Handbook

Ever wondered what charges might be laid in a deadly traffic accident involving self-driving cars? Or whether it would be an offence if someone traumatised another person in an artificial world? What if a mutant algorithm was linked to a serious crime? And how about the defence options available to someone claiming their brain implant had taken control of their actions?
Virtual reality, artificial intelligence (AI), genetic engineering, and military robots are no longer just the realm of science fiction. The rise of – and increasingly dominant social and political role played by – exponential technologies poses serious ethical and legal questions with far-reaching consequences in a vast range of professions including engineering, computer science, health and medicine, psychology, politics, and the media.
This hands-on subject is designed to help future-proof your career by teaching you how to identify and learn about new and emerging technologies, while critically analysing their ethical and legal relevance. Working in teams, you’ll use entrepreneurial methods inspired by design thinking to launch a bare-bones version of an original start-up idea that solves a technology-related legal problem for a niche group of customers, users, or beneficiaries. Along the way, you’ll learn why digital literacy, an entrepreneurial mindset, and the ability to engage in “horizon scanning” have become essential for forging a contemporary career regardless of the industry in which you wish to work.

This subject focuses on the criminal, ethical and criminological aspects of emerging and future technologies. If you are interested in Privacy Law, please attend LLB3306 - Privacy Law and Technology subject.