Artificial agents among us: Should we recognize them as agents proper?

In this paper, I discuss whether in a society where the use of artificial agents is pervasive, these agents should be recognized as having rights like those we accord to group agents. This kind of recognition I understand to be at once social and legal, and I argue that in order for an artificial agent to be so recognized, it will need to meet the same basic conditions in light of which group agents are granted such recognition. I then explore the implications of granting recognition in this manner. The thesis I will be defending is that artificial agents that do meet the conditions of agency in light of which we ascribe rights to group agents should thereby be recognized as having similar rights. The reason for bringing group agents into the picture is that, like artificial agents, they are not self-evidently agents of the sort to which we would naturally ascribe rights, or at least that is what the historical record suggests if we look, for example, at what it took for corporations to gain legal status in the law as group agents entitled to rights and, consequently, as entities subject to responsibilities. This is an example of agency ascribed to a nonhuman agent, and just as a group agent can be described as nonhuman, so can an artificial agent. Therefore, if these two kinds of nonhuman agents can be shown to be sufficiently similar in relevant ways, the agency ascribed to one can also be ascribed to the other-this despite the fact that neither is human, a major impediment when it comes to recognizing an entity as an agent proper, and hence as a bearer of rights

Legal Knowledge Representation: A Twofold Experience in the Intellectual Property Domain

This paper analyzes the representation of legal knowledge, and of Intellectual Property (or IP) law in particular. This is done by looking at two ways of representing the IP domain: through an IP ontology and by way of rule representation. And although these two solutions differ in many respects, they share the conceptual problems specific to this domain. This paper is based on research conducted under the EU-funded project ALIS (IST-2004-2.4.9)

Agent-Based Contracting in Virtual Enterprises

Virtual Enterprises (VEs) use software agents (SAs) to reduce costs, speed up operations, and increase efficiency and competitiveness. Agents can carry out negotiations and make contracts without any human intervention. This makes them useful both in negotiations to set up a VE and in contracting with VE partners. Agents raise legal problems about the relevance and validity of their actions. The law may not always offer a solution to agent-based interactions. This paper investigates whether current laws are suitable to regulating agents and what new rules may need to be introduced

Semantic Technologies and Web Services: A Primer on Legal Issues

This chapter adds a further dimension to interdisciplinary research on Semantic Web and Web Services: ICT is undergoing a strong and constant regulatory phenomenon at national, European and international level and needs to be constantly monitored. This makes it possible to develop and use technologies in a law-abiding manner and to be aware of the legal position (rights and duties) of oneself and third parties. This chapter aims at offering an overview of the legal framework that supports people\u2019s access to Web Services, according to the Semantic Web innovations. The basic aspects examined include: delegation, liability, privacy and e-identity. Finally, a specific section dedicated to e-business will give a dynamic approach to the analysis, so as to consent further developments on the other issues that Semantic Web implies

Development of the ALIS IP Ontology: Merging Legal and Technical Perspectives

The paper is partly based on research done for the EU-funded (IST-2004-2.4.9) project ALIS (Automated Legal Intelligent System) on Intellectual Property Law. We describe the development process of the ALIS Intellectual Property ontology from both a legal and technical perspective. We discuss the scope and the features of this IP ontology, the lessons learned, and the problems solved. This is done by comparing our ontology (the ALIS IP ontology) with the IPRonto ontology, which too is dedicated to IP. The paper also points out the benefits of both the ALIS system in general and the ALIS IP ontology in particular. Future development of ALIS will involve expanding its ontology to also include patent law and trademark law. Once these three legal ontologies are in place, they will be consolidated into a single ontology that will provide the framework for a general IP ontology

Legal Issues of Software Agents

The objective of paper is to see how software agents can help carry out the contract-making activities (including pre-contractual negotiations and contract performance) involved in electronic commerce. One area in e-commerce where software agents can make a positive contribution is in virtual enterprises: they can do so by making business transactions more fluid in the digital environment. Another area is consumer protection, and this is the counterpart to the contribution made in facilitating business. The paper also gives examples of how agent-based architectures can be applied in industry and commerce, and indicates the main directions that researchers have taken in this field. The main lesson learnt in researching this paper is that it is indispensable to have a Code of Conduct to be adopted as a standard regulatory framework for the future

Liability and automation: Issues and challenges for socio-technical systems

Who is responsible for accidents in highly automated systems? How do we apportion liability among the various participants in complex socio-technical organisations? How can different liability regulations at different levels (supranational, national, local) be harmonized? How do we provide for accountability, while promoting safety? These and other questions are being addressed by the ALIAS (Addressing Liability in Automated Systems) project. In this paper we present the outline framework of the project, its objectives, and some preliminary results. A framework for liability in aviation is presented, and an analysis of real accidents according to a methodology developed in the project. The same methodology is applied to an hypothetical case involving UAS. In the last section the Legal Case is introduced, that is a methodological tool (currently under development) aimed at identifying and addressing liability issues of automated ATM systems

Classification and Argumentation Maps as support tools for liability assessment in ATM

In this paper we present an application of argument maps for assessing the liability impact of ATM systems. Such application has been recently developed within the ALIAS Project (Addressing the Liability Impact of Automated Systems). Such maps are used for presenting legal concepts and norms to lawyers and non lawyers (engineers, software developers, human factors specialists and other technical personnel), within the cooperative design and assessment of new technologies for ATM

Liability and automation : issues and challenges for socio-technical systems Citation for published version (APA): Liability and automation: Issues and challenges for socio-technical systems

Abstract. Who is responsible for accidents in highly automated systems? How do we apportion liability among the various participants in complex socio-technical organisations? How can different liability regulations at different levels (supranational, national, local) be harmonized? How do we provide for accountability, while promoting safety? These and other questions are being addressed by the ALIAS (Addressing Liability Impact of Automated Systems) project. In this paper we present the outline framework of the project, its objectives, and some preliminary results: in particular, we present a framework for liability in aviation, an analysis of real accidents and of a hypothetical case involving UAS according to a methodology developed in the project, and finally, we introduce the Legal Case, that is a methodological tool (currently under development) aimed at identifying and addressing liability issues of automated ATM systems