INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY FOR THE LAW

Information technology has led to the emergence of the information society, a social model on which the private sector (industry, finance, insurance, etc.), the public sector (transport, healthcare, education, administrative services, etc.), and indeed most areas of human activity (culture, entertainment, etc.) rely on technologies that process information and on the production and exchange of information-based goods and services. This has given rise to an information revolution that is creating new opportunities for individuals and for the whole of society, but in doing so it has also created new risks and consequently new challenges, both for the protection of social values and individual rights and for the promotion of technological development. In addition, the new environment is profoundly shaping the work of lawyers and legal professionals, who are increasingly finding themselves having to rely on information and communications technologies (ICT). All lawyers stand to benefit from an understanding of the basic concepts and principles of ICT, for without such an understanding they would not be able to move about in the information society, much less address its legal issues. Hence the need this work is intended to fill, proposing to offer an English-language introduction to the basic concepts of computing and information technology for lawyers and legal professionals. The book covers the legal aspects of the information society and the basics of computing, dealing with a range of topics and issues that include the Internet, data and algorithmic decision-making, artificial intelligence and law, liability and automation, and machine learning.