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LegalTech, LawTech or Tech Law

There are a lot of different opinions and even disputes regarding this naming issue. You can check them here, here, here and here.

 

However, I believe that the name actually doesn’t matter as long as we are working on the digitalization of legal-related processes and trying

Concept

Firstly: All legal relationships exist in somewhat of a virtual dimension as they, independently, do not generate any products or other tangible goods. It is construct that facilitate individuals and entities in performing their daily tasks. Consider the example of a theater’s cloakroom. If you go to the theater and leave your coat in the cloakroom, you haven’t overtly conducted any legal proceedings for this action, but in reality, you have entered into an agreement for coat storage, which is regulated by applicable civil law. This is a simple example, but the principle holds regardless of the scale, sphere, or form of legal action (digital, written, or verbal). Secondly: Jurisprudence and software engineering share more commonalities than one might realize. Every legal act (be it public law, local regulation, or an agreement) is analogous to an algorithm whereby legal relations are established between subjects either by performing or abstaining from performing legal actions. From this perspective, legal language can be viewed as a high-level programming language complete with its own objects, subjects, classes, and actions or inactions, serving as counterparts to the binary 1s and 0s used in transistors. Consequently, law employs Boolean logic similar to software programs. To comprehend this parallel, consider the history of the invention of the first digital computer.

The foundational similarity between law and programming makes it possible to interpret any legal act or individual rule through high-level programming languages, such as Python or JavaScript.

Let’s interpret paragraph 1 of Article VI of the GATT into Python together

GATT - Article VI - §1

GATT_Article_VI_para(1).py

Below, two windows are presented displaying the text of paragraph 1, article VI of GATT. In the first window, the rule is articulated in standard legal language, and in the second window, it's rendered in Python language.

 

Here, you have the capability to modify variables to observe how the Boolean logic of paragraph 1 of Article VI of GATT operates in the programming language.

Please, give it a try!

GATT - Article VI - §1

1. The contracting parties recognize that dumping, by which products of one country are introduced into the commerce of another country at less than the normal value of the products, is to be condemned if it causes or threatens material injury to an established industry in the territory of a contracting party or materially retards the establishment of a domestic industry. For the purposes of this Article, a product is to be considered as being introduced into the commerce of an importing country at less than its normal value, if the price of the product exported from one country to another

       (a) is less than the comparable price, in the ordinary course of trade, for the like product when destined for consumption in the exporting country, or,

       (b) in the absence of such domestic price, is less than either

   (i) the highest comparable price for the like product for export to any third country in the ordinary course of trade, or

   (ii) the cost of production of the product in the country of origin plus a reasonable addition for selling cost and profit.

Due allowance shall be made in each case for differences in conditions and terms of sale, for differences in taxation, and for other differences affecting price comparability.*

...

(!) Disclaimer for lawyers: Yes, I am aware that Article 6 of GATT outlines additional essential terms for drawing conclusions. However, this illustration is solely to demonstrate the correlation between legal and programming languages.

 

(!) Disclaimer for software engineers: Indeed, I realize that this illustration is scripted in JavaScript, and essentially, the displayed code is merely a Python code emulator. The necessity to simulate Python is due to its more straightforward comprehension for readers.

VISITOR:

How does it work in practice?

AKHMED

ESENDIROV:

Actually, it works even now!
I hope that you've read the User Agreement from the relevant widget “Legal Terms and Cookies” and declined the section 3 of the User Agreement. Otherwise, you owe me some magic beans from the English fairy tale "Jack and the Beanstalk". If you want to read all Legal Terms, please use this link or jump directly to the most interesting part of the Agreement.

! DISCLAIMER: I understand that this provision has no full legal force. But I would be so happy if you sent me some magic beans in accordance with the User Agreement that you possibly accepted.

VISITOR:

(In sarcastic manner) Great! You added the Public Offer Agreement to the website - what an invention! Is this the maximum that your LegalTech vision can provide?

AKHMED

ESENDIROV:

There are a great number of cases where LegalTech solutions could be applied. LegalTech allows you to widen the borders of legal services that one can provide or to increase cases that can be solved in new more efficient way.

From my point of view, there are many opportunities for LegalTech integration in sphere of the Economic Analysis of Law. This sphere is one of the most applicable for LegalTech transformation.

VISITOR:

...?

AKHMED

ESENDIROV:

Just imagine integrating the “Antidumping compliance solution" into the CRM and ERP systems of the entity to:

1. Comply with the international trade rules.
2. Or not to comply but know your weaknesses and be ready to protect them in any legally appropriate way.

Also LegalTech could be used in sphere of antitrust regulation. Since the regulation is quite complex, market situations can have dozens of configurations, product scales and etc. it is quite obvious that some LegalTech solutions could be applied as well.

 

Please see below for some more examples and one real case solution of LegalTech application that I developed.

(★) Real Case

giphy.gif

Real case of Legal Tech solution that was implemented in TMK Group to control sales for antitrust risks of monopoly high prices in accordance with Russian Antitrust Law. The designed solution lets salesmen independently assess risks for any given sale. Moreover, the solution provides a quasi-CRM system for risks accounting.

Example

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This example gives the opportunity to check if a company is in dominant position according to the Russian Antitrust Law

Example

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This example calculates a dumping margin according to the EAEU Methodolgy, namely: (Normal Value (EXW) - Export Price (EXW) / Export Price (CIF|CIP))*100%

Example

Normal Value and Export Price Constructor

giphy.gif

<under_development>

Not ready yet

Evolution of Legal Profession

Legal profession has been evolving all the time, and I believe that the LegalTech is the one of the vectors. So the question is what the role should be defined to lawyers in this very process?

I believe that LegalTech lawyers will combine traditional legal skills with a deep understanding of technology, data, and AI, providing tech-augmented legal services to their clients or contractors.

Thus, the combination of such skills and knowledge predetermines roll of LegalTech lawyers as PMs (product managers) for future LegalTech products .

Giving the pace of digitalization and stunning step forward, that AI Technology made, I believe that legal profession will be changed beyond recognition.

MJGA - Make Jurisprudence Great Again

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Akhmed Esendirov

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