- What is CRLP about?
- Why do this?
- How can we do that?
- What is the CRLP doing?
- Who else is working on this?
- What could it be used for?
What is CRLP about?
Finding a way for drafters to produce computer-readable versions of the logical structure of our drafts of legislation.
Why do this?
So that computers can use those versions to guide humans through the legislation, but also to check the drafts for inconsistencies or unexpected effects.
How can we do that?
By finding an easy-to-use way for legislative drafters to mark up the logical structure of draft legislation while they are drafting it.
- It needs to reflect just the way the drafter is structuring the legislation, without adding more.
- It needs to be as easy as the ways in which drafters currently mark up the paragraphing structure of their drafts (using Word styles, or XML editors).
What is the CRLP doing?
- Our project runs in 2023 & 2024, and builds on the work we had already started in LDO to apply this to the way we draft legislation for Jersey.
- We are currently working out how “If-Then” structures fit in our legislation, like in this example of an imaginary rule on feeding animals.
- We are also working with Digital Jersey on a project to see how Artificial Intelligence can mark these “If-Then” structures.
- Other streams of the project, posted on OSF, include producing guidance for legislative drafters, and digitising “Common Legislative Solutions”.
Who else is working on this?
- Globally there is the “Rules as Code” movement, which started in 2018 in New Zealand, and has since spread to Australia, Canada, Singapore, UK, France and elsewhere.
- Here in Jersey the Financial Services Commission is working on “RegTech” and has plans to “enable the digitalisation of our regulatory content … delivering machine readable rules”
What could it be used for?
Here is an example of what programmers can do once they have the logical structure of the legislation set out so that a computer can read it –
AustLII (who are the equivalent of JLIB, who publish our legislation) have produced DataLex, which is a free program that you can try out on the web.
It runs a “consultation”, asking you questions based on the wording of the legislation.
- It shows the facts it has taken from you so far, the conclusions it has reached so far, and links to the relevant parts of the legislation.
- At each question you can ask it why it is asking, or check what will happen if you give a particular answer, or tell it to forget some or all of the facts you have given it.
- At the end it gives you a report that tells you its conclusion about how the legislation applies to your facts, but also sets out exactly how it came to that conclusion.
We are working with AustLII on applying DataLex, yScript & yLegis to our example laws.
In the longer term we also expect this work to help with creating new tools for legislative drafters to check our work, like those available to programmers.