Author: BC Law Impact Guest Posts

Will FCC v. Consumers’ Research Revive the Nondelegation Doctrine?

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This guest post by BC Law Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Daniel Lyons first appeared in the AEIdeas Blog.

The idea behind the nondelegation doctrine is sound: Congress should not delegate legislative power to executive branch agencies. But its implementation leaves much to be desired. Nearly every nondelegation case acknowledges there’s a theoretical boundary but then finds that Congress hasn’t crossed it here. Only twice has the Supreme Court found a law violated the nondelegation doctrine, in 1935, both involving a statute that literally allowed President Roosevelt to cartelize the entire economy and make rules at whim. The modern rule allows Congress to give agencies significant authority as long as it includes an “intelligible principle” to guide exercise of that authority. Perhaps more than any other doctrine, this toothless standard has permitted the modern atrophy of our legislative branch, concentrated power in unelected bureaucrats, and enabled the imperial presidencies of the 21st century.

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My Externship at Wayfair Surprised Me

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This guest post was written by Tom Books, Class of 2026.

For those who do not know, externships allow students to work a part-time job off campus for class credit. Possible placements include judges, government agencies, nonprofits, and in-house departments for companies. When planning my schedule for Spring Semester 2L, I decided to apply for a few in-house counsel externships. I had already done a government internship and will be doing transactional work at a firm this summer, so I figured an in-house role would provide a new perspective to legal practice while also preparing me for corporate work at my firm. 

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Design Mandate Proposals Threaten American AI Leadership

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This guest post by BC Law Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Daniel Lyons first appeared in the AEIdeas Blog.

Scholars often cite the 1984 Betamax case as a pivotal moment in the development of modern American tech policy. The entertainment industry sought to prohibit Sony from selling its videocassette recorder, because it could be—and largely was—used by consumers for copyright infringement. But the Court declined, finding that the device was “capable of substantial noninfringing use” and limiting the studios to identifying and suing those who actually used the product illegally.

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Protecting Kids and Adults Online: Device-Level Age Authentication

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This guest post by BC Law Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Daniel Lyons first appeared in the AEIdeas Blog.

Recently, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton, which involves a constitutional challenge to a Texas age verification law for websites containing sexually explicit material. The case offers the Court the opportunity to revisit two cases decided at the dawn of the Internet Age finding such requirements violated the First Amendment. This post looks at the legal and practical arguments against the law, and asks whether shifting verification from websites to devices might alleviate some of those concerns.

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The Long Shadow of Home: A Reflection on Legacies and the Cycles of Law

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This guest post was written by Marco Cobian ’25. A slightly different version is appearing as BC Law Magazine’s Winter 2025 In Closing column.

Growing up in Ramona, California–a rural and dispossessed, secluded and dust-strewn town tucked into the upper-hinterlands of San Diego County–I was acquainted with the rhythms and cycles natural to a certain way of life. Among these were the buzz and crackles of the morning commute, of pickup trucks leaving early for their daily pilgrimages only to return in the evening to start over again the next morning. This is the cycle that defines Ramona–the departure and the inevitable return, week after week, year after year, generation after generation.

This too, is the cycle that defined my family. I was born and raised in Ramona, just like my father before me. Moreover, I was born and raised in Ramona, the son of a first-generation American, the grandson of two undocumented Mexican-immigrants who settled in Ramona in their late-teens; I was born and raised the proverbial and vaunted embodiment of their hopes and dreams. As all three generations of my family ventured outside of Ramona and glanced at horizons just beyond the town’s borders, the gravitational pull of this cycle wrenched them back in, and just like that, the cycle repeated. And with each iteration, a certain impression of reality solidified in the psyche of my family–fortified by structural barriers and generational trauma, this cycle created limits on what one could imagine oneself being and doing. 

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‘Being’ a Law Student and the Freedom of Choice

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This guest post was written by second-year law student Staniel Brutis.

I. INTRODUCTION

“The cornerstone on which all things are based is man’s concept of himself. He acts as he does and has the experiences that he does, because his concept of himself is what it is, and for no other reason. Had he a different concept of self, he would act differently.” – Neville Goddard

Coming into my 1L year, I wanted to understand what it meant to be a law student. Specifically, I looked to become the “ideal” law student. In search of an answer to this question, I interviewed several of Boston College Law School’s professors and members of staff. In that moment, I figured that they were individuals who had accomplished the goals I set for myself, and it would be best to learn from their experiences. Each person was asked the same question,“ What is one word to describe the ideal trait of a student?” Here are their responses:

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The Most Important Thing I Learned from Taking the Civil Litigation: Housing Justice Clinic

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This guest post was written by Melanie Barber, a second-year student at BC Law.

In the fall, I participated in BC Law’s Civil Litigation: Housing Justice Clinic. I enrolled in the clinic because I was personally motivated by the work. I (like many Boston-area students) have collected my fair share of landlord horror stories and I relished the opportunity of holding landlords accountable. I also wanted to strengthen my understanding of civil procedure, which was not my strong suit when I took it as part of the 1L curriculum. Most importantly, I felt a growing obligation to use my legal education to critically consider access to justice issues.

Before our first seminar, my professor asked us to read an essay from Atul Gawande’s Complications. In this essay, titled Education of a Knife, Gawande reflects on his experience as a surgical resident learning to place a central line. He writes of his self-doubt and mistakes. It was an interesting read, but I remember thinking: what is my professor trying to suggest here? I am only a 2L trying to navigate the first few weeks of Evidence and Professional Responsibility. My professor isn’t going to throw me into a trial, right?

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After Net Neutrality: The Return of the States

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This guest post by BC Law Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Daniel Lyons first appeared in the AEIdeas Blog.

I recently discussed the Sixth Circuit decision classifying broadband as a Title I information service and effectively eliminating the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) general power to regulate broadband. But like nature, regulators abhor a vacuum. While closing the door to federal regulators, the decision also creates opportunities for states to act. This post examines the present and potential future of state-level broadband regulation.

Historically, state regulators were key players in the telecommunications space. The Communications Act of 1934 divided the telecommunications world into two neat hemispheres: The FCC regulated interstate long-distance service, while state commissions regulated local and intrastate long distance. This division of authority made sense in a world where 98 percent of calls were local, and long-distance calls were a luxury. But the Telecommunications Act of 1996 dramatically rearranged the balance of power between the federal government and the states. Meanwhile, local telephone service largely disappeared as a separate market, before communication shifted from the telephone to broadband networks. As a result, most states shuttered their telecommunications regulators early in the 21st century.

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Sixth Circuit Strikes Net Neutrality in Victory for Tech, Administrative Law

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This guest post by BC Law Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Daniel Lyons first appeared in the AEIdeas Blog.

My fellow tech policy enthusiasts, our long national nightmare is over. Last week, the Sixth Circuit brought an end to the decade-long fight over net neutrality by prohibiting the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from applying Title II common carrier regulation to broadband providers. The decision is a victory for tech policy, freeing Internet access from the shadow of overbearing regulation. It’s also a win for administrative law, as it aligns with the Supreme Court’s guidance that courts, not agencies, should resolve disputes over statutory interpretations. The ruling reaffirms the principle that important policy decisions should be made by Congress, not by agencies under the guise of interpreting ambiguous statutes.

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What’s Next After Court Upholds TikTok Ban

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This guest post by BC Law Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Daniel Lyons first appeared in the AEIdeas Blog.

Last week, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the TikTok divest-or-ban bill against a constitutional challenge. The result was unsurprising given how poorly TikTok fared at September’s oral argument. The decision itself contains many intriguing legal insights at the nexus of national security and free speech. This post examines the Court’s First Amendment analysis and explains why, despite the loss, the popular but problematic platform is unlikely to be shut down.

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