Last year, Deedee Bitran won first place ($3,000) in the 2014 Pacific Legal Foundation (“PLF”) Program for Judicial Awareness (“PJA”) writing competition for her paper that challenged the constitutionality of Title VII’s disparate impact provision. This year, Bitran won third place ($1,000) in the 2015 PLF PJA writing competition for her paper: The Uber Innovations that Lyfted Our Standards Out of Thin Air[bnb], Because Now, “There’s an App for That.”
Bitran’s paper, which analyzed the constitutionality of the government’s regulation of Uber and Airbnb, was selected for publication with The Elon Law Review in February 2016. Bitran wrote her 40 page paper on Uber “for fun” after being inspired by meeting PLF’s clients at the PLF annual gala in September 2015. Bitran shared, “Meeting PLF’s clients, donors, and attorneys was a fantastic experience. I was able to speak with people who were so grateful to PLF for saving their small businesses from crippling senseless government overregulation. PLF’s dedication helps encourage entrepreneurship, innovation, and hard work while safeguarding our constitutional right to economic liberty. I am extremely grateful to Professor Elizabeth Foley, my Law Review faculty advisor, who initially introduced me to PLF.” Inspired by former President Ronald Reagan, PLF is “the nation’s leading legal watchdog organization that litigates for limited government, property rights, free enterprise, and a balanced approach to environmental regulations, in courts nationwide.”