Undergraduate tech law is a research group at Indiana University that studies how technology is changing the legal sector. Our current focus is on AI & machine learning, intellectual property, and data privacy.
Our work is research-focused. We study how existing doctrine applies to emerging technical systems, with particular attention to AI and machine learning, intellectual property, and data privacy. We publish that research through reports, case analysis, and longer-form pieces for students and practitioners trying to understand how these fields are changing legal work.
We are interested in the law as a system. Our membership skews toward students who want to do work, not students who want to attend meetings about work. Applications are open to any IU Bloomington undergraduate, regardless of major.
You do not need a background in law to apply; we review applications on a rolling basis starting Fall 2026.
We look at how model training, data scraping, generated output, benchmarks, and deployment choices put pressure on existing law. That includes copyright and patent questions, platform liability, audit requirements, transparency rules, and what courts actually do when technical claims meet a litigation record.
Privacy work covers state privacy statutes, biometric rules, health and education data, children’s privacy, data brokers, and consumer technology design. We care less about abstract privacy slogans and more about what companies collect, what users can control, and how enforcement bodies read the fine print.
Our intellectual property work follows copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret, licensing, and open source disputes involving new technical systems. We read complaints, motions, licenses, and opinions closely, with attention to what is being alleged and what the doctrine can realistically support.
We study how AI systems, data practices, and software-driven workflows are changing legal research, litigation, compliance, contracting, and client services. The goal is to understand how doctrine, institutions, and professional practice respond when technical systems become part of legal work.
The org operates with a lean core. Leadership reviews drafts and sets the research calendar.
For inquiries, research collaborations, or to express interest in joining us, write directly.
undergradtechlaw@outlook.com