Alexis Pearson

E-Portfolio 3: For Whom the Bell Tolls Reflection

It was difficult to advise Jennifer on her situation because it is a unique and innovative
business plan but may face difficulties because of the potential criminal and civil liabilities or
discrimination from individuals who do not value breast milk and the ideology behind the
business. I tried to give her purely business-related advice to start and then went into the areas
where she may face difficulties. I wanted her to feel confident in the business plan that she
proposed and feel confident that her business could start without considering any of the potential
liability. After talking from a business standpoint, I then talked about the criminal and civil
liability because while it is unclear whether this will affect her, it is likely that it will.
One area where I accounted for the implications of my advice on Jennifer’s life and
business is when I explained to her that a court could go either way on determining whether her
milk would be considered a bodily fluid. She was made fully aware that there is a potential that
her business could break laws and she could thus be liable. I explained the situation to her, but
ultimately, she needed to know that the decision was hers alone to make. To show respect for
Jennifer’s situation and choices I tried to be as compassionate as possible and relay to her that
the core of her business is an important market. I wanted her to understand that she has touched
on a very important issue for mothers who are trying to breast feed, and that her work trying to
serve that industry is admirable.
My advice would have looked different when advising Uber or Airbnb because those
companies were not looking to challenge a statute about a controversial area of law. Those
businesses were capitalizing on an already well-established idea (taxis and hotels) and just
twisting them to fit modern day society. Breastfeeding and selling milk are topics that are heavily
debated in today’s society because of formula and the overly sexualized stigma against breast
milk. Jennifer will face more base line discrimination that can influence not only how her
business does but also potentially how the courts rule on her criminal/civil liability. Uber and
Airbnb, while they faced their own hurdles to jump over, did not face Jennifer’s controversial set
of issues, thus making advice to them different.