'Artificial Intelligence and dispute resolution: challenges and limitations': 3CL Seminar

Speaker: Professor Alberto Saiz Garitaonandia (University of the Basque Country) Among some other problems, due to court congestion and case backlog, many judicial systems are seen as slow and unable to offer a response to the citizen´s demands in a reasonable time. The limitations and restrictions implemented by the different governments during the Covid 19 pandemic crisis have exacerbated the previous concern, but at the same time has shown how new technologies, such as videoconferencing, can be introduced and play an important role in the traditionally conservative area of Justice. In this context, the rapid improvement of the artificial intelligence (AI) in the last few years and its extensive use in some transcendent spheres of our lives makes us wonder how we could integrate such a technology in the area of justice, supporting or, even more, substituting a judge. In fact, a certain amount of studies using machine learning has achieved a significant level of accuracy predicting judicial outcomes. However, problems such as bias and lack of transparency may limit the deployment of AI in the judiciary. In any case, if it wants to preserve its legitimacy the judiciary must adapt itself to the new times and technologies used by the society it is serving. As some commentators have stated, we should not see the court as a place, but as a service that may be provided in different ways. About the speaker: Alberto Saiz Garitaonandia is currently a Professor of Procedural Law at the University of the Basque Country. Prof. Saiz Garitaonandia served as Director of the Basque Government Legal Department - Solicitor General (2013-2020). He was awarded a Visiting Fellowship in Clare Hall College at the University of Cambridge for the academic year 2021-2022 where, invited by the Centre for Corporate and Commercial Law (3CL), he is researching in the area of artificial intelligence applied to dispute resolution. He has been Visiting Professor and Researcher at Stanford University, Georgetown University, American University, Florida International University and University of Nevada (USA). He is the author of several books and articles and has served as a member of the Executive Board of the European Society of Criminology (2011-2013), directing its Annual Conference in 2012. His areas of research include the Organization of Justice, Law and New Technologies and Alternative Dispute Resolution. Prof. Saiz Garitaonandia holds a Law Degree, a Degree in Political Sciences and an Executive MBA from Deusto Business School (2017-2018), which included the Value Innovation Programme at INSEAD (France) and the Global Gateway Program at Fordham University (USA). His PhD received the Extraordinary Doctor´s Degree Award, a special mention for the quality of his thesis. 3CL runs the 3CL Travers Smith Lunchtime Seminar Series, which are are kindly supported by Travers Smith featuring leading academics from the Faculty, and high-profile practitioners. For more information see the Centre for Corporate and Commercial Law website at http://www.3cl.law.cam.ac.uk/