Blockchain Governance

This course offers an overview of blockchain governance and DAOs, including the governance of layer-1 blockchains, DAO tooling, on-chain and off-chain voting, delegation and constitutional design, identity, and privacy. We will cover these topics both from a technical perspective and from a social scientific perspective, and will include a range of guests from the web3 space. This course is a mixture of legal, technical, and governance (business-oriented) material, with a roughly equal number of classes devoted to each of the three aspects. Instructors will include several speakers who are on the frontiers of legal development of DAOs. The course does not presume a blockchain or technical background. DAOs and blockchain governance are exciting areas of rapid development. It is likely that DAO-type structures will replace or supplement current legal arrangements currently embodied in business corporations, non-profit organizations, and government institutions. This course offers a chance to get in on the ground floor. Among other topics, we will discuss in detail, with considerable emphasis on legal issues, the best ways to start a DAO. Elements used in grading: Homework and papers. There are no examinations. Cross-listed with the Graduate School of Business (GSBGEN 323) and Computer Science 352B. The course will be taught in law school classrooms.