law's Great Hall.
University of Tennessee Rick Rose Distinguished Professor of Law Joan MacLeod Heminway

Other sessions covered issues like securities disclosure challenges, professional responsibility concerns, and corporate law and governance concerns related to the acquisition of Twitter, Inc.

Breakfast and networking sessions gave attendees the opportunity to connect with colleagues and reflect on the day’s discussions.

A Florida Supreme Court Justice speaks

During an engaging keynote address, Florida Supreme Court Justice John D. Couriel took a broader perspective. Using hypothetical legal challenges a Musk-like figure may face when making business decisions like building a new manufacturing facility, Couriel said there’s an untapped resource that can help lawyers win cases on behalf of such clients: a state’s constitution.

A Florida Supreme Court justice addresses a group of people in the Great Hall at Stetson Law.
Florida Supreme Court Justice John Couriel speaks during the 2023 Stetson Law Review Symposium.

“The lawyer who gets hired is the lawyer who comes up with the solution to the problem that the client hasn’t heard before,” Couriel said. “State constitutional law frequently supplies answers to your problems and lines of attack that the client has never heard. And for that reason alone, to the practitioners in the room, I say, pick up the sword. Develop these areas of the law. To the academics in the room, I say, write those things. Explore them. Because I think they speak to some of the most important challenges of our time.”

A collaborative effort, led by students

The day was a seamlessly run, thought-provoking affair thanks to the students on the Stetson Law Review staff who led it.

Though she worked tirelessly to organize and run the event, Stetson Law Review Editor-in-Chief Kathryn Alkire said she was grateful to everyone who had a hand in the event’s success.

A group of speakers at the Stetson Law Review 2023 Symposium
Left to right: Stetson Law Review Editor-in-Chief Kathryn Alkire, Southern University Law Center Associate Professor Kenya J.H. Smith, Gonzaga University School of Law Visiting Assistant Professor Angela Aneiros, LMU Duncan School of Law Vice President and Associate Dean Matt Lyon, Northern Illinois University Associate Professor of Law David Rosenfeld, SMU Dedman School of Law Assistant Professor Carla Reyes, University of Tennessee Rick Rose Distinguished Professor of Law Joan MacLeod Heminway, Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law Assistant Professor Nicole Iannarone, and Stetson University Bruce R. Jacob Visiting Assistant Professor of Law Tomer Stein.

“The event was an enormous success thanks to the fabulous group of speakers, professors, faculty, staff, and students who joined forces and worked hard to create such an engaging program,” Alkire said. “It truly was a team collaboration.” She added that she and her fellow Stetson Law Review staff members are especially thankful for University of Tennessee College of Law Professor Joan Heminway, who curated the group of speakers and constructed the symposium topic, and Justice Couriel for graciously sharing his insights.

Support from the Stetson Law community

Alkire also expressed gratitude for Professor Stein, who, in addition to presenting at the symposium, served as the event’s faculty advisor, as well as the work of the event’s volunteer, student Symposium Planning Committee (Noah Anderson, Caitlin Carey, Cameron Kubly, and Sophia LaFrance) and Marketing Team (Marketing Editor Jacquelyn Christoph and her assistant Sam McDougall).

Support and advising from Stetson Law faculty members as well as staff from multiple departments helped make the symposium the success it was, Alkire added.

“This event’s success is attributable to an entire team of people who surrounded and uplifted Stetson Law Review with their support,” she said. “We are very fortunate to attend a school that so strongly supports its student-run programs.” The panelists who participated will have their forthcoming scholarship on Elon Musk and the Law featured in Stetson Law Review publications throughout the 2023–24 [KLA1] academic year.

Post date: April 4, 2023

Media contact: Kate Bradshaw
[email protected] | 727-430-1580
«
»