AI+Law

Developing explainable and trustworthy artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support legal professionals, policymakers, and citizens in navigating law and justice.

AI is transforming the legal sector, from document processing to decision support in complex cases. Our AI + law research theme ensures that this transformation is not only technologically advanced but also faithful to legal reasoning, transparent in its operation, and useful to those working within and affected by the justice system. By co-creating tools with legal experts, we aim to address pressing challenges such as case backlogs, access to justice, and the need for trustworthy, transparent LegalTech.

Our research

Our work spans a range of AI approaches—including machine learning, symbolic AI, natural language processing, and generative AI—to design tools that support core legal tasks. Research areas include:

Computational models of argument for legal reasoning – capturing the nuances of legal reasoning in computational form
Natural language processing of legal documents – extracting, summarising, and structuring information from complex texts
Explainable AI – ensuring that legal AI tools are transparent and trustworthy for stakeholders
Decision support tools – building hybrid systems that combine AI techniques to assist with case processing and legal triage.

Applications of this research include processing cases from the European Court of Human Rights, industry-focused LegalTech, and policy contributions on the role of AI in justice.

People

Our research is led by an interdisciplinary team spanning computer science, law, and industry partnerships:

Professor Katie Atkinson
Professor Danushka Bollegala
Dr Jack Mumford
Dr Procheta Sen.

Technical support: Mr David Shield

Partnerships and collaborations

Collaboration is central to our approach. We work with the University of Liverpool’s School of Law and Social Justice, alongside major industry partners such as Weightmans, Fletchers, and Lexsnap. Internationally, we collaborate with the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice, contributing research that shapes policy and practice across jurisdictions.

Outputs and impact

Our research is already having impact in both industry and society. Legal technology informed by our work is used in law firms to process documents, triage cases, and support decision making. In the justice system, AI is being explored as a means to reduce case backlogs and improve access to justice for citizens. By prioritising transparency, trustworthiness, and co-creation with legal professionals, we ensure that AI tools are robust, relevant, and aligned with the requirements of law and justice.