Education
- B.A., Duke University
- M.Sc., Oxford University
- J.D., Boston College
Research Interests
- Law & Technology
- Torts
- Criminal Procedure
- Criminal Law
About
Tracy Hresko Pearl is a leading scholar in the field of technology and the law. Her work explores how emerging technologies challenge traditional legal frameworks and the role of government oversight in ensuring critical issues of safety, liability, and individual rights. Her scholarship has been published in top legal journals and presented at conferences in the U.S. and abroad, reflecting her commitment to promoting understanding and responsible development of transformative technologies. She has also been quoted in a wide range of media, including the Washington Post, Newsweek, NPR, Consumer Reports, NBC News, and the National Law Journal, and has written op-eds for publications across the country.
After receiving an A.B. in Public Policy Studies from Duke University and a M.Sc from Oxford University in Comparative Social Policy, Professor Pearl received her Juris Doctorate from Boston College Law School where she served as Senior Executive Editor of the Boston College International & Comparative Law Review and was awarded the Frederick N. Halstrom Oral Advocacy Award and membership in the Order of the Coif.
Following law school, Professor Pearl served as a law clerk to the Honorable Stephanie K. Seymour of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit and to the Honorable Richard L. Williams of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. Upon completion of her clerkships, she worked as a litigation associate at Hogan Lovells LLP in Washington, DC, where she litigated a wide variety of cases at both the trial and appellate levels.
Professor Pearl joined the University of Oklahoma faculty in 2020. Prior to her arrival, she was a law professor at Texas Tech University where she was a recipient of the Chancellor's Council Distinguished Research Award, the highest research honor awarded within the Texas Tech University System, a President's Excellence in Research Professorship, the Spencer A. Wells Award for Creativity in Teaching, and a Lubbock Chamber of Commerce Twenty Under Forty award. Professor Pearl started her academic career as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Florida International University College of Law where she was the 2013-14 Professor of the Year as well as the 2013-14 Pioneer Award winner.
Professor Pearl is admitted to practice in Massachusetts, the District of Columbia, the United States Courts of Appeals for the First, Fourth, and Tenth Circuits, and the United States Supreme Court.
Additional Information
J.D.:
- Criminal Law 5223
- Criminal Procedure: Investigation 5303
- Professional Responsibility 5323
- Torts 5144
Is an Autonomous Vehicle a Roller Coaster or a Hollywood Film?: Trust, Safety, and Self-Regulation, 50 BYU L. Rev. ___ (Forthcoming 2024).
On Warrants & Waiting: Electronic Warrants & The Fourth Amendment, 99 Ind. L.J. 1 (2023).
The Fourth Amendment in the Age of Autonomous Vehicles, 30 Geo. Mason Law Rev. 179 (2022).
Racing to Defeat Climate Change on Reluctant Roads: Autonomous Vehicles, Climate Resilience, and Legal Reform in Urban Climate Resilience: The Role of Law (2021).
Hands Off the Wheel: The Role of Law in the Coming Extinction of Human-Driven Vehicles, 33 Harv. J. L. & Tech. 427 (2020).
Compensation at the Crossroads: Autonomous Vehicles & Alternative Victim Compensation Schemes, 60 Wm. & Mary L. Rev. 1827 (2019).
Hands on the Wheel: A Call for Greater Regulation of Semi-Autonomous Cars, 93 Ind. L.J. 713 (2018).
Fast & Furious: The Misregulation of Driverless Cars, 73 NYU Ann. Surv. Am. L. 24 (2017).
Far From the Madding Crowd: A Statutory Response to Crowd Crush, 68 Hastings L.J. 159 (2016).
Crowd Crush: How the Law Leaves American Crowds Unprotected, 104 Kentucky L.J.1 (2016).