Law professor. Books: Implied Consent & Sexual Assault; Sovereignty, Restraint, & Guidance; The Tenth Justice (w/ Carissima Mathen).
Yep
Timothy CaulfieldSure, AI writing has some recognizable tics (but I ain't giving up my em–dashes!). But think this piece is overly optimistic about our ability to spot AI writing. Most studies suggest we can't. And AI only gonna get better – ugh. How to spot AI writing www.economist.com/culture/2026...
An open letter to my Evidence Law students, explaining why we're going device-free this term. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
An Open Letter to My StudentsWhy we're going device-free this term.open.substack.comI lived in Aberdeen for four years. Can confirm. Fight in the streets, perhaps. Dance? No.
Heinz BrandenburgIf you know anything about Aberdonians, they don't do dancing in the streets.
New Substack post, riffing off a recent blog post by @robertdiab.bsky.social. On what it means to "teach AI" to law students. Comments welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
What does it mean to 'teach AI' to law students?Law schools better start figuring it out.open.substack.comMy latest on Substack: Thoughts on the University of Chicago Law School's Statement on AI. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
The Grind is the PointAI, Legal Education & the University of Chicago Law School's Reportopen.substack.comOn Thursday and Friday, the Supreme Court hears oral arguments in Degale and Bilinski - both concerning the fault requirement for the offence of sexual assault. Here is my quick Substack primer, setting out the basic interpretive considerations. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
The Fault Requirement for Sexual AssaultThe basic arguments in a nutshellopen.substack.comFrom the Substack "archives", as it were: On what it would mean to take seriously the law societies' requirement that law students "demonstrate" competency. With thoughts on teaching and examining students on statutory interpretation. Comments welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
"Demonstrating" CompetencyOn the National Requirement and Canadian legal educationopen.substack.comMy reply to @emmettmacfarlane.com's thoughtful post on methodological inconsistency in the Supreme Court. Thoughts and comments welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
Consistency and Flux in Constitutional InterpretationA reply to Emmett Macfarlaneopen.substack.comEmmett Macfarlane 🇨🇦NEW POST. Inspired to vomit this out by recent posts from @michaelplaxton.bsky.social and @doubleaspect.blog. A (admittedly rushed) contribution from a different disciplinary perspective on 'consistency' and interpretative method. emmettmacfarlane.substack.com/p/on-debates...
This is great. I appreciate the kind words, and may address one or two points in a future post.
Emmett Macfarlane 🇨🇦NEW POST. Inspired to vomit this out by recent posts from @michaelplaxton.bsky.social and @doubleaspect.blog. A (admittedly rushed) contribution from a different disciplinary perspective on 'consistency' and interpretative method. emmettmacfarlane.substack.com/p/on-debates...
My latest Substack: on Taylor, Alford, and what to do about criticisms of the Supreme Court of Canada's lack of consistency on constitutional methodology. Comments and suggestions welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
Constitutional WhiplashAlford v Canada and a recent exchangeopen.substack.comMy latest on Substack: On rational arbitrariness in the construction of both regulatory offences and true crimes. Thoughts and suggestions, as always, welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
Rational Arbitrariness in True CrimesIn Monday’s post on Robertson, I ended by expressing the concern that all the Court of Appeal’s talk about bright-line rules and regulated fields seems to obscure or distort something important about ...open.substack.comMy latest on Substack: on the ONCA's decision in Robertson, a case in which section 320.14(1)(c) was challenged on overbreadth grounds. On the strangeness of Canada's impaired driving provisions, and the blurred lines between regulatory offences and true crimes. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
Overbreadth and Impaired DrivingA short note on Robertsonopen.substack.comMy latest on Substack: A breakdown of the proposed offence of coercion or control of an intimate partner in Bill C-16. As always, comments and suggestions welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
Coercion or Control of an Intimate PartnerA breakdown of the proposed offence in Bill C-16open.substack.comMy latest on Substack: A breakdown of the proposed offence of coercion or control of an intimate partner in Bill C-16. As always, comments and suggestions welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
Coercion or Control of an Intimate PartnerA breakdown of the proposed offence in Bill C-16open.substack.comLatest Substack, drawing together stuff on Richard Primus and the future of legal education. On accountability, AI, judging easy cases, and more. As always, comments and suggestions welcome! open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
Easy Cases, Ethos, and AIMore on Primus & the Future of Legal Educationopen.substack.comLatest post on Substack. On Richard Primus' recent paper, describing how (American) lawyers and judges play the game of constitutional interpretation. With brief reflections on ethos and constitutional memory. Thoughts and comments much appreciated. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
Interpretation, Ethos, MemoryThoughts on Richard Primus' Recent Paperopen.substack.com"Notice, too, that all of the things that people will want human lawyers for – human judgment, human relationships, human accountability – are things that law schools cannot effectively teach at scale."
Michael PlaxtonMy latest Substack. A question for our next dean - and for every Canadian and American law dean out there: in an age of artificial intelligence, how will you justify law schools' existence? Comments welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
Some further thoughts, building on yesterday's post, on the value of local legal knowledge in the age of AI. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
AI and Local KnowledgeMore thoughts on legal educationopen.substack.comMichael PlaxtonMy latest Substack. A question for our next dean - and for every Canadian and American law dean out there: in an age of artificial intelligence, how will you justify law schools' existence? Comments welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
My latest Substack. A question for our next dean - and for every Canadian and American law dean out there: in an age of artificial intelligence, how will you justify law schools' existence? Comments welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
To Our Next Law DeanHow will you justify our existence?open.substack.comNew Substack post. On the FLSC's National Requirement, and the language of "demonstrated competency". What would it mean if Canadian law schools actually took it seriously? Comments and suggestions welcome. open.substack.com/pub/michaelp...
"Demonstrating" CompetencyOn the National Requirement and Canadian legal educationopen.substack.com