Projects / Programmes
Legal challenges of the information society
January 1, 2015
- December 31, 2017
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 5.05.00 |
Social sciences |
Law |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| S110 |
Social sciences |
Juridical sciences |
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 5.05 |
Social Sciences |
Law |
Law, legislation, information technology, electronic communications, Internet, digitization, intellectual property, competition law, e-commerce, cloud computing, electronic registries, e-government, e-voting, Internet trade
Researchers (15)
Organisations (1)
Abstract
Since the turn of the twenty-first century, the use of information technology has gradually spread to all areas of life. Computers have enabled digital recording and high-speed processing of a wide range of data while the Internet and mobile telecommunications permit rapid transfer and exchange of information over long distances. This fundamental technological breakthrough has affected physical manufacturing, business services, personal and business communications, media, commerce, music and film industry. In order to exploit effectively all the opportunities of the information age, it is necessary to review constantly the adequacy of the existing regulation and adapt it to the new technological circumstances.
The subject of the research programme is a systematic exploration of legal issues raised by the use of new technologies:
the regulation of information and communication technologies, together with technology standards, which includes issues of constitutional importance , such as network neutrality;
the use of information and communication technologies as tools for concluding legal transactions and in various official proceedings;
new legal problems arising in the traditional areas of law due to the use of new technologies, such as damages sustained due to hacker attacks on the Internet;
the assessment of existing regulatory regime in cases where the ratio legis of the old regime is no longer present due to the technological development or where new legal solutions were based on incorrect assumptions about the further development of the technology and of the business methods based upon it.
The content of the research programme will focus on the following sets of issues, taking into account both private and public law aspects:
1. Cloud computing and providing of software as service
2. Electronic transactions and consumer rights
3. Cyber freedom, security and privacy
4. The impact of disintermediation and open access on the law
5. The protection of competition on the Internet
6. The use of information technologies as a legal tool.
The research will follow the development of the European legislative framework of the information society, as announced in the European Commission's Digital Agenda for Europe and in the Slovenian development strategy of information society Digital Slovenia.
Significance for science
The proposed research program is of significant importance for the development of legal science, as its subject are new and emerging legal issues of the information society which have not yet been fully addressed neither in the legal doctrine nor in the legal practice. The discussion of these issues thus far has often remained sporadic and isolated; the proposed programme, on the other hand, envisages an integrated approach, bringing together different areas of information society law.
The use of information and communication technologies raises several types of new legal issues:
the regulation of information and communication technologies, together with technology standards, which includes issues of constitutional importance , such as network neutrality;
the use of information and communication technologies as tools for concluding legal transactions and in various official proceedings;
new legal problems arising in the traditional areas of law due to the use of new technologies, such as damages sustained due to hacker attacks on the Internet;
the assessment of existing regulatory regime in cases where the ratio legis of the old regime is no longer present due to the technological development or where new legal solutions were based on incorrect assumptions about the further development of the technology and of the business methods based upon it.
Since the subject of the research is new and rapidly developing, the lacking Slovenian legal theory cannot be satisfactorily replaced simply by relying on foreign legal doctrine of knowledge. Even in international comparison, the legal science has only started exploring systematically the legal issues of information society, so we cannot yet speak of evident solutions or established legal positions. The research programme will not focus only on already known legal issues, as we expect that, by analysing the interaction between various information society services and the existing legal rules, we will identify further legal problems that legal science has not yet detected thus far. A notable characteristic of the widespread use of information and communication technologies is that it sheds new light on some of the established legal solutions and raises the question whether they still serve their purpose under the changed technological circumstances. For this reason, it is necessary to re-examine critically the established academic views in certain traditional areas of law, such as intellectual property law. An essential challenge that we perceive thereby, however, is that the discussion of legal issues of information society in Slovenian legal science has been rather superficial and lacking in-depth discussion on the relevance and purpose of certain fundamental doctrinal solutions under the conditions of the new techno-economic environment. Meanwhile, in European and American academic spheres, intensive scientific debates are taking place on many legal philosophical and legal political issues in this field, and the results of these discussions will be crucial crucial to the future legal framework of the information society. With an intensive research of these legal issues, Slovenian legal science can take part in the development of the European and global legal theory and contribute its answers to some of the global legal issues of the information age.
Significance for the country
A well-developed information society contributes towards raising innovation and competitiveness of the economy and society, increasing the number of jobs with high added value, improving the quality of life, furthering a balanced regional development and increasing international involvement. The impact results from the contribution of information and communication technologies to economic performance and benefits the society as a whole. A key development challenge is to provide a wide range of compatible and interoperable electronic integrated services and to ensure the widest possible access to these services for all user groups. Information and communication technologies as a cornerstone of the information society promote a competitive and open economy and contribute to a better quality of life. If the potentials of the information society are to be realised, a clear legal framework for the widespread use of information technologies should be provided. This means that the legislation, jurisprudence, administrative practice and legal theory must provide the users with legal certainty by formulating clear answers about the legal consequences of various actions in the new technological environment. In some cases, legislative reform is a precondition that certain proceedings may be carried out using electronic means. It is essential that obsolete legal solutions based on outdated assumptions do not impose unnecessary barriers to technological, economic and social development in general. We should be aware that the Internet is becoming the central IT infrastructure, common to all segments of the modern society, both public and private spheres. Consequently, each government intervention in the Internet's technical infrastructure itself or in the content of services offered through this infrastructure needs to be assessed in terms of possible limitation of human rights and freedoms essential in a democratic society. The research program will provide a relevant theoretical basis for further development of Slovenian legislation, the courts' case law and administrative practices relating to the field of information and communication technologies, and for their coordination with the reformed European regulatory framework of information society. The results of the programme will be directly applicable in the national projects of e-justice and e-government, in the regulation of electronic communications and digital broadcasting, and in the activity of companies operating in the fields of IT, media and the development of open source software. The results will contribute towards achieving the objectives of the European Digital Agenda and the national strategy for information society development Digital Slovenia.
Most important scientific results
Annual report
2015,
2016,
final report
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
Annual report
2015,
2016,
final report
