Profs to focus on AI and access to justice, sentencing's relationship with substance use issues
Queen’s University Faculty of Law has named associate professors Samuel Dahan and Lisa Kerr as the inaugural scholars of its new Research Excellence Scholars (RES) program, with each professor set to investigate pressing issues in legal technology and criminal justice reform. Dahan will advance his work on artificial intelligence and open-source tools to address Canada’s access-to-justice crisis, while Kerr will examine how substance use disorder is treated in sentencing and explore broader questions of drug policy and penal reform.
“The RES program empowers our faculty to pursue bold, high-impact research that addresses pressing societal challenges,” said Colleen Flood, dean of Queen’s Law, in a news release. “By supporting exceptional scholars like Professors Dahan and Kerr, we aim to elevate Queen’s Law as a leader in innovative legal research, both nationally and globally.”
Launched to support high-impact research among Queen’s Law faculty, the RES program provides recipients with up to two years of teaching relief and access to $10,000 in internal funding. Scholars are expected to present and publish their work, seek external grants, support graduate trainees, and involve students in their research.
Dahan, director of Queen’s Conflict Analytics Lab, will use his RES term to focus on OpenJustice – Canada’s first open-source AI platform aimed at integrating legal reasoning into large language models. The project seeks to improve the accuracy and oversight of legal AI tools, especially for legal aid providers who often lack access to safe, tailored, and affordable AI solutions.
“Canada is facing a profound access-to-justice crisis,” said Dahan. “Nearly six million Canadians with legal issues are unable to afford counsel, and legal aid organizations routinely turn away about half of the individuals in need.” He added that the RES program will allow him to dedicate more time to securing grants, developing academic and industry partnerships, and expanding OpenJustice’s reach internationally.
Kerr, a criminal law scholar whose work focuses on sentencing and prison law, will investigate how courts consider substance use disorder in sentencing decisions, and how this intersects with emerging trends in drug policy reform. Her research will contribute to understanding the legal system’s treatment of addiction, and the tension between judicial discretion and public safety concerns.
“Judges are clearly aware of the ways in which the medical, social, and psychological circumstances of offenders can complicate the concern with moral blameworthiness that is central to Canadian sentencing law,” Kerr said. “Though their hands are often tied by concerns with rehabilitative prospects and public safety.”
Her ongoing research also examines the role of social context evidence at sentencing, mandatory minimums, and the legal implications of life imprisonment without parole. “My plan is to push my research in the direction of responding to this period of policy experimentation and to engage in media, scholarly, and judicial forums on these topics,” she added.
Queen’s Law will name up to two RES scholars annually through a competitive application process, selecting projects with national or international impact.
