Handbook 1996 : Faculty of Law (Volume 3 page 221)
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Optional Law subject.
Availability: Not offered in 1996.
Prerequisite: Torts and the Process of Law; History and Philosophy of Law. No background in computer science or programming is assumed or necessary but students with computer or programming skills will have the opportunity to use them. Basic experience with computers, such as word processing, would be helpful.
Contact: 2 hours per week
Objectives:
Students completing this subject should be able to: understand the application of expert systems and principles of artificial intelligence to various legal domains; understand developments in the fields of artificial intelligence, cognitive science and computer programming; analyse legal reasoning and argument and, in particular, the doctrine of precedent so that legal knowledge can be represented and processed computationally; and construct small prototype expert systems in a particular area of the law.
Content:
The nature of legal reasoning and argument. Consideration of the rule-governed structure, or otherwise, of common law. Analysis of legal cases and the doctrine of precedent in terms of computational representation. How legal reasoning and argument may be represented computationally. Theories of knowledge representation and artificial intelligence. Object-oriented systems and rule-based systems. Case-based reasoning. Technological advances, including intelligent databases and the medium of hypertext. The course will be taught in a combination of lectures and seminars. Student participation is expected. Approximately 1/3 of class time will be spent in the computer laboratory working on the creation of expert systems under the guidance of the instructor.
Assessment:
Expert system construction (includes system analysis exercises, system design, implementation and documentation) (50 per cent) and Final exam 3 hours (50 per cent).
Prescribed texts:
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Handbook 1996 : Faculty of Law (Volume 3 page 221)
Status: Official 1996 Date created: Oct 9 1995 Last modified: Oct 9 1995 Authorised by: Academic Registrar Email enquiries: Course_Information@registrar.unimelb.edu.au
Maintained by: Faculty of Law.
Copyright © University of Melbourne 1995,1996.