Using Toulmin argumentation to support dispute settlement in discretionary Domains

Abstract

Our goal is to model reasoning in discretionary legal domains. To do so, we have used Knowledge Discovery from Database Techniques. However there are obstacles to this approach, including difficulties in generating explanations once conclusions have been inferred, difficulties associated with the collection of sufficient data from past cases and difficulties associated with integrating two vastly different paradigms. Toulmin's treatise on the uses of argument can be gainfully employed to construct legal decision support systems in discretionary domains. We show how we can use Toulmin's approach to build such systems with examples taken from the domains of eligibility for legal aid, evaluation of eyewitness evidence, family law, refugee law and sentencing. Since the principal institution of the law is not trial, but settlement out of court, we show how Toulmin Argument Structures can be developed to construct an Online Dispute Resolution environment that allows for supporting interest based dispute settlement. Our environment involves the determination of BATNAs, allowing exchanges of opinions between the disputants and providing advice about tradeoffs. © 2006 Springer.