Upload
lane-levy
View
34
Download
1
Tags:
Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
Computer representation of legal documents. Fabio Vitali University of Bologna May 2 nd , 2000. “ When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in a rather scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less” Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
Citation preview
Computer representation of legal documents
Fabio VitaliUniversity of Bologna
May 2nd, 2000
“When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in a rather scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less”
Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass
A few words of caveatA few words of caveat
Natural languagesTechnical languagesComputer languagesAlphabet soup
A scenarioA scenario
A legal drafter is writing a contract. He is writing a structured text with clauses. Many of these clauses refer explicitly to articles of national, international and local laws. Some these laws have changed since they were first approved. The contract is put on the Web for all the interested parties to read and approve it. Then it is printed for signatures and added to the firms’ electronic collection of active contracts.
Purposes of computer representationPurposes of computer representation
PrintingBrowsingSearchingConnectingReusingUnderstanding (not in our scope today)
SummarySummary
We will discuss some issues regarding computer support in:
Structuring legal documentsReferring to legal documentsPresenting legal documents
Structuring documentsStructuring documents
The World Wide WebMarkup languagesHTML, SGML, XMLXML for legal documents
The World Wide Web (1)The World Wide Web (1)
The Web was originally the result of some protocols and languages:
HTMLHTTPURLSoftware: browsers and servers
The World Wide Web (2)The World Wide Web (2)
Several additions make the current Web complexServer-side: DB connectivity, CGI applications,
servlets, PHP, etc. Computation: javascript, Vbscript, Java applet,
embedded objectsPresentation: CSS, HTML 4, etc. New media: video, audio, VR, etc.
A simple documentA simple document
Marking documents upMarking documents up
Markup as the means to make explicit an interpretation of a text
Text vs. binary markupTypes of markup
Punctuational and presentational markupProcedural markupDescriptive and referential markup
The mere contentThe mere contentthreemeninaboattosaynothingofthedogjerome
kjeromefvbookschapter1threeinvalidssufferingsofgeorgeandharrisavictimtoonehundredandsevenfatalmaladiestherewerefourofusgeorgeandwilliamsamuelharrisandmyselfandmontmorencyweweresittinginmyroomsmokingandtalkingabouthowbadwewerebadfromamedicalpointofviewimeanofcoursewewereallfeelingseedyandweweregettingquitenervousaboutit
With punctuational markupWith punctuational markupThree men in a boatTo say nothing of the dog!Jerome K. JeromeFV BooksChapter 1Three invalids - Sufferings of George and Harris - A victim to one hundred and seven fatal maladies - … There were four of us - George, and William Samuel Harris, and myself, and Montmorency. We were sitting in my room, smoking, and talking about how bad we were - bad from a medical point of view I mean, of course. We were all feeling seedy, and we were getting quite nervous about it...
A binary specific formatA binary specific format
A specific text formatA specific text format
HTMLHTML
XML (1)XML (1)
XML (2)XML (2)
Extensible Markup Language, 1996, W3CDescriptive markupText formatEmphasizes structuresMeta-markupStandard but with strong industry support
Document types and DTDs
XML for legal documentsXML for legal documents
Meta-markup: many document typesDescriptive markup: elements are described according
to their meaning, not aspectStructure: legal documents are heavily structured, and
can easily be referred to according to their structuresDuration: legal documents are supposed to last for long
periods, longer than the average Web page.
XML for legal documentsXML for legal documents
Italian laws are composed ofA main headingA preamble (not always)A structure of articles and clauses, divided in “parte”,
“libro”, “titolo”, “capo”, “sezione”, “paragrafo”, then in “articolo”, then in “comma“ (actual law clauses). Each of them is numbered according to specific rules.
A conclusion (not always)Zero or more attachments
XML for legal documentsXML for legal documents<codice> <testata> <estremi id="l0001985022800047"> <tipodoc>LEGGE </tipodoc> <datadoc>28 febbraio 1985</datadoc>, <enumdoc>47</enumdoc> </estremi> <epigrafe> TITLE OF LAW </epigrafe> </testata> <articola> <capo id="l0001985022800047p00al00at00ac01a"> <canum><numelem>CAPO I</numelem></canum> <catitolo>TITLE OF HEADING I </catitolo> <articolo id="l0001985022800047ar0001a"> <grnumart><anum>1.</anum></grnumart> <rubrica>TITLE OF ARTICLE 1</rubrica> <comma id="l0001985022800047ar0001ac001a"> <corpo> BODY OF CLAUSE 1 OF ARTICLE 1 </corpo> </comma> <comma id="l0001985022800047ar0001ac002a"> <corpo> BODY OF CLAUSE 2 OF ARTICLE 1 </corpo> </comma> <comma id="l0001985022800047ar0001ac003a"> <corpo> BODY OF CLAUSE 1 OF ARTICLE 1 </corpo> </comma> </articolo> ... </capo> ... </articola></codice>
Referring to legal documentsReferring to legal documents
References are the moving blood of any working legal system.
Implicit vs explicit referencesModifications and referencesHuman and computer referencesSynonyms and identifiers
URLs, URNsURLs, URNsURLs: universal locators of resources
The specific method of access is explicithttp://www.cs.unibo.it/~fabio/laws/1985/0047#a11
http:// protocol for accesswww.cs.unibo.it/ domain name of web site~fabio/laws/1985/0047 local name of resourcea11 internal location within
resourceURNs: universal names of resources
The name is stable and reliable. It is converted to a URL when needed urn://nir/L198502280047#a11
XPathXPathA stable way to refer to locations within resources:
Specific internal namesSpecific nodes identified via tree navigationSpecific text chunks identified via absolute addresses
urn://nir/L198502280047#a11Element called “a11” within document
urn://nir/L198502280047#2/3/55th element within 3rd element within 2nd element of resource
urn://nir/L198502280047#xpointer(/doc/chapter[5]/section[2])
2nd section of 5th chapter of element doc within the resource
XLink (1)XLink (1)
A way to express sophisticated hypertext links (inter-document relationships)
Simple links: point-to-point, local, directional, embedded
Extended inline links: point-to-point, local, multidirectional, embedded links
Extended out-of-line links: point-to-point, remote, multidirectional, external links
XLink (2)XLink (2)
<extlink xl:type=“extended” xl:role=“extlink” xl:title=“prova”> <ruolo xl:type=“arc” xl:from=“one” xl:to=“two”/> <ruolo xl:type=“arc” xl:from=“one” xl:to=“three”/> <local xl:type=“resource” xl:role=“one”> Click here </local> <url xl:type=“locator” xl:role=“two”xl:href=“http://www.sitetwo.com/”/>l:type=“locator” xl:role=“three”xl:href=“http://www.sitothree.com/”/></extlink>
<ruolo xl:type=“arc” xl:from=“one” xl:to=“two”/> <ruolo xl:type=“arc” xl:from=“one” xl:to=“three”/>
<local xl:type=“resource” xl:role=“one”> Click here </local> <url xl:type=“locator” xl:role=“two” xl:href=“http://www.sitetwo.com/”/> <url xl:type=“locator” xl:role=“three” xl:href=“http://www.sitothree.com/”/>
URNs and XLink for legal documentsURNs and XLink for legal documents
Support for absolute referencesRegardless of modifications
Support for specific referencesModifications are specific and local
Support for automatic conversion between human, traditional references and computer, Web-based references
“See clause 3 of article 5 of law 47 of 1985urn://nir/L198502280047#xpointer(/art/articolo[5]/comma[3])
Presenting legal documents
Presenting legal documents
Legal documents must be transformed in order to be read by humans and to be used.
Printed and on-line versionsInclusions and quotations in other legal documentsSummaries and comments by researchers(semi-)automatic generation of modified texts
CSSCSSCascading Style Sheet (CSS) adds rendering semantics to existing XML documents. Used to specify that a text node is a block element, or an inline element, and what appearance attributes to give it. comma { element-type: block;
font-size: 100%; text-align: left; margin-right: 5px; margin-left: 5px; color: #0000FF
}
XSLT and XSLXSLT and XSLExtensible Stylesheet Language Transformation (XSLT) transforms an XML element with structural semantics into another XML document with rendering (or other) semantics. Extensible Stylesheet Language (XSL) is a set of elements with specific rendering semantics. Fo:block is a paragraph, while fo:inline is an inline elementXSLT transforms any XML document into either an XSL or an HTML document. We can use to specify that an element in the source XML document is a fo:block element or a <P> element
XSLT - an exampleXSLT - an example<xsl:template match=”articolo"> <HR/> <H2> <xsl:value-of select=”grnumart"/> - <xsl:value-of select=”rubrica"/> </H2> <xsl:apply-templates /> </xsl:template>
Each element in the source element is matched with the best fitting template, and the output is written in the destination document.
Two case studiesTwo case studies
There are several experiences in Italy on using XML for the law. Two will be examined:
Zanichelli publisherNorme in rete
(http://www.normeinrete.it/)
ZanichelliZanichelli
A project born in 1996 using SGML instead of XML (but with XML in mind for evolution)
An SGML DTD for laws and normative documents of all kinds
An SGML database with the whole civil and criminal code, and some 400 additional laws and normative documents
A converter for the selection of the laws for printA converter for the selection of laws for a CD
http://www.normeinrete.it/http://www.normeinrete.it/
A project born in 2000 from a joint initiative of Italian Senate, Chamber and the Prime Minister’s office.
A working group identifying the best XML tools for legal drafting and verification
A working group delivering a DTD to constrain and shape future laws
A working group delivering URNs for all present and past normative documents.
A working group delivering meta-information sets for Italian laws and other official documents.
ConclusionsConclusions
Representing legal documents with computersUseful for quotations, references, access, evolutionRequires sophisticated languages more than toolsURNs and XPaths for correct referencesXML for correct structuring XSLT for transformation into usable documents.
References (1)References (1)Case studies
Norme in rete: http://www.normeinrete.it/ Zanichelli: http://www.zanichelli.it/
XML J. Bosak, XML, Java, and the future of the Web,
http://metalab.unc.edu/pub/sun-info/standards/xml/why/xmlapps.htm T. Bray, J. Paoli, C.M. Sperberg-McQueen, Extensible Markup Language (XML) 1.0,
W3C Recommendation, 10 February 1998, http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-xml
T. Bray, The annotated XML Specification,1998, http://www.xml.com/axml/testaxml.htm
References (2)References (2) XSLT
James Clark, XSL Transformations (XSLT) Version 1.0, W3C Recommendation 16 November 1999, http://www.w3.org/TR/xslt
E.R. Harold, XSL Transformations (XSLT), capitolo 14 del libro XML Bible, disponibile in rete: http://metalab.unc.edu/xml/books/bible/updates/14.html
James Clark, XSLT in Perspective, http://www.jclark.com/xml/xslt-talk.htm
XPointer e XLink S. DeRose, E. Maler, D. Orchard, B. Trafford, XML Linking Language (XLink),
W3C Working Draft , 21 February 2000, http://www.w3.org/TR/xlink/
J. Clark, S. DeRose, XML Path Language (XPath), Version 1.0, W3C Recommendation 16 November 1999, http://www.w3.org/TR/xpath
S. DeRose, R. Daniel Jr., E. Maler, XML Pointer Language (XPointer), W3C Working Draft 6 December 1999, http://www.w3.org/TR/xptr