Book contents
- Automated Agencies
- Automated Agencies
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- 1 The Rise of Automated Customer Service
- 2 Automated Legal Guidance
- 3 Simplexity
- 4 Simplexity in Automated Legal Guidance
- 5 View from the Inside
- 6 How Automated Legal Guidance Helps Agencies and the Public
- 7 The Hidden Costs of Automated Legal Guidance
- 8 The Democracy Deficit
- 9 How Should Automated Legal Guidance Evolve?
- 10 The Future of Agency Communications
- Conclusion
- Index
9 - How Should Automated Legal Guidance Evolve?
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 03 April 2025
- Automated Agencies
- Automated Agencies
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- 1 The Rise of Automated Customer Service
- 2 Automated Legal Guidance
- 3 Simplexity
- 4 Simplexity in Automated Legal Guidance
- 5 View from the Inside
- 6 How Automated Legal Guidance Helps Agencies and the Public
- 7 The Hidden Costs of Automated Legal Guidance
- 8 The Democracy Deficit
- 9 How Should Automated Legal Guidance Evolve?
- 10 The Future of Agency Communications
- Conclusion
- Index
Summary
As Chapter 4 demonstrated, automated legal guidance often enables the government to present complex law as though it is simple without actually engaging in simplification of the underlying law. While this approach offers advantages in terms of administrative efficiency and ease of use by the public, it also causes the government to present the law as simpler than it is, leading to less precise advice and potentially inaccurate legal positions. As the use of automated legal guidance by government agencies is likely to grow in the future, a number of policy interventions are needed. This chapter offers multiple detailed policy recommendations for federal agencies that have introduced, or may introduce, chatbots, virtual assistants, and other automated tools to communicate the law to the public. Our recommendations are organized into five general categories: (1) transparency; (2) reliance; (3) disclaimers; (4) process; and (5) accessibility, inclusion, and equity.
Keywords
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Automated AgenciesThe Transformation of Government Guidance, pp. 170 - 189Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2025