Hello!
I'm currently working as a Research Scholar at the Centre for the Governance of Artificial Intelligence and on a DPhil in the Faculty of Law of the University of Oxford. My doctoral research focuses on the application of Anglo-Canadian tort law to events performed via machine learning systems, particularly generative AI.
For more, see:
- my Google Scholar page;
- CourtingTrouble, the law blog at which I blog law;
- iDissent, a browser extension I made to enhance Canadian legal research;
- Mastodon;
- below.
Academic Publications
Care for Chatbots [SSRN]
forthcoming 2024
, UBC L Rev
I evaluate the potential for language models to create statements upon which persons will reasonably rely and the attendant potential for liability under the Hedley Byrne principle in English and Canadian law.
Libel via Language Models
forthcoming 2024
, Osgoode Hall LJ
I evaluate the potential for language models to create defamatory statements and analyse how such statements will be treated in Canadian and English defamation law.
The Wrong of Constructive Expropriation [SSRN]
forthcoming 2024
, Alberta L Rev
I argue that the unique Canadian common law cause of action called “constructive expropriation” by the Supreme Court of Canada in Annapolis Group Inc v Halifax Regional Municipality, 2022 SCC 36 is, and has always been, a wrongly conceived tort. I argue that legislative intervention is required to address the matter.
Arbitration and the IRSSA
2022
, Manitoba LJ
I reconsider the legal nature of the Independent Assessment Process (IAP) of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (IRSSA). I argue the IAP should have been considered an arbitration. I construct a test for identifying when a process is an “arbitration”, show this part of the IAP meets that test, and evaluate treating this process as an arbitration would have affected the process.
Imagining Resilient Courts: from COVID-19 to the Future of Canada's Court System [SSRN]
2022
, 48(1) Canadian Public Policy 186–208
We explore the Canadian court system’s response to COVID-19 and the prospects for administering justice amid disasters through the lens of resilience. We propose that the business of judging during shocks can become more integral to the business as usual of court systems.
White Papers et al
The Prudent Parliament and s 24(1)
2024
We argue that s 24(1) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms permits awarding damages for legislative action, that underlying constitutional principles limit the type of damages that should be awarded, and that Supreme Court precedent to date suggests that compensatory damages should be available only if a legislature has acted negligently. We suggest the concomitant standard of care requires the legislature to obtain properly qualified legal advice.
Truthful AI: Developing and governing AI that does not lie
2021
We identify the potential for AI systems to produce lies and the broader consequences of AI-generated falsehoods. We propose a standard of avoiding negligent falsehoods and propose institutions to evaluate AI systems before and after they are deployed in the real world.
Popular Media
Land value tax could make housing more affordable
2023
, The Toronto Star, Opinion
I propose the adoption of a federal land value tax in Canada.
Ensuring Canadians are helped, not harmed, by big data
2018
, The Toronto Star, Opinion
Amidst the Sidewalk Labs controversy, I suggest that people be wary of trusting that companies will not to use their data to harm them.
Credentials
- B.A., University of Toronto
- M. Eng., University of Toronto
- J.D., Harvard Law School
- LL.M., University of Cambridge
- Judicial Law Clerk, Court of Appeal for British Columbia
- Judicial Law Clerk, Supreme Court of Canada