The Virginia Journal of Law and Technology (VJOLT) is a student-run publication of the University of Virginia School of Law. It is one of the Law School's newest, and most dynamic, journals. VJOLT was established in 1996 by students who sought to enhance the focus at the Law School on issues arising from the intersection of law and technology. An interested and energetic group of students founded VJOLT, and Virginia thus joined the ranks of Harvard, Boalt Hall, Columbia, and other top law schools with technology journals.

   The Journal publishes its issues exclusively online at www.vjolt.net and is indexed on Lexis and Westlaw. This arrangement provides VJOLT with greater worldwide exposure, lower cost, and the ability to publish in a more timely fashion than most print journals. The articles published in VJOLT examine legal issues arising as the result of innovative technological change. Recent topics have included the Internet's effect on the practice of law; genetically modified foods in the developing world; the regulation of online hate speech; privacy issues relating to personal information, genetic data, and face recognition technology; and ownership controls in the new entertainment economy. Recent articles have incorporated aspects of communications law, employment law, civil procedure, electronic commerce, evidence, and antitrust. The Journal's topical scope is as broad as society itself, for the ripple effects of technology's evolution can be felt in every area of law, regulation and politics. The issues that arise are truly cutting-edge and comprise many of the growth areas in professional practice and academic scholarship today.

   Current members have backgrounds in areas such as English literature, engineering, philosophy, physics, and political science, and career interests ranging from intellectual property to civil liberties to corporate transactions. Membership in the Journal is determined by the Unified Journal Tryout conducted during the spring semester of the students' first year in law school. The Law School's eight law journals jointly administer the tryout process, which involves both writing and editing components. New members begin their involvement with the Journal by completing cite-checks of the manuscripts that the Journal publishes, starting with the production of the summer issue. The majority of the cite-check process is handled electronically through the use of Lexis, Westlaw, and e-mail. As 2Ls, Journal members apply during the spring semester for positions on the Managing Board; they then hold those positions through their third year at the Law School.

   If you have any questions, please feel free to talk to any of the current managing board and editorial board members, or e-mail us at vjolt@vjolt.net.