Ownership: A case study in the representation of legal concepts

This article is an exercise in computational jurisprudence. It seems clear that the field of AI and Law should draw upon the insights of legal philosophers, whenever possible. But can the computational perspective offer anything in return? I will explore this question by focusing on the concept of OWNERSHIP, which has been debated in the jurisprudential literature for centuries. Although the intellectual currents here flow mostly in one direction -- from legal philosophy to AI -- I will show that there are also some insights to be gained from a computational analysis of the OWNERSHIP relation. In particular, the article suggests a computational explanation for the emergence act property rights, divorced from concrete material objects. To Appear in a Special Issue of the Journal Artificial Intelligence and Law Dedicated to the Memory of Donald H. Berman Copyright c 2001 L. Thorne McCarty 

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2002
• Where: AIL
• Authors: L. Thorne McCarty
• Keywords: AIL 2002, Computational Jurisprudence, Computational Perspective Offer, Emergence Act Property