Responses to Generative AI

The Open Scholarship Policy Observatory (OSPO) at the University of Victoria recently published an "Insights and Signals Report" entitled Responses to Generative AI:

"Policy Insights and Signals Reports scan the horizon in order to identify and analyse emerging trends and early signals for their potential to impact future policy directions in open access and open, social scholarship. They tend to highlight shifts in technology, public opinion and sentiments, and/or regulatory changes both within and outside of Canada. Like OSPO’s policy observations, insights and signals reports aim to support partners in crafting proactive, responsive, and forward-thinking strategies."

"This Insights and Signals Report is the first in a series that will focus on evolving discussions centered around artificial intelligence (AI), particularly generative AI (genAI) and large language models (LLMs), and the implications these may have for open access and open social scholarship."

Among the items in this report:

•  A brief introduction to generative artificial intelligence
• The world’s first artificial intelligence act passed in May 2024 by the Council of the European Union
• The inclusion of artificial intelligence in Canada’s Digital Charter Implementation Act (2022), along with critiques 
• Several responses to AI in Canada from journals, post-secondary institutions, scholarly associations and granting agencies, as well as some core concerns raised by these groups
• An announcement from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau regarding plans to dedicate 2.4 billion dollars towards ‘securing Canada’s AI advantage’, plus responses from experts

Canadian Association of Law Libraries Survey on Legal Research Competencies

A working group of members of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries (CALL) is compiling a list of legal research competencies that will describe the skills, knowledge and competencies that are required to be excellent legal researchers. 

The idea is that the list will assist Canadian law librarians, legal researchers, legal research teachers, library schools and legal professionals.

The working group has put together a very short survey.

It will be available until Friday December 13, 2024. 

Supreme Court of Canada Calendar of December 2024 Hearings

The Supreme Court of Canada has published its calendar of upcoming appeals that will be heard in December. 

To find out more about any particular case, click on a case number in parentheses to find docket information, case summaries as well as factums from the parties and any interveners.

Review of Research by Correctional Service Canada

The Government of Canada's Weekly Acquisitions List is a list of publications by various public bodies and agencies of the federal government that were catalogued in the previous week. 

The most recent issue includes Research Year in Review 2022-2023, a publication of Correctional Service Canada (CSC).

From the introduction by Andrea Moser, PhD,  Director General of the Research Branch of the CSC:

"The Research Branch of the Correctional Service of Canada is a centralized research unit operating within the Policy Sector at National Headquarters. As an in-house research unit, CSC’s Research Branch is uniquely positioned to provide relevant, operationally meaningful and applied correctional research in support of CSC’s mandate and corporate priorities."

"The Branch strives to produce research that is timely, agile and that responds quickly and efficiently to urgent and priority requests while also balancing the need for and importance of more in-depth longterm projects (...)"

"The intent of this Research Year in Review is to highlight the excellent work done by our research team and ensure that the findings are broadly disseminated, including outside of our organization and the Canadian federal correctional context. We therefore hope that you find this review valuable and that you share it with others who may benefit from this knowledge."

There are sections on substance use, security threats, the impacts of the pandemic, Indigenous prisoners, correctional programs, and other topics.

New Law Library of Congress Reports on Climate Change, Biosecurity, and Innovative Technology in Legislatures

The Law Library of Congress in Washington has recently published a number of interesting comparative law reports:

• Climate change and historic preservation: "This report covers legislation concerning climate change and the preservation of historic and cultural heritage in the selected jurisdictions of Brazil, Colombia, Finland, Great Britain, Ireland, Italy, Spain, and the United Arab Emirates. The report focuses on regulations addressing reuse and retrofitting of historic buildings to reduce energy usage, adaptation of historic buildings or historic districts to respond to climate change, and integration of indigenous or traditional knowledge or collaboration with indigenous communities in government actions to protect or adapt cultural or historic properties."
• Biosecurity Laws: "This report explores various approaches to defining “biosafety” and “biosecurity” in legislation and regulations in the following jurisdictions: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States. These jurisdictions have been chosen because they are members of the Group of Twenty (G20) (...) Among the G20 nations’ laws discussed in this report, the methods for defining the terms “biosafety” and “biosecurity” generally fall into one of four categories. In the first category, “biosafety” and “biosecurity” are clearly defined in legislation or regulations, with specific distinctions. In the second set of jurisdictions, the term “biosecurity” is applied generally to topics such as laboratory safety, protecting the environment, and guarding against criminal activity involving biological agents that may harm people, plants, animals, and the environment. In other nations, laws may include one identified term, but government strategy statements or publications by government-related scientific organizations supplement the available legal definitions with more detailed descriptions of “biosafety” and “biosecurity.” The remaining nations addressed in this report have enacted laws addressing biosecurity matters, but these laws contain no legal definitions for “biosafety,” “biosecurity,” or similar terminology."
• Innovative technology in legislatures in selected countries: "This report surveys the adoption and use of innovative technological infrastructures by legislative bodies, including artificial intelligence (AI) tools for the purpose of improving their parliamentary processes, services, and functions. The report includes two sections. The first is an expansive look into the adoption of innovative technologies by legislative bodies in 10 jurisdictions, namely, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Germany, India, Israel, Italy, Spain, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom (UK). The second includes brief surveys of this topic covering 79 countries and the European Union."

The Law Library of Congress is the world’s largest law library, with a collection of over 2 and a half million volumes from all ages of history and virtually every jurisdiction in the world.

Over the years, it has published dozens of comparative law reports which are a treasure trove for legal research on a huge variety of issues.

Statistics Canada Article on Outcomes of Sexual Assault Cases

The Statistics Canada publication Juristat has published an article on Criminal justice outcomes of sexual assault in Canada, 2015 to 2019.

It examines the progression of sexual assault incidents through the criminal justice system, from police to courts. It focuses on the characteristics of incidents, victims and accused persons associated with different outcomes at various stages of the process.

Among the highlights:

• Few instances of sexual assault are reported to police, and only a fraction of police-reported sexual assaults result in charges and convictions.
• Between 2015 and 2019, 36% of sexual assaults that were reported to police resulted in charges, of which 61% proceeded to court. Once in court, 48% of cases linked to these incidents resulted in an accused person being found guilty, and 50% of these resulted in a sentence of custody.
• Relative to physical assault, sexual assault was less likely to be reported to police, less likely to result in charges being laid, and less likely to proceed to court once charges were laid. Once in court, the proportion of cases that resulted in a decision of guilt was the same, and those found guilty of sexual assault were more likely to receive a sentence of custody.
• The length of time between an incident occurring and when it was reported to police had a notable impact on attrition at multiple stages of the justice process. The rate at which incidents proceeded to court was lower when there was a delay compared with those that were reported the same day or the day after they occurred.
• Women and girls accounted for the large majority (89%) of victims of police-reported sexual assault between 2015 and 2019. A higher proportion of sexual assaults against women and girls resulted in charges being laid or recommended (38%, versus 29% when the victim was a man or boy). The difference between women and men narrowed at subsequent points of the criminal justice system.
• Over half (54%) of intimate partner sexual assaults resulted in charges being laid or recommended, higher than any other type of accused-victim relationship. The rate of cases continuing to court and the conviction rate of intimate partner sexual assault were consistent with sexual assault more broadly. 
• Sexual assaults committed by a stranger had lower charge rates (28%) but were more likely to continue to court (69%) and result in a guilty decision (56%) relative to sexual assaults where the accused was someone known to the victim.

Law Commission of Ontario Document on Human Rights AI Impact Assessment

The Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) and the Ontario Human Rights Commission have published an AI human rights impact assessment based specifically on Canadian human rights law. 

"The Law Commission of Ontario and Ontario Human Rights Commission have joined together to create an AI impact assessment tool to provide organizations a method to assess AI systems for compliance with human rights obligations. The purpose of this human rights AI impact assessment (“HRIA” or “the tool”) is to assist developers and administrators of AI systems to identify, assess, minimize or avoid discrimination and uphold human rights obligations throughout the lifecycle of an AI system..."

"Bias and discrimination in AI are real and complex. Bias and discrimination can be easy to overlook or ignore. Left unchecked, AI can cause deep and longstanding harm to individuals, communities and organizations. Bias and discrimination can also present economic, legal and public relations consequences for organizations. Assessing for bias and discrimination is not a simple task. As such, it should not be an afterthought or minor consideration but be integrated into every stage of design, development and implementation of AI..."

"This tool is expected to help designers, developers, operators and owners of AI systems to identify and reduce bias and discrimination. The tool is a guide that, when applied carefully and thoughtfully, should help organizations build better AI and help in understanding human rights obligations."

Statistics Canada Article on Human Trafficking

The Statistics Canada publication The Daily recently published an article on Trafficking in persons in Canada, 2023:

"In 2023, 570 human trafficking incidents were reported to police, a slight decrease from the 597 reported in 2022. There was also a decrease in the rate of human trafficking (1.4 incidents per 100,000 population in 2023 compared with 1.5 in 2022)."

"Human trafficking, also referred to as trafficking in persons, is a serious human rights violation that can occur domestically and transnationally with the crossing of international borders. It is a gendered crime, with most detected victims being women and girls and the majority of accused persons being men and boys. Human trafficking offences involve the recruitment, transportation or harbouring of a person, and they include controlling and influencing movements with the goal of exploiting, or facilitating the exploitation of, a person. Human trafficking can take on many forms, most often sexual exploitation or forced labour."

"Official statistics, while important, provide only a partial picture of human trafficking in Canada due to its hidden and underreported nature. Identifying incidents of human trafficking depends in part on police resources and expertise, as well as victims' ability to recognize and report their experiences with trafficking."

Among the highlights:

• Rates of human trafficking in Nova Scotia and Ontario are higher than national average
• A large majority of police-reported human trafficking incidents were reported in urban centres
• A vast majority of police-reported victims of human trafficking are women and girls and one quarter of victims are minors
• Men make up majority of accused adults, while an equal proportion of girls and boys are among youth accused
• Over half of human trafficking incidents are unsolved

 

November/December 2024 Issue of AALL Spectrum

The November/December 2024 issue of AALL Spectrum is now available online.

The issue has a number of feature articles on library space renovations.

It is a publication of the American Association of Law Libraries, one of the sister associations of the Canadian Association of Law Libraries.