h/t Prof. Andréanne Malacket
Editor R.D.U.S.
Call for papers: Law and Technology (special issue to be published in the Winter of 2025)
pdf Appel de textes en francais
The Revue de droit de l’Université de Sherbrooke (RDUS) is launching a general call for papers on the theme of Law and Technology. New technologies, in particular artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics, have come to dominate our daily activities. Autonomous vehicles, agents and weapons, mass surveillance, robot-judges, targeted advertising, conversational agents and social networks are all implicated by this emerging trend. TheChatGPT conversational tool, developed by OpenAI, has sparked debate about the benefits and risks of AI systems on a societal scale.
The increasingly widespread use of these new technologies has prompted new ways of thinking about, and shaping, the law. At the federal level, Bill C-27 proposes a framework for AI, raising questions about both the substance of the related legal rules and constitutional jurisdiction. In the absence of specific regulations for digital practices, other ethical or technical standards – such as the Montréal Declaration for a Responsible Development of Artificial Intelligence (2018) – have become the main source of guidance.
While this type of initiative may counter weaknesses in the current law, such alternative normative instruments can also push the law forward on digital issues – issues that are both extremely diverse and intersecting. For example, how can algorithmic governance be regulated? How can we preserve and encourage digital innovation while also supervising the so-called “responsible” deployment of AI? How can we limit AI’s impact on privacy and other human rights? How can we best frame automated decision-making? Is it possible to counter the “black box” of algorithms with greater transparency? How can we ensure that AI does not rely on discriminatory biases or contribute to the marginalization of vulnerable groups? How does and how will artificial intelligence affect the practice of law and the broader legal profession? What legal or normative frameworks are needed to regulate AI-related products and applications, such as generative AI, robots or other autonomous devices?
Courts, too, have recently embarked on a digital shift. The modernization of the justice system, including the computerization of court registries, raises a number of questions. Is this modernization properly supervised? Can such an initiative promote access to justice? Can the judicial system learn from the experience of the administrative justice system – such as the Tribunal administratif du travail – with regard to the use of technology in proceedings? How should we think about digital evidence? Are the current legal rules found in part in articles 2837 ff. of the Civil Code of Québec and in the Act to Establish a Legal Framework for Information Technology, CQLR, c. C-1.1 adequate for the state of technology in 2023?
The RDUS invites members of the legal community in Canada to submit works on thesecritical issues. We welcome engagement on a range of topics, including but not limited to:
- Access to justice
- Right to privacy and data protection
- Health law
- Environmental law
- Contract law
- Labour and employment law
- Fundamental rights and freedoms
- Private international law
- Ethics and law of artificial intelligence
- Governance and regulation
- Legal interpretation
- Pedagogy and university teaching
- Evidence and civil procedure
- Intellectual property
- Civil liability
- Society and religion
Works should be between 15,000 and 23,000 words in length (inclusive of notes).
They may be submitted by November 15th, 2023, by email to: [email protected].
Works will be selected by Profs. Anne-Sophie Hulin and Charles-Étienne Daniel, in collaboration with Prof. Andréanne Malacket, editor of the RDUS.
Each submission will undergo a double-blind peer review process. Authors must comply with the RDUS editorial policy, available on the Université de Sherbrooke Faculté de droit website: https://www.usherbrooke.ca/droit/recherche/publications/revue-de-droit-deuniversite-de-sherbrooke-rdus.
The RDUS is also proud to announce that the publication of this special issue is made possible by the OBVIA, the ADAJ project, the Chaire-miroir Ottawa-Lyon, the Chaire de recherche I.A. responsible à l’échelle mondiale, the CrRDG and the SoDRUS. A $1,000 “Prix de la Chaire Justice sociale et intelligence artificielle” (Fondation Abeona / ENS-PSL / OBVIA) will also be awarded to the emerging author (student, junior researcher, assistant professor) who publishes the most significant and innovative contribution in this special issue. The recipient will be selected jointly by the scientific directors of the special issue and by the editor of the RDUS, as well as the RDUS scientific committee.
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The Revue de droit de l’Université de Sherbrooke was founded in 1970 to promote the publication of legal research. The RDUS accepts original texts in both French and English. It also publishes works with a multi-disciplinary scope or that offer a perspective that goes beyond the strict classical framework of legal positivism.
Prof. Andréanne Malacket
Editor, RDUS
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