University of Florida Journal of Technology Law and Policy

Infobox Organization
name = University of Florida
College of Law


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formation = 1995
type = Publication
headquarters = Gainesville, Florida
location = flagicon|USA United States
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key_people = College of Law
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website = http://grove.ufl.edu/~techlaw/

First published in 1995, the University of Florida College of Law's [http://www.law.ufl.edu] Journal of Technology Law & Policy [http://grove.ufl.edu/~techlaw] (JTLP) was one of the nation's first law reviews devoted to discussion and analysis of the legal implications of technology. It was also one of the first law journals to have the full text of its articles freely available online. Since that time, the JTLP has continued to seek to publish articles that focus upon the legal and policy aspects of emerging technological issues. At present, the JTLP is a co-curricular journal of the University of Florida College of Law and published twice yearly.

Founding of the Journal

Law and technology often do not easily mesh. That was certainly the case with the creation of the Journal of Technology Law & Policy (JTLP). What many may not realize is that those early contributors, and editors put out the JTLP not because they wanted to receive accolades, but because they genuinely believed that technology law & policy were important issues that had not been addressed by other journals. The application of the Internet and world wide web-based commercial activity to traditional brick and mortar jurisprudence was in its infancy and seemed unlimited. There was a recognition by students at the University of Florida that the Internet presented the opportunity for a unique platform for the publication of a scholarly legal journal accessible to the entire world; rather than to a limited group of lawfirms and libraries which paid for a subscription. Moreover, by publishing electronically this new scholarly journal had the potential to be published in a faster and more timely manner than traditional legal journals.

As an early online effort, the JTLP was first published by law students at the University of Florida using very basic HTML editing software and Intel 486 and Pentium computers using a dial-up connection.

The Internet

Those first few issues focused on the Internet and its impact on the practice of law. When the Journal was started, few people had laptops, even fewer had Internet access and even then, almost all Internet access was through dial up accounts. The legal world has changed tremendously since then and the JTLP anticipated many of those changes though its articles.

Open Citation Systems

One of the earliest dilemmas involved citations and the so called "open citation system" also known as the "vendor neutral citation system" or the "medium neutral citation system." Much of the debate around the "open citation system" stemmed from Westlaw [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westlaw] and Lexis-Nexis's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexis_nexis] monopoly on citation systems and their pagination. The law students who started the JTLP viewed the open citation system as a means of overcoming these monopolies and making legal research accessible and affordable to everyone. The early goals of the "open citation system" were announced in the Proposed Citation System for Wisconsin, Report to Board of Bar Governors Technology Resource Committee (June 22, 1994; accessed April 23, 2008) [http://www.law.cornell.edu/papers/wiscite/wiscite.overview.html] The JTLP was at the forefront of these issues and one of the first Journals to adopt many of the recommendations of Proposed Citation System for Wisconsin.

The Last 10 Years

The past decade has seen the American legal system struggle with the implications of new technologies. The JTLP has been on the forefront of many of these issues with its insightful articles.

The JTLP was founded upon the same entrepreneurial spirit that developed the modern electronic world. At its inception, the JTLP was a self generated project of a few students; several of whom graduated shortly after the publication of the first issue of the JTLP. The JTLP and the administration at the University of Florida were initially in tension; much as the traditional legal model was in tension with the new paradigms of the Internet age. The JTLP's tension with the traditional framework stemmed from the Journal publishing without the official endorsement of the University. The early issues of the JTLP reflect this tension by stating that they were published by students at the University and were not a co-curricular publication of the University. This adaptation was the first of many which over time enabled the JTLP to continue beyond the academic years of its initial founders.

During the following years, the JTLP quickly progressed from a student project to an officially sanctioned and recognized co-curricular legal journal at the University of Florida. The JTLP expanded from online publication to traditional paper publication. Throughout this time, the JTLP has been at the forefront of scholarly journals exploring and expounding upon the broad scope of legal issues encompassed within the concepts of technology, law and public policy.

The Next 10 Years

The next decade will likely see an ever increasing rate of societal change and resulting technological adaptation. Each of these technological advancements will create unexpected paradigm shifts that will challenge traditional jurisprudential concepts of jurisdiction, contract formation, and other "established" areas of the law. The American legal culturewill constantly struggle to adapt to technological changes that impact all areas of legal practice. Technology issues are no longer solely the realm of Intellectual Property and Patent lawyers as technology now impacts all areas of legal practice. Old doctrines will need to be adopted to fit new technologies. One constant however is that the JTLP will continue to be an open scholarly forum to explore those changes and the means through which jurisprudence adapts.

External links

* [http://grove.ufl.edu/~techlaw/ Official website]