Chronique du CTI – Moving from Books to Blockchain : The Need to Expand Legal Technology Education in Law Schools

By: GregorioLentini, Student, McGill University  With:Katarina Daniels, Lawyer, Liaison Librarian at Nahum Gelber Law Library, McGillUniversity                 Over the pastdecade, the legal industry has rapidly evolved. Law firms are expanding theiruse of technology, both in depth and in breadth, within their practices. At notime has the shift been clearer than during the COVID-19 pandemic, where lawfirms across the world successfullyand seamlessly transitioned to a remote work environment, sometimes evenwithin 24 hours. The pandemic will likely accelerate the “technologization” of thelegal practice: smaller firms may recognize the cost-savings of operatingentirely virtually, and partners in large firms, who were previously skepticalof new technology, may become accustomed and open to using new platforms. Withcertain courts expanding their virtual footprint, and lawyers increasinglyturning to legal tech for assistance, there is a growing need for law schoolsto incorporate legal technology into their curricula.   Before going further, it is important to distinguishwhat is… Lire la suite

Chronique du CTI – COVID-19 and the Courts: An Opportunity for Modernization?

By: Emmett Bisbee, Student, McGill University     With: Katarina Daniels, Lawyer, Liaison Librarian at Nahum Gelber Law Library, McGill University     TheCOVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic has been a significant shock to theadministration of justice in Canada. Concerns about the spread of the virus,coupled with provincial emergency management orders limiting public gatheringsand travel, have made it impossible for courts and tribunals to conductbusiness as usual. Law firms across Canada were already making extensive use oftechnology to facilitate their practice prior to the pandemic, so thetransition to remote work was fairly seamless. The same cannot be said for courtsand tribunals. Fortunately, the judiciary has been able to leverage varioustechnological solutions to maintain some limited operations, though thetimeliness of responses varies. This article will consider some of the technologicalways that Canadian courts and tribunals have reacted to the pandemic and willthen highlight some of the challenges and considerations associated with… Lire la suite

CPVP vs Facebook : l’affaire se transporte en Cour fédérale

Simon du Perron, étudiant à la maîtrise en droit des technologies de l’information Katarina Daniels, avocate, bibliothécaire de liaison à la bibliothèque de droit Nahum Gelber, Université McGill Le 6 février dernier, le Commissaire à la protection de la vie privée du Canada (CPVP) a présenté une demande d’audience à la Cour fédérale en vertu de l’alinéa 15 a) de la Loi sur la protection des renseignements personnels et les documents électroniques (LPRPDÉ) dans une affaire mettant en cause les pratiques de Facebook en matière de protection de la vie privée. La demande fait suite au rapport de conclusions d’enquête daté du 25 avril 2019 dans lequel le CPVP a conclu que le géant du web avait contrevenu aux dispositions de la LPRPDÉ en n’obtenant pas le consentement valable des utilisateurs en vue de la communication de leurs renseignements personnels à des applications conçues par des développeurs tiers et en… Lire la suite

Blockchain: An Unlikely Key to Improving Access to Justice?

Josh Shapiro, Student, McGill University Katarina Daniels, Lawyer, Liaison Librarian at Nahum Gelber Law Library, McGill University Among all legal technologies revolutionizing the practice of law, blockchain may represent the least understood, while ranking among those with the most potential for the future. Therefore, it is well worth examining a number of uses of blockchain in law. Former Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin has pointed out that one way Canadians must improve their justice system is by using legal technology to increase accessibility.[i] Christian Lang defines legal technology as technology that helps facilitate the practice of law and helps consumers access justice. This is precisely what blockchain can accomplish, in a number of ways. While initially closely associated with cryptocurrencies, blockchain’s applications have grown tremendously thanks to an increased understanding of one of its most useful functions, its capacity to act as a ledger and keep track of transactions. Blockchain stores… Lire la suite

La discrimination systémique à l’aube de l’intelligence artificielle

Anne-Isabelle Cloutier, étudiante, Université McGill Katarina Daniels, avocate, bibliothécaire de liaison à la bibliothèque de droit Nahum Gelber, Université McGill En 2016, l’organisation ProPublica a révélé dans un rapport-choc qu’un programme d’intelligence artificielle utilisé par des tribunaux américains pour évaluer les risques de récidive de criminels était beaucoup plus enclin à étiqueter faussement les accusés noirs comme étant susceptibles de récidiver – leur attribuant à tort un risque de récidive presque deux fois plus élevé que les accusés blancs. Ironiquement, le programme Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions (COMPAS) avait été adopté par des états américains dans le but de réduire l’influence des préjugés et stéréotypes racistes dans la prise de décision de juges et de fonctionnaires. Alors que les autorités américaines s’étaient tournées vers COMPAS pour contrer la discrimination systémique, ce logiciel s’est retrouvé à refléter et renforcir les préjugés et stéréotypes racistes à l’égard des personnes de… Lire la suite

AI-powered Legal Tech in a Human World: Should Justice be Served by a Robot?

By Anastasia Greenberg, Student, McGill University With Katarina Daniels, Lawyer, Liaison Librarian at Nahum Gelber Law Library, McGill University Imagine a world where robots are gainfully employed in the legal field. Traditionally, most legal associate work involves monotonous tasks such as sifting through hundreds of pages of documents to build a case, searching through thousands of results in a legal database, and drafting contract after contract with repetitive formats. While not exactly physical “robots”, artificial intelligence (AI) in the legal field promises to change all that by training computers to perform routine legal tasks with greater precision than human lawyers. A type of AI, Machine Learning, is the method behind Google’s search algorithms, driverless cars, and DeepMind’s success in beating the world champion in the game AlphGo. Now, AI has entered the legal field with great force. In 2018, investment in legal tech reached over $1.6 billion, representing a whopping… Lire la suite