Constructing arguments with a computational model of an argumentation scheme for legal rules: interpreting legal rules as reasoning policies

ABSTRACT

A knowledge representation language for defeasible legal rules is defined, whose semantics is purely procedural, based on Walton's theory of argumentation and Loui's break with the relational tradition in 'Process and Policy'. Legal rules are interpreted as reasoning policies, by mapping them in the semantics to argumentation schemes. The reasoning process is regulated by argumentation protocols. Reasoning with legal rules is viewed as applying schemes for arguments from rules to construct arguments to be put forward in dialogues.

REFERENCES

• 1: Thomas F. Gordon, Pleadings Game: An Artificial Intelligence Model of Procedural Justice, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Norwell, MA, 1995
• 2: T. F. Gordon, H. Prakken, and D. Walton. The Carneades model of argument and burden of proof. Artificial Intelligence, 2007. In Press.
• 3: Jaap Hage, Monological reason-based logic: a low level integration of rule-based reasoning and case-based reasoning, Proceedings of the 4th international conference on Artificial intelligence and law, p.30-39, June 15-18, 1993, Amsterdam, The Netherlands [doi>10.1145/158976.158980]
• 4: R. P. Loui. Process and policy: resource-bounded non-demonstrative reasoning. Computational Intelligence, 14:1--38, 1998.
• 5: J. Pollock. Defeasible reasoning. Cognitive Science, 11(4):481--518, 1987.
• 6: H. Prakken and G. Sartor. A dialectical model of assessing conflicting argument in legal reasoning. Artificial Intelligence and Law, 4(3-4):331--368, 1996.
• 7: J. Rawls. A Theory of Justice. Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1971.
• 8: Bart Verheij, Dialectical argumentation with argumentation schemes: an approach to legal logic, Artificial Intelligence and Law, v.11 n.2-3, p.167-195, January 2003
• 9: D. Walton. Fundamentals of Critical Argumentation. Cambridge University Press, 2006.

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  I. Computing Methodologies
  I.2 ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
      I.2.4 Knowledge Representation Formalisms and Methods

Additional Classification:
  J. Computer Applications
  J.5 ARTS AND HUMANITIES

Keywords:
computational models of legal reasoning and argumentation, legal knowledge-based systems