1st Edition
Technology, Humans, and Discontent with Law The Quest for Better Governance
This book analyses discontent with law and assesses the prospect of better governance by technology.
In the first part of the book, where the context is ‘low tech’, the range of discontent with law is examined; the underlying reasons for such discontent are identified (namely, the human nature of the legal enterprise, its reliance on rules, and the pluralistic nature of human communities); and the reasonableness of such discontent is assessed. In the second part of the book, where the context is ‘high-tech’ (with new tools becoming available to undertake governance functions), the question is whether discontent with law is further provoked or, to the contrary, is eased. While new technologies provoke further discontent with law’s claimed authority, its ineffectiveness, and its principles, positions, and policies, they also promise more effective and efficient ways of achieving order. The book closes with some reflections on the ambivalence that humans might experience when faced with the choice between law’s governance and apparently better performing governance by technology. That law’s governance is imperfect is undeniable; that humans should quest after better governance is right; but, the shape of our technological futures is unclear.
This accessibly written book will appeal to scholars and students who are working in the broad and burgeoning field of law, regulation, and technology, as well as to legal theorists, political scientists, and sociologists with interests in the impact of new technology.
PRELIMINARIES 1. Law’s Imperfect Governance: Billboards 2. Law and Governance 3. Discontent 4. Low-Tech and High-Tech Settings 5. The Evolving Landscape of Law’s Governance PART ONE: LAW’S GOVERNANCE IN A LOW-TECH WORLD Billboards #1: The Nature of our Discontent 6. Discontent with Claims to Authority 7. Discontent with the Promise of Law’s Governance 8. Discontent with Legal Positions and Policy Choices 9. Discontent with Law’s Performance 10. Discontent with Law’s Officials and Practitioners 11. Discontent with Law’s ‘Access to Justice’ Billboards #2: The Causes of our Discontent 12. Law’s Governance as a Human Enterprise 13. Rules 14. Plurality Billboards #3: The Reasonableness of our Discontent 15. What is Reasonable, What Unreasonable? 16. Three Imperatives 17. Good Governance: Three Levels of Responsibility 18. Bad Governance, Reasonable Discontent 19. Good Governance, Unreasonable Discontent PART TWO: LAW’S GOVERNANCE IN A HIGH-TECH WORLD Billboards #4: Technology and the Provocation of Discontent 20. Technology, Discontent and Law’s Governance 21. The Authority of Those Who Govern 22. The Promise of Law’s Governance 23. Law’s Positions and Policies 24. Law’s Performance 25. Law’s Practitioners Billboards #5: Technology and the Easing of Discontent 26. The Promise of Governance by Technology 27. Better for Order, Better for Democracy, Better for Justice 28. Smart Governance, Institutional Fitness, and the Metaverse 29. Technology and the Pre-Conditions for Governance Billboards #6: Technological Governance and Human Ambivalence 30. From Discontent to Discomfort and Doubts 31. Black Boxes 32. Black Holes 33. AI and Legal Personality 34. Human-Centric Governance 35. Concluding Remarks
Biography
Roger Brownsword is Professor of Law at King’s College London and at Bournemouth University, UK.
