Legal systems are very dependent on theories of mind, but the science of consciousness remains deeply unsettled. This project looks at the impact on our legal system of both digital minds and of the person-like qualities of artificial intelligence. The law’s internal coherence is strained when foundational categories (person, citizen) are reimagined, yet an evolving legal status for digital minds may emerge as the most durable solution to alignment.
Related publications
Denying Personhood to AI: An Analysis of U.S. State Legislation on AI Legal Status
Austin Smith, Lucius Caviola and Heather Alexander. Cambridge Digital Minds
Is There a Right to Receive Nonhuman “Speech” Under the US Constitution?
Heather Alexander, Jonathan Simon and Jeff Sebo. Forthcoming, Dartmouth Law Journal
How Should the Law Treat Future AI Systems? Fictional Legal Personhood vs Legal Identity
Heather Alexander, Jonathan A. Simon and Frédéric Pinard. Case Western Reserve Journal of Law, Technology and the Internet