We carried out pro bono research for the Clooney Foundation for Justice (CFJ). The organisation, founded by Amal and George Clooney, is dedicated to advancing justice globally by providing free legal aid to defend free speech and protect women’s rights in over 40 countries.
Through its initiatives, CFJ has helped secure the release of more than a hundred journalists and human rights advocates. CFJ has enabled thousands of women to access legal support to uphold their rights and seek accountability.
Valuable lessons to be learnt from each country’s experience
Our contribution supported CFJ’s broader mission: to promote fair and transparent legal systems worldwide.
“It feels incredibly rewarding to contribute to such an exciting project. Even the first version, which will be further developed, is extremely user-friendly and provides a quick, clear overview of how AI is being used in criminal proceedings across different countries,” said Mirjam Orav.
One surprising example came from China, where AI helped uncover fraudsters in just ten minutes: a suspicious transaction was blocked, linked accounts were identified, and the suspects were apprehended. “Normally, this would have taken several weeks,” Mirjam explains. It is worth noting that topics like fraud, including on transactions, are currently highly relevant in Estonia as well.
She also shares a compelling example from Singapore, where in July, the courts piloted the first AI-generated drafts of judicial decisions. “The drafts came to different legal conclusions and gave judges the opportunity to assess the strengths and weaknesses of their reasoning. Additionally, in Singapore, lawyers are not allowed to represent clients in smaller civil claims, which led the courts to partner with HarveyAI – now AI helps parties represent themselves. This makes the process fairer by giving people who have never studied law access to quality legal advice.”
Collaboration between the Clooney Foundation for Justice and the University of Oxford
We contributed to the AI Justice Atlas, a flagship initiative of the newly launched Oxford Institute of Technology and Justice, a global collaboration between CFJ and the University of Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government.
The Oxford Institute of Technology and Justice seeks to harness AI to expand access to justice by leveraging technology that makes it easier for vulnerable communities to access free legal support. In collaboration with the CFJ and Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab, the Institute works with local partners to develop tools that will scale up CFJ’s work to support women, girls and journalists worldwide.
Our services and client team
Our contribution focused on Estonia, providing an overview of how technology and AI are currently applied in Estonian criminal justice processes. The AI Justice Atlas is the first of its kind, and its long-term goal is to expand its scope post-launch in order to enable a better understanding of AI’s impact on judicial decision-making, assess existing safeguards, and identify emerging international best practices in this rapidly evolving field.
Our team was led by senior associate Oliver Kuusk and supported by assistant lawyers Mirjam Orav and Kärt Pukk.
