Denver Pop Culture Con 2019 Presents: The Legal Geeks’ Panels

Written by Zeke Perez Jr.

Cue the Law and Order *thunk thunk* sound. Denver Pop Culture Con 2019 was home to a series of very intense, very serious legal discussions. Down in the Coast City room, a bunch of nerdy lawyers gathered for a handful of panels where pop culture’s biggest icons were put on trial. Taking the stand throughout the weekend were characters and moments from Star Wars, Star Trek, the Godzilla universe, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I served as a spectator in the proverbial courtroom for those last two panels, as the panelists discussed the implications of fictional destruction of real-world settings.
 
Each of the panels was hosted by members of “The Legal Geeks”, practicing attorneys who love to geek out on The Legal Geeks blog and podcast in their spare time. On Saturday, Joshua Gilliland, co-creator of The Legal Geeks, was joined by Nari Ely to tackle “Kaiju Law”. The duo dove into a series of legal matters surrounding Godzilla, Mothra, King Ghidorah, Gamera, King Kong, and more. My two favorite discussion topics pondered whether the president needs congressional approval to go to war with Godzilla and whether the U.S. has a treaty obligation to defend Japan from Godzilla attacks.
 
I went back for more on Sunday, dropping in for the panel about law in the MCU. This one warranted a star-studded legal team; Gilliland and Ely were back, but this time they brought Bethany Bengfort (U.S. Courts), Mollybeth Kocialski (U.S. Patent and Trademark Office), Mark A. Lemley (Stanford Law School), and… drumroll please… Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser! These legal minds delved into a whirlwind of fiery debate about everything Marvel. Was Tony Stark’s use of Spider-Man child endangerment? Does Star-Lord have a rightful claim to ownership over the Infinity Stone he found on Morag? Could Thanos be prosecuted for his snap? And who gets all the property left abandoned by that snap? The Sokovia Accords? All the damage done in all the battles? There are real legal ramifications to the Avengers’ actions and The Legal Geeks team got to the bottom of them in hilarious fashion.
 
These panels truly lived up to Pop Culture Classroom’s mission, by making U.S. statutes, world treaties, and high court legal rulings fun and engaging to talk about. It is very obvious that the panelists love what they do – both for work and for play. Their passion was on display during the sessions and is evident in each blog post on their website (all of which are an absolute blast to read). When you can rope the state’s attorney general in for a day of nerdy legal fun, you know you’ve got a winner of a panel.
 
I also appreciated that DPCC packaged The Legal Geeks’ sessions as a track throughout the course of the weekend. It was nice to follow a series of panels with one common theme (law) as they journeyed through several different pop culture topics (Godzilla, Marvel, etc.). DPCC accomplished this with other threads, too. For example, they had a series of NASA presentations, a set of Shakespearean Star Wars performances, and various March Madness-style tournaments where different movie characters and franchises faced off. Themes like these brought consistency in panels throughout the convention.
 
The law panels are just one example of DPCC and Pop Culture Classroom accomplishing their goal of making topics accessible through pop culture. I sat through a seemingly endless number of courses about Supreme Court rulings and legal policy when I was getting my Public Policy degrees. Those courses could have used some sprucing up from The Legal Geeks. While the panels did get a bit in the weeds at times, they were engaging and understandable overall – not to mention, quite a lot of fun! If any of the topics from the panels mentioned above got you thinking, be sure to check out The Legal Geeks blog for a ton of entertaining discussions. Many of the topics from DPCC can be found in blog form there, as well as coverage of everything from Daredevil and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. to Supergirl and Star Trek. Exploring the law with The Legal Geeks will be the most fun you’ve ever had with an attorney.

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