Colleen V. Chien | Lightnews

Colleen Chien

@colleenchien.bsky.social

750 followers 130 following 32 posts

Law Prof and Co-Director, Berkeley Center for Law and Technology

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Colleen V. Chien is an Asian-American legal scholar who is a law professor at UC Berkeley School of Law, where she teaches, mentors students, and conducts cross-disciplinary research on innovation, intellectual property, and the criminal justice system, with a focus on how technology, data, and innovation can be harnessed to achieve their potential for social benefit. Her recent works focus on the use of artificial intelligence in legal practice. .. more

Business 45%

Economics 31%

Posts Replies Media Videos

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · 10d

Wonderful to visit Jessica Jackson in NY. As a Santa Clara student, she inspired Paper Prisons when she drew attention to prisons overstay as a data problem. She’s since led REFORM; which has in 6 yrs passed 21 laws in 12 states to reform our broken probation/parole system:
youtu.be/Gk8aREuaGAg?...

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · 10d

So impressed with the spooky smart and creative costumes of students in my AI Law and Governance class! Adding our family's AI-themed costume from a few years ago too. Happy Halloween! 🎃

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Oct 2

New paper: Bridging Research Gaps b/w Academic Research & Legal Investigations of Algorithmic Discrimination, for AI, Ethics & Society 2025. @irenetrampoline.bsky.social, Anna Zink & I review civil enforcement actions & find 5 ways algorithmic research can better support enforcers; comments welcome!

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Aug 26

My new article, "Clean Slate, Dirty Data," audits automatic non-conviction record clearance laws in 5 states, finds good but imperfect compliance, suggesting 1) automation can succeed where petitions fail, 2) accountability in implementation is needed.(NC L. Rev 2025)
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Reposted by Colleen V. Chien

Morgan Fairchild @morgfair.bsky.social · Aug 26

We Are All Lisa Cook
open.substack.com/pub/paulkrug...

We Are All Lisa Cook

Nobody is safe from weaponized government

open.substack.com

Alvaro M. Bedoya @bedoyausa.bsky.social · Aug 26

Dear journalists:

The President has not fired Lisa Cook. The President is *trying* to illegally fire her.

Your words shape people’s reality. Please be accurate in your reporting.

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Apr 23

Despite backlash to DEI, our paper, w/ Jillian Grennan and Jason Sandvik, just presented @nber.org, suggests targeted mentorship boosts firm-wide innovation. Tracking 7 cohorts, 633 mentees & 20K+ employees, we find real ROI for well-designed mentoring.

📄 papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Apr 14

Registration for our 4/16 AI & Education event featuring
@ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social Education Prof Zach Pardos
and CS Prof Gireeja Ranade now open: berkeley.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

Series website: ai-and-society.github.io

Curated by @rajiinio.bsky.social and @irenetrampoline.bsky.social

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Apr 9

Thanks for checking it out. We hope to add streaming soon, so stay tuned!

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Apr 9

Just posted: working paper on the impact of drivers license suspension reform laws on employment w/ @bobapel.bsky.social. We find increases in statewide employment when people can drive & that the quality of reform matters. It’s an early draft, welcome your comments! paperprisons.org/news-blog.ht...

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Apr 4

We've launched a biweekly AI & Society salon at Berkeley w/ @rajiinio.bsky.social & @irenetrampoline.bsky.social! This week, sociologist marionf.bsky.social joined EECS’ beenwrekt.bsky.social to discuss The Ordinal Society. Up next, on April 16th: AI & Education. Join us at ai-and-society.github.io

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Apr 4

Part 1: www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_hG...
Part 2: www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtsV...
Our tool and related papers: www.paperprisons.org/RJA

Part 1: Investigation reveals stark racial differences in past sentencing of robbery murder cases

YouTube video by KPBS Public Media

www.youtube.com

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Apr 4

Excited to see @kpbssandiego.bsky.social spotlight the Paper Prisons Racial Justice Act tool in their mini-series on racial disparities in the justice system. We’ve been humbled by the reception from people seeking to connect lived experience to data and welcome collaboration.

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Mar 14

📑 Slide decks
Federal AI Primer: drive.google.com/file/d/118M9...
Federal Panel slides: drive.google.com/file/d/11LIk...
🎥 Recordings & full slides from the conference: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
Conference website: www.law.berkeley.edu/event/28th-a...

BCLT AI Conference Day 1 Chien Federal Overview .pdf

drive.google.com

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Mar 14

Focus: protect rights → advance industrial policy;
Agency AI inventories, personnel (Lynne Parker, M. Kratsios), AI Safety Institutes, US-dominated innovation;
Biden EO rescinded, OMB M-Memo revision, CTO/CAIO roles shifted to political appts;
AI Action Plan soon—Fed. Reg. comment period closes 3/15

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Mar 14

What’s happening in Federal AI law, policy & governance? We discussed @ucberkeleylaw.bsky.social's recent conference, covering AI EOs across Trump I & II and Biden, the M-Memo, & agency shifts. Some highlights from my primer and the panel of computer & social scientists and lawyers I moderated:

Reposted by Mark D. Hayward, Samuel Morin, Luca Ricci , and 4 more Mark D. Hayward, Samuel Morin, Luca Ricci, Ines Mergel, Amy X. Zhang, Colleen V. Chien, Tracey L. Meares

Alt18F @alt18f.bsky.social · Mar 1

18F was doing exactly the type of work that DOGE claims to want – yet we were eliminated shortly after midnight. Read our letter to the American people:
18f.org

We're not done yet | 18F

18f.org

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Jan 23

Will be recorded, reach out to aliviamd@berkeley.edu to get on the list.

Event page www.law.berkeley.edu/event/techno...

Register sccgov-org.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

Welcome! You are invited to join a webinar: Technological Developments & Tools in the Criminal Legal System. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar.

We are thrilled to welcome UC Berkeley Law educators Colleen Chien (Professor of Law and Co-Director of the Berkeley Center for Law & Technology), Catherine Crump (Robert Glushko Clinical Professor of...

sccgov-org.zoom.us

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Jan 23

Today at noon PST - Tech Devt’s & Tools in the Criminal Legal System webinar (qualifies for CA tech CLE) - I’ll be talking about Paper Prisons projects in AI, automation, & data re the California Racial Justice Act & Clean Slate w/ Andrea Roth, Chesa Boudin, Rebecca Wexler, and Jake Rhodes.

Reposted by Bhaven N. Sampat, Colleen V. Chien

Issues in Science and Technology @issuesinst.bsky.social · Nov 27

ISSUES is thrilled to join the Bluesky community! ⁠

A brief introduction: We’re a digital and print opinion journal published by @nationalacademies.org and Arizona State University. We provide a forum for discussion of public policy related to science, technology, and society. ⁠1/ issues.org

20 recent ISSUES covers, designed by Fabio Cutro.

Reposted by Colleen V. Chien

bclt.bsky.social @bclt.bsky.social · Nov 25

The 25th Annual Berkeley-Stanford Advanced Patent Law Institute is only 10 days away!

Seats are still available at the nation's premier patent law event. Register now!

@pamelasamuelson.bsky.social @jenniferurban.bsky.social

www.law.berkeley.edu/research/bcl...

25th Annual Berkeley-Stanford Advanced Patent Law Institute

Paul Brest Hall, Munger Building Stanford University

www.law.berkeley.edu

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Aug 1

Blog: paperprisons.org/blog.html?ke...
Berkeley coverage: law.berkeley.edu/sidebar/pape...
Video at the RJA Symposium: www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOpS...

Journal

paperprisons.org

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Aug 1

Built by Santa Clara and Berkeley teams, including William Sundstrom, W. David Ball, Akhil Raj, Du Yabo, Bennett Cyphers, Chesa Boudin, Varun Gujarathi, and inspired by public defenders and Ash Kalra's Act. Your feedback is welcome!

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Aug 1

Our papers detail our data, tool, and the RJA's "significant difference" test:

1️⃣ Proving Actionable Disparity under the RJA:
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
2️⃣ The Paper Prisons RJA Data Tool:
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Proving Actionable Racial Disparity Under the California Racial Justice Act

Racial disparity is a fact of the US criminal justice system, but under the U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in McCleskey v. Kemp, racial disparities--even sizable,

papers.ssrn.com

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Aug 1

By providing data for evaluating RJA claims, we aim to level the field for those seeking discovery/relief based on disparity evidence. Analyze your case against broader patterns; see our LA County burglary analysis (2013-2014).

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Aug 1

📣 New Racial Justice Act tool/paper alert! Our Paper Prisons tool offers CalDOJ data on racial disparities by county, charge, prosecution stage, and sentence in all 58 CA counties.

Tool: rja.paperprisons.org

Racial Justice Act Tool [beta]

rja.paperprisons.org

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Jul 24

Excited to share UC Berkeley's new cluster hire in AI, Inequality, and Society including five T/TT positions at Berkeley Law, @berkeleyischool.bsky.social, UC Berkeley CDSS, and the departments of EECS and Sociology.

Please consider applying / spread the word!
aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF04498

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Jul 3

This @financialtimes.com article provides an overview of several studies by Diversity Patents Initiative researchers including @patentscholar.bsky.social's & my piece in Science & a paper I co-authored with Chris Cotropia on the role of GenAI in improving patent quality:

www.ft.com/content/feb1...

Studies highlight gender and race-based gaps in patent applications

Disparities contribute to income inequalities and influence who receives funding for invention, researchers say

www.ft.com

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Jul 3

Last week, I spoke on @npr.org's Morning Edition on the importance of policy delivery, not just fanfare, in reference to @govwesmoore.bsky.social's sweeping and ambitious pot conviction pardons; the TL;DR: good start, keep going.

www.npr.org/2024/06/19/n...

Some say Maryland’s mass marijuana pardons don’t go far enough

This week Maryland Gov. Wes Moore pardoned 175,000 people with marijuana convictions. But some advocates say pardons might not be enough to remove the barriers faced by people with a criminal record.

www.npr.org

Colleen Chien @colleenchien.bsky.social · Jul 3

Great to talk inclusive innovation with US Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce Derrick Brent last week at USPTO headquarters. Check out the agency's National Strategy for Inclusive Innovation, for getting people off the bench and into the innovation game.

uspto.gov/about-us/new...

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