Understanding Rights Critical For General Counsel When Using Blockchain Technology, Bae Explains

In a special report targeted to in-house counsel, Missouri Lawyers Weekly interviewed Shook Intellectual Property Partner Keith Bae about the future use of blockchain technology, which links several computers together for a peer-to-peer network.

“Because blockchain requires a large number of parties to work properly, it is essential for one to understand their rights and obligations under these agreements,” Bae told MLW for the article "Gray Areas: Emerging Technologies Cause Headaches for Corporate Counsel."

Bae says that smart devices, from buildings to cars, will have a tremendous impact on the future of litigation. “Smart contracts,” which are surfacing now, allow the terms of the agreement to be written into lines of code.

“Smart contracts are essentially little programs that can be stored on a blockchain,” he said. “And what it provides for is a means of automation to execute transactions without human intervention.”

Bae focuses his practice on the preparation, prosecution and licensing of patent applications in the computer software, telecommunications, electrical and mechanical arts. He advises clients on complex technologies including artificial intelligence, immersive environments (virtual and augmented reality), natural language processing and distributed ledge technologies (blockchain).