Citing “political challenges” within the American Bar Association, and reportedly out of fear of budget cuts or even its own shutdown, the ABA’s Center for Innovation canceled publication of an op-ed arguing in favor of regulatory reform, only notifying its authors on the day it was to have been published this week.
This comes as the ABA convenes its 2023 annual meeting this week in Denver, where the Center faces both budget-review meetings and a change in the composition of the governing council that oversees its work, including, if elected, a new chair who opposes regulatory reform.
The Center had agreed to publish the op-ed as part of its biannual innovation trends report, which was scheduled to be released Aug. 1. Instead, the Center pulled the plug on the piece, fearing its position would be controversial within the ABA and could endanger the Center’s funding or continued existence.
While the Center reportedly made
