LPE Blog

What Stands in the Way of Abundance in Healthcare? Recent public initiatives to manufacture insulin highlight both the promise and pitfalls of the new politics of “abundance.” Although states are capable of producing high-quality, affordable medicines...

In her latest post for @lpeblog.bsky.social, @solomonctryls.bsky.social faculty affiliate @akapczynski.bsky.social discusses her new research paper, which explores how states can overcome legal obstacles to the public production of life-saving medicines. lpeproject.org/blog/what-st...

Capitalism & Disability: A Symposium on the Work of Marta Russell The modern disability rights movement has been primarily oriented around seeking labor inclusion through the expansion of civil rights statutes. Despite this, few disability theorists have approached…

@avierkant.bsky.social and I also did an amazing symposium on Marta Russell with @kmtani.bsky.social for @lpeblog.bsky.social in 2022, featuring contributions from @nhold.bsky.social, Ruth Colker, Jules, @deanspade.bsky.social & Liat Ben-Moshe

Weekly Roundup: Aug. 1 Hilary Allen on why we shouldn't subsidize fintech, Amy Kapczynski on what it will take to make public pharma work, and Maryam Jamshidi on the economic considerations at the heart of recent U.S.

The week in review: Amy Kapczynski on what it will take to make public pharma work, Hilary Allen on why the public shouldn’t subsidize fintech, and Maryam Jamshidi on the economic considerations at the heart of recent U.S. Sanctions.

Plus, the best of LPE from around the web 🧵👇

if i were a pro-trump financial type i might view the destruction of reliable government data with the kind of anger and apprehension that might lead me to reevaluate my politics, but then if i’m a financial guy throwing my weight behind strongman rule, i’m already too stupid to breathe

In response to today's dismal jobs report, President Trump fired the Commissioner of Labor Statistics - a move right out of the authoritarian playbook.

See our statement from @alexsjacquez.bsky.social

The American Economy and Democracy After Dobbs - Roosevelt Institute On August 6, the Roosevelt Institute will bring together two leading experts to analyze how the legal complexities and economic constraints of the post-Dobbs landscape are reshaping our economy and de...

Cool event alert: next week, the @rooseveltinstitute.org will host a conversation on the legal complexities and economic constraints of the post-Dobbs landscape, featuring Kate Bahn and Rachel Rebouché.

Climate Denialism Dressed Up as Law | The Regulatory Review EPA’s attempts to reinterpret the Clean Air Act are detrimental to fighting climate change.

Over at @theregreview.bsky.social, the great Lisa Heinzerling analyzes the EPA’s attempts to reinterpret the Clean Air Act.

On her Blog, @rlspang.bsky.social discusses what’s really happening with state “legal tender” laws.

How Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” Will Make Law School Unaffordable For People Who Are Not Already Rich Sweeping changes to key student loan programs will make it harder for aspiring public interest attorneys to attend law school—and exacerbate this country's justice gap.

At @ballsandstrikes.org, @skennedy2504.bsky.social and Heather Atherton explain How Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” Will Make Law School Unaffordable For People Who Are Not Already Rich.

From Public Data to Private Knowledge: Capital, Surveillance, and Power — Abby Cartus ‘Defending the institutions and “standing up for science” is really clinging to a bygone illusion. The stakes of institutional engagement are changing as institutions are…being de…

Over at @legalform.bsky.social, Abby Cartus maps out the deeper contours of the Trump administration’s approach to data production and control.

Trump 2.0 Support For Lina Khan Style Antitrust Reform Wound Up Being An Unsurprising Lie In a lead up to the last Presidential Election, one of the lies circulated by the Trump camp to befuddle plebs and rubes was that Trump 2.0 was going to be “serious about antitrust reform.&#8…

At @techdirt.com, ‪Karl Bode‬ rightly observes that Trump 2.0 Support For Lina Khan Style Antitrust Reform Wound Up Being An Unsurprising Lie.

Green Fellowships | UNSW The Green Fellowships Program is a prestigious initiative that welcomes academics from outside Australia whose research aligns with UNSW’s strengths and strategic priorities.

Are you a mid-career scholar whose position in a certain proto-fascist state has become untenable? The University of New South Wales in Sydney has twelve 1-2 year Green Fellowships available. Applications due August 10th.

h/t @ntinatzouvala.bsky.social

Section Calls for Papers - Annual Meeting AALS would like to assist your Section in maximizing visibility for Call for Papers for the 2026 Annual Meeting. Submitting through this form ensures we can upload the information to the Website easil...

Cool CfP alert: The AALS Section on Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation is looking for LPE people interested in presenting at its main program, Trump 2.0’s Impact on Employee Benefits.

Due date for submissions is Sept. 12.

CFP: Inaugural Association of Law and Political Economy Conference A forthcoming conference will launch The Association of Law and Political Economy (ALPE): a membership organization with a regular annual conference, elected leadership, and an architecture for open…

In case you’ve been living under a rock, the Inaugural Association of Law and Political Economy Conference conference will be taking next February in Richmond. Proposals for papers and panels are due between Aug. 15 and Sept. 15.

For the latest info, make sure to follow @a-lpe.bsky.social!

Weekly Roundup: Aug. 1 Hilary Allen on why we shouldn't subsidize fintech, Amy Kapczynski on what it will take to make public pharma work, and Maryam Jamshidi on the economic considerations at the heart of recent U.S.

The week in review: Amy Kapczynski on what it will take to make public pharma work, Hilary Allen on why the public shouldn’t subsidize fintech, and Maryam Jamshidi on the economic considerations at the heart of recent U.S. Sanctions.

Plus, the best of LPE from around the web 🧵👇

About The Law and Political Economy (LPE) Project brings together a network of scholars, practitioners, and students working to develop innovative intellectual, pedagogical, and political interventions to…

The Law and Political Economy (LPE) Project. Here's a bit about us, and you can follow our Blog here:

lpeproject.org/blog/

The Economics of Sanctions: Why the U.S. Targeted Francesca Albanese On July 9, 2025, UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese became the latest target of unilateral U.S. sanctions. These sanctions are an unjustified assault on Albanese, the United Nations…

Today, @msjamshidi.bsky.social argues that the recent US sanctions against Francesca Albanese—a human rights expert whose work threatens several major American corporations—exemplify the economic goals that are part and parcel of U.S. sanctions policy.

Rebecca L. Spang - Blog This page features texts I haven't published elsewhere. Please feel free to cite as "Rebecca L. Spang, 'Title of post,' date, rebeccalspang.org."

WaPo published a puff piece about "new state legal tender laws." As @grahamhubbs.bsky.social noted, it took them 500 words before they introduced a skeptical view. I've written about it, but wasn't sure how to get it published--so it's on my website for now. Please read!
www.rebeccalspang.org/blog

Thanks for sharing - we'll highlight in our weekly newsletter tomorrow!

Torts teachers: the 2025 edition of the completely FREE Witt-Tani casebook is now up on the CALI website! Thanks again to @johnfabianwitt.bsky.social for adding me as a co-author a few editions back. I love this book & love hearing from those of you who use it! www.cali.org/books/torts-...

The Economics of Sanctions: Why the U.S. Targeted Francesca Albanese On July 9, 2025, UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese became the latest target of unilateral U.S. sanctions. These sanctions are an unjustified assault on Albanese, the United Nations…

Today, @msjamshidi.bsky.social argues that the recent US sanctions against Francesca Albanese—a human rights expert whose work threatens several major American corporations—exemplify the economic goals that are part and parcel of U.S. sanctions policy.

Also, it's a real coward's move not to link to the post, which proceeds to explain *why* and *in what way* it represents a cautionary tale!

Here's the post, so you can judge:

lpeproject.org/blog/why-we-...

"In the United States, prices have skyrocketed over the past decade... In fact, studies show that more than a million people in the US ration insulin each year, risking kidney failure, blindness, and death."

Can the state address the high price of insulin by producing public medicines?

Don't miss this great post describing new research on the promise of public pharma, with reflections on public options and industrial policy, the absence of "markets" in medicine, and the blind spots of "abundance."

What Stands in the Way of Abundance in Healthcare? Recent public initiatives to manufacture insulin highlight both the promise and pitfalls of the new politics of “abundance.” Although states are capable of producing high-quality, affordable medicines...

Lots out there on the Abundance debate - here’s a bit from me, based on new work with colleagues on barriers to public pharma. We need political will and vision, yes - but also the will to confront private power. lpeproject.org/blog/what-st...

"Today, any attempt to produce abundance (in healthcare or elsewhere) will run up against powerful entrenched interests. Unless we see this as a key part of the problem, and develop the political will to address it, there’s little chance that proposals to increase production will succeed."

What Stands in the Way of Abundance in Healthcare? Recent public initiatives to manufacture insulin highlight both the promise and pitfalls of the new politics of “abundance.” Although states are capable of producing high-quality, affordable medicines...

Today, @akapczynski.bsky.social explains how recent public initiatives to manufacture insulin highlight both the promise and pitfalls of the new politics of “abundance.”

Delivering abundance, in healthcare and elsewhere, will require confronting not just red tape, but entrenched private power.

Why We Need to Stop Subsidizing Venture Capitalists From lending to stock trading to crypto, leading fintech companies have gained an edge not through actual technological innovation, but by using tech-driven narratives to obscure how they profit from…

Today, @profhilaryallen.bsky.social explains how Silicon Valley Venture Capitalists turned “innovation” into a smokescreen for regulatory arbitrage—and how we underwrite this behavior by showering VCs with public subsidies.

"Leading VC firms are well-aware of the important role played by special legal treatment.... The crypto industry was responsible for 44% of all corporate expenditures during the 2024 election cycle—with most of it coming from Andreessen Horowitz, Coinbase, and another crypto company called Ripple."

And if you enjoy the post, make sure to check out Hilary's ongoing internet serial, *Fintech Dystopia,* which she describes as "a summer beach read about Silicon Valley ruining things."