About Chemistry and the Law

Chemistry and the Law (CHAL) was initially established as a subdivision of the Division of Chemical Information (CINF) in 1980, due in large part to pioneering efforts by Division elder statesman, Howard Peters. Ultimately, the ACS Division of Chemistry and the Law was inaugurated in 19**. Throughout that time, CHAL has focused on education, networking, and recognition of contributors to the field and those who have volunteered their time to the Division and ACS more broadly. For more than 20 years, we have been a constant presence at the American Chemical Society’s two annual national meetings, offering technical programs on subjects at the intersection of chemical science and law. While the division’s founding members hailed from intellectual property law and practice, our programming has constantly reached beyond that core content. To date, we have provided programming in areas such as: FDA and regulatory law, forensics, environmental law, expert witness practice, and others. We have also frequently offered career counseling workshops, a subject that is of continued interest to ACS members who are looking at careers beyond academia and research science. We have also had an occasional presence at the ACS’s many regional meetings.