The Big Story: Reflecting on the life and career of Justice Ginsburg. Over the past week, extraordinary attention has rightfully been paid to the life and legacy of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the future of the Court she leaves behind. While Justice Ginsburg’s contributions—and celebrity status—are often couched in terms of her being a bulwark for certain liberal values, her legacy and contributions are not so limited and the reach of her work is woven into the fabric of the country. Indeed, it is apparent her contributions benefited U.S. startups, and her absence on the Supreme Court may soon be felt by the startup community.
Tributes to Justice Ginsburg have poured in from all sectors of the country: from her colleagues, academics, tech CEOs, advocates, and others. Chief Justice John Roberts expressed: “Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. . . . Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her—a tireless and resolute champion of justice.” Bill Gates described her as “a trailblazer who devoted her entire career to fighting for equal justice for women, because she knew it would improve life for everyone. America is a better place because of her service.” Per the Chamber of Commerce, “[i]n so many ways, she embodied the greatest of American virtues and values, and the Supreme Court and our nation greatly benefited from her distinguished service and contributions. Her loss is staggering, but her legacy will continue to inspire generations of Americans.”
Before she was appointed to the bench, Justice Ginsburg worked as a lawyer advocating for gender equality and led the ACLU’s Women’s Rights Project, where she litigated cases “that served as the foundation for modern sex-equality.” As a member of the Court, she authored opinions such as United States v. Virginia, which held state-sponsored universities could not exclude women on the basis of sex. And she is credited for paving the way toward basic financial independence for women, opening doors for women to apply for credit cards or mortgages. That financial independence no doubt also opened new doors to female entrepreneurship. While there is still a gender gap for startup founders, and women entrepreneurs face unique hurdles, their numbers and success are growing. Indeed, studies show that companies founded by women deliver more than twice as much return on investment compared to male-founded companies.
Turning to the future, even in the near-term the Supreme Court is poised to decide important cases that will affect startups’ ability to attract and retain talented employees—cases on which Justice Ginsburg could have cast a key vote. There is a pending challenge to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Not only did the ACA open new startup markets, but it made it easier for founders and startup employees to take the risk of leaving stable jobs with traditional employee benefits—because the ACA created a new way to obtain affordable coverage. And immigration continues to be a hot topic before the court. As we’ve previously noted, “[h]igh-skilled immigrants play a critical role in developing ideas and founding new ventures that keep the United States at the forefront of innovation.” And the Supreme Court’s DACA decision, which Justice Ginsburg joined, is a recent example of how the Court played a substantial, positive role in the startup community.
It is remarkable to reflect on how much changed during Justice Ginsburg’s life, and as the ACLU recounted, “[s]he leaves a country changed because of her life’s work.” And startups, like the rest of the country, will be watching to see what lies ahead for the Court and her legacy.
Policy Roundup:
Senate considering flawed copyright, Section 230 bill that would hurt startups and their users. The Senate Judiciary Committee is moving to consider legislation that would make it easier to sue early-stage startups out of existence, despite not hearing from entrepreneurs and other stakeholders about the bill’s many flaws. In a new blog post, we examine the impact that the legislation—The Online Content Policy Modernization Act—would have on the startup community, including how it would increase abusive copyright litigation and make it more expensive for platforms to moderate harmful and objectionable content on their sites.
President Trump, DOJ continue their assault on Section 230. The Department of Justice this week sent proposed legislation to Congress that would reduce the liability limitations that all online companies rely upon to host and moderate user-generated content without the fear of crippling lawsuits. Earlier this week, President Donald Trump also convened a roundtable with a group of Republican state attorneys general at the White House to discuss revisions to Section 230. In remarks to the participants, President Trump and Attorney General Barr both claimed—without any evidence—that tech platforms are censoring conservative voices online and called for state officials to investigate online platforms over their alleged practices.
Startups need balanced copyright provisions in the U.S.-U.K. trade agreement. In a new blog post, we’re calling for policymakers to push for balanced copyright provisions that will allow for startups to grow across the globe as part of the negotiations on an expected U.S.-U.K. trade agreement. As Jennifer notes in the post, including balanced intermediary liability frameworks that are consistent with U.S. law—such as Section 512 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act—will ensure that international trade deals provide a solid legal foundation for startups that host user-generated content.
Senate bill would provide STEM funding to help small businesses hire underrepresented workers. Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) introduced legislation this week to provide small- and medium-sized businesses with $50 million in grants to hire and train mid-career professionals for internships in STEM-oriented businesses. The grants would prioritize funding for businesses looking to hire underrepresented workers, and would be geared towards workers who have left the STEM workforce or are planning to transition into the sector.
Bipartisan bill would make digital apps list their country of origin. Sens. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) introduced a bill—the American Privacy Protection (APP) Act—that would require digital apps to disclose their country of origin to the Federal Trade Commission, including where collected user data is stored. The legislation comes after the Trump administration announced last week that it was banning Chinese-owned WeChat and TikTok from U.S. app stores over national security concerns.
Startup Roundup:
#StartupsEverywhere: Gaithersburg, Maryland. Postagraph is a recently launched social messaging app that works to connect verified users with their family and friends in a private environment. We recently spoke with Pelumi Olatinpo—Postagraph’s CEO— to learn more about Postagraph, his thoughts on social networking platforms, and steps that lawmakers should take to support the startup community and underrepresented founders.
