Rule-Based Systems for Decision Support and Decision-Making in Dutch Legal Practice. A Brief Overview of Applications and Implications

Rule-based systems for decision support and decision-making play an important role in Dutch legal practice. Government agencies use rule-based systems for (mass) legal decision-making. Legal departments, law firms, legal publishers and various other organizations increasingly use rule-based systems to support and improve the provision of legal aid to private individuals and corporate clients.

Rule-based systems can improve efficiency of legal processes and services, but can also have important detrimental effects on the rights of individuals or legal quality, especially when there is no careful and transparent design process. This article provides an overview of the use of these systems in Dutch legal practice, discusses benefits, pitfalls and challenges and identifies questions for future research.