Written by: WSCL Marketing Team
A Staunch Advocate for Data Privacy Rights
When Professor Eunice Park steps into the classroom at Western State College of Law, she brings more than just legal expertise—she brings a deep awareness of how the law evolves over time. Professor Park has become nationally recognized for her contributions in privacy law. Her work on digital privacy, particularly her paper “Reproductive Health Care Data Free or For Sale: Post-Roe Surveillance and the ‘Three Corners’ of Privacy Legislation Needed,” has become an essential topic of conversation regarding the legal risks people face in the digital world and the urgent need for stronger protections.
By foreseeing critical privacy issues well before they became a key part of public discourse, Professor Park’s contributions establish her as a leader in this increasingly important field. Professor Park’s article, written before the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, accurately anticipated the digital privacy challenges that would arise with the end of the federal constitutional right to abortion. Her innovative insights and timely analysis earned her prestigious recognitions, such as the Privacy Papers for Policymakers Award, which highlights influential privacy research, with praise from the Future of Privacy Forum, a leading privacy think tank. Reflecting on this acknowledgment, Professor Park modestly states, “It means to me that somebody’s reading my scholarship. It’s important that academic scholarship not be viewed as some pedantic, ivory tower endeavor, but something with practical potential that can be shared with a broader audience.”
Identifying Critical Privacy Risks Post-Roe
As Professor Park initiated her research for the landmark paper, she anticipated the serious threats resulting from the digital footprints that people create. Her paper outlined two primary types of data vulnerability: “data for free” and “data for sale.” These classifications highlight how law enforcement can access health care data without a warrant and acquire information through commercial means.
“My concern was the potential for law enforcement to utilize the digital breadcrumbs that we all leave behind, to prosecute people seeking health care following the overturning of Roe,” Professor Park explains. Her prescient observations, including the sensitivity of location data, and call for substantive and procedural protections that align with HIPAA’s purpose and 4th Amendment protections, have since become foundational to contemporary discussions surrounding digital privacy and health care.
Influencing National Privacy Policy
Professor Park’s work is making waves beyond academia in national policy circles. She presented her research at the Senate Hart Building in Washington, D.C., where she spoke to an audience that included lawmakers, industry leaders, and fellow scholars. She also briefed the Federal Trade Commission on her research and has presented at the Association of American Law Schools Annual Meeting.
These experiences opened the door to meaningful conversations with policymakers working on privacy legislation, showing just how relevant and impactful her ideas are beyond academia. “Ripples lead to bigger ripples,” Professor Park asserts. “Any impact is better than no impact. Hopefully, at some point, there’s enough traction for meaningful reform.”
Professor Park’s most recent law review article, “Private Equity and A.I. in Healthcare: A Perilous Pairing for Patient Privacy,” continues her focus on healthcare digital data privacy, this time investigating the effect of the combined simultaneous incursions of private equity acquisitions in the healthcare sector and AI-supported technology. She proposes expanding pre-merger reporting requirements to include enhanced transparency of privacy equity’s data governance plans when utilizing AI systems. Professor Park recently shared her ideas at the Law and Technology Symposium at North Carolina Central University School of Law.
Empowering Students Through Intersectionality
At Western State College of Law, Professor Park teaches her classes in an intersectional way. “I very much view legal doctrine as interrelated,” she says. And that mindset shapes how she teaches. In her torts class and her privacy seminar, Professor Park shows how legal concepts often overlap in ways that reflect real-world legal situations.
In her privacy law seminar, for instance, students explore modern torts like defamation, invasion of privacy and products liability, while connecting them to criminal law and procedure, evidence, contracts, property, and constitutional issues, such as the dormant commerce clause, freedom of speech and due process. “For example, we consider whether an algorithm on a platform that funnels users down certain rabbit holes and encourages them to engage with more polarizing material could be construed as a design defect,” she explains, and has her students ponder how Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which protects platforms from liability for third-party content, fits into these discussions.
Professor Park believes that seeing these connections strengthens legal thinking and makes law school more rewarding. “When students recognize that all they are learning is interrelated, it can become more fun, engaging, and meaningful, because they can connect it to real-world issues,” she says. Her goal is to equip students with both the doctrinal foundation and the critical thinking skills they’ll need to navigate a legal landscape that’s undergoing constant change due to technology.
A Dedicated Advocate for Student Success
After teaching at a number of other law schools, Professor Park chose to return to Western State College of Law for the supportive, student-focused environment it offers. It’s a community that reflects her own passion for helping students grow into confident, capable lawyers. “Western State presents so many opportunities for students,” she proudly states. “Students who come here and dedicate themselves find that with hard work, numerous rewarding professional and personal opportunities will be available to them.”
She understands the anxiety students face as 1Ls. “Everyone’s asking themselves, ‘Am I going to make it?’ The answer is yes,” she says. “If they’re here, they’ve already shown they have the ability to succeed.”
For Professor Park, one of the most fulfilling parts of teaching is watching her students transform into legal professionals during their time at Western State. “It’s incredible to watch students grow, academically and personally, during their time here,” she shares.
Leading Law Review at Western State
As the faculty advisor to the Western State Law Review, Professor Park plays an essential role in guiding some of the school’s most academically driven students. Law Review, she notes, is more than just an academic exercise. It’s a transformative experience that fosters discipline, critical thinking, and collaboration.
“It’s a lot of work,” Professor Park acknowledges. “But students develop essential skills in research and writing, skills that every lawyer needs to excel at their work.” She emphasizes how being part of Law Review also teaches students time management skills and how to work in a team. “It instills the value of supporting others and not just one’s own self, and being part of a larger purpose.”
Professor Park is proud of her students’ hard work in Law Review. “It’s very rewarding to mentor such motivated and capable students,” she states.
Personal Life Beyond the Classroom
When she’s not teaching, researching, or mentoring, Professor Park turns her attention to family life and personal rejuvenation. “I’m a mom, so spending time with family is important,” she says. Balancing professional and personal life is very important to her, and she finds joy in the simple moments outside the academic sphere.
She’s also an avid reader, with a rotating collection of books on her nightstand. “I love reading books, which is probably no surprise,” she says. But perhaps most grounding for Professor Park is her connection to nature. Having spent time in the Midwest and Northeast during her education, she fondly remembers four seasons and now seeks out moments in nature that help her recharge. “It’s important not to always be surrounded by four walls,” she said.
An Integral Member of the Western State Community
Professor Eunice Park’s dedication and commitment to student success set her apart as a valued member of the Western State community. “At Western State, students have the opportunity to reach their full potential.” She believes in the power of a supportive environment, where students are encouraged to grow, take risks, and build the confidence they need to succeed.
Her intersectional teaching style shows her students how the law connects to real life. She pushes them to think critically and see the bigger picture of how the law works in everyday life. Professor Park is not just preparing students for the practice of law. She’s helping them find their place in it.
