معرفی
Natalie Banta serves as the Lynner Dwight D. Opperman Distinguished Professor of Law at Drake University Law School, holding this position since 2017 after prior appointments at Valparaiso University and Stetson University. Admitted to the California Bar (2009), D.C. Bar (2010), and Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (2010), she brings practical experience from Covington & Burling LLP and judicial clerkship with Judge Jay S. Bybee.
Her educational credentials include:
- JD summa cum laude from Brigham Young University's J. Reuben Clark Law School (Brigham Young University Law Review)
- BS magna cum laude with University Honors from Brigham Young University
Professor Banta's research pioneers the intersection of Wills & Trusts, Property Law, and Federal Income Tax with digital asset succession. She critically examines electronic will formalities, minors' digital inheritance rights, and post-mortem privacy conflicts, revealing how platform contracts often override statutory inheritance rights. Her work has transformed estate planning discourse by addressing the legal vacuum surrounding digital legacies.
Analysis of her publications shows a strategic evolution from foundational digital asset studies (2014-2017) to pandemic-era disruptions (2023) and AI implications (2023). She consistently identifies systemic tensions between user agreements and inheritance rights, with recent work highlighting how funeral industry regulations failed during health crises and how artificial intelligence could reshape estate administration.
Her distinguished honors include:
- Election as Academic Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (2024)
- Lynner Dwight D. Opperman Distinguished Professorship
As an educator and thought leader, Professor Banta has moderated AALS sessions on inequality in Wills & Trusts pedagogy and presented keynote addresses at Vilnius University (2023) and University of Szczecin (2023). She actively shapes policy through service on the Iowa Probate, Trust and Estate Planning Section Council (2019-present) and Iowa Title Standards Committee, while contributing to national discourse via the Association of American Law Schools Real Property and Trusts Sections (2015-2023).
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