Computational Methods for Legal Analysis
2021
Computational analysis can be seen as the most recent
innovation in the field of Empirical Legal Studies (ELS). It
concerns the use of computer science and big data tools to
collect, analyse and understand the large and unstructured
data, such as for instance (legal) text. Given that the text is
now the object of analysis, but the methods are (largely)
quantitative, it lies in the intersection between doctrinal
analysis and ELS. It brings with it not only a great potential
to scale up research and answer old research questions, but
also to reveal uncovered patterns and address new questions.
Despite a slowly growing number of legal scholars
who are already applying such methods, it is underutilised in
the field of law. Furthermore, given that this method comes
from social and computer sciences, many legal scholars are
not even aware of its existence and potential. Therefore, the
purpose of this special issue is not only to introduce these
methods to lawyers and discuss possibilities of their application,
but also to pay special attention to the challenges, with
a specific emphasis on the ethical issues arising from using
‘big data’ and the challenge of building capacity to use such
methods in law schools. This editorial briefly explains some
of the methods which belong to the new movement of
Computational Legal Analysis and provides examples of
their application. It then introduces those articles included in
this special issue. Finally, it provides a personal note on the
way forward for lawyers within the movement of Computational
Legal Analysis
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