Center for Legal & Court Technology
Improving the administration of justice through the use of technology
Our 5th Artificial Intelligence Writing Competition is here! CLCT is now accepting papers tackling regulation of Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Things, or other related technologies. All current law students in the U.S. and abroad are encouraged to submit their essays by January 10, 2022. Cash prizes totaling $5,000 will be awarded to the top three submissions. Details & Rules available at CLCT International Writing Competitions.
Justice From Anywhere
On June 9th, world-renowned legal futurist Richard Susskind challenged the legal professions to determine how to use technology to address the fundamental responsibilities of courts, rather than to just use technology to enhance how courts operate. Appearing virtually from the United Kingdom, Professor Susskind delivered the keynote address at the Center for Legal & Court Technology’s 2021 Court Affiliates Conference, Justice from Anywhere.
The Center for Legal & Court Technology (CLCT) is a joint initiative of W&M Law School and the National Center for State Courts. CLCT’s mission is to improve the administration of justice through appropriate technology. The CLCT Court Affiliates are state, federal, native-American, and Canadian Courts that are supported by CLCT and which endeavor to assist each other. The 2001 virtual conference, attended by judges, court administrators, and technologists, including representatives of the Federal Judicial Center and Administrative Office of the United States Courts, emphasized online dispute resolution and remote appearances and virtual hearings and trials.
Associate Dean and Professor Nicolas Vermeys of the University of Montreal’s Law Faculty and Cyberjustice Laboratory, and visiting Associate Professor at William & Mary Law School, analyzed the current state of Online Dispute Resolution (ODR). Subsequently, the Conference explored the actual implementation of one ODR product, Matterhorn, in the Fairfax, Virginia District Court.
The Conference’s second day emphasized virtual hearings and included programs on the major videoconferencing technology platforms, the availability of private vendors to conduct or assist virtual proceedings, and CLCT’s study of virtual proceedings conducted by major federal adjudicatory agencies.
In the Conference’s last substantive session, Matt Benefiel, Court Administrator of the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, which includes the nation’s most technologically advanced state court courtroom, shared his predictions for court technology needs over the next five years. Mr. Benefiel discussed the transition to hybrid courtrooms that will allow for people to be in-person as well as remote, including the need for simultaneous interpretation..
Throughout the Conference, presenters and attendees discussed what the future will hold after the pandemic. There was a unanimous consensus that virtual aspects will remain; the question remains to what extent. Many felt that pretrial matters likely will remain virtual, while trials themselves, especially jury trials, will be in-person with potential remote witnesses.
The 2022 Court Affiliates Conference is tentatively scheduled for June 9-10, 2022 in Olathe, Kansas (Kansas City) hosted by the Tenth Judicial District of Kansas at their newly constructed courthouse. The Tenth District has promised great food and great conversations.
CLCT is pleased to announce the winners of the 4th Annual Artificial Intelligence Writing Competition. The Competition is open to law students worldwide and centers on innovative legal issues likely to arise from Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things. This year’s participants analyzed a wide array of technology topics, including ethical issues arising from facial recognition technology, deepfakes, and predictive algorithms; the digital divide amongst populations; the constitutionality of the American criminal justice system’s use of Artificial Intelligence; and risk management and liability related to IoT devices.
Submissions were outstanding as in years past, once again making selection of the top three papers challenging. The winners will receive cash prizes provided through grant funding by the Silicon Valley Community Foundation and the opportunity to present their papers to executives from Cisco Systems, Inc.
THE 2020-2021 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE WRITING COMPETITION WINNERS ARE:
SPECIAL MENTIONS GO TO:
CLCT congratulates our Winners and Special Mentions, and sends an enormous thank you to every law student that contributed to this year’s Competition. CLCT looks forward to its 5th Annual Artificial Intelligence Writing Competition next year!
This semester has been tough, and law students across the globe have had to show resilience and determination to continue their studies in the less than ideal virtual classroom. For this reason, we have decided to extend the deadline for the Fourth Annual Writing Competition to February 7, 2021. We trust that the extra time will allow those who wish to take part, to take some personal time before finishing their submissions.
For more information about the competition, please visit our section on International Writing Competitions.
We wish everyone a happy and safe holiday season!
Our annual writing competition has returned! We are ready to receive papers tackling innovative legal issues likely to arise from Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Things, and/or related technologies. For further details, please visit our section on International Writing Competitions