This year, the review chose “Regulation and Coercion” as its publication theme. Each team of authors approached this theme from a unique angle, analyzing a particular realm of the law and pinpointing the moments when its regulations become coercive. A central objective of the law, we contend, is to strike an appropriate balance between the preservation of individual liberty and the protection of public interests. The struggle between regulation and coercion directly underlies this objective, and it raises questions of personal freedom, government authority, public health, and more which the review explores in this volume. The UIUC Undergraduate Law Review’s fourth volume contains four articles.
Our first article covers food and drug safety within the United States. The authors concentrate on critical power relationships in food and drug regulation, from federal regulatory agencies and private corporations to Congress and consumers. By providing a historical overview of food and drug regulation and analyzing key players like the FDA and Big Pharma, the authors provide insight into how America’s food and drug regulatory framework may be improved.
The second article in this volume concentrates on modern technology regulation. This team of authors researched a range of major tech issues, from cryptocurrency and data privacy to the influence of Big Tech and antitrust. The article is divided into two parts, each containing sub-sections that provide historical background, legal analysis, and prescription where appropriate.
Our third article discusses the legality, efficacy, and public perception of vaccine mandates. The authors employ a legal-historical analysis featuring important case law and international comparisons to determine how vaccine mandates can be applied in modern society, and how they may be used to combat COVID-19. As social media plays a crucial role in determining public opinion, it constitutes a major focus of the article’s public perception section.
Read An Analysis of Vaccine Mandates: Regulation and Coercion, Past and Present
Our final article concerns abortion regulation in the United States. Published just over a month after the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion signaling a potential reversal of Roe v. Wade, this article is especially salient. The authors provide a historical overview of abortion case law in the US, analysis of racial disparities in abortion regulation and provision, and a discussion of the impact losing the precedents of Roe and Planned Parenthood v. Casey would have on abortion access.
Read Abortion Regulation: An Analysis of Precedent, Disparities, and Jeopardized Access
Note: Nos. 1, 2, and 3 use Bluebook-endnote citation style. No. 4 includes in-text hyperlink citations.