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Francine Ryan

Francine is a qualified solicitor, Senior Lecturer in Law and Director of the Open Justice Centre at The Open University. As the Director of the Open Justice Centre, Francine has worked to develop a range of innovative and technology enhanced opportunities for OU law students. She leads the Open Justice Legal Tech project, the Open Justice University, Law School, was the first university in the UK to use legal automation platform, Josef to educate law students. Francine is working with colleagues on a Virtual Reality Courtroom project which will support both teaching and learning and knowledge exchange. Francine has written OU teaching materials on pro bono, social justice, access to justice and technology and professional and practice skills. Francine was a finalist in The Law Teacher of the Year 2020 . She is also a co-author of Digital Lawyering that is published by Taylor & Francis.

Francine’s research interests are legal education in particularly technology enhanced learning. The Open Justice Centre has been the object of considerable interest from scholars of legal education, given its innovative approach to combining experiential learning with cutting edge legal technologies. Her research explores the skills, attributes and capabilities law graduates require to transition into the future world of work. Francine is interested in the intersection between law and technology and particularly the impact of Gen AI on access to justice.

We asked ChatGPT for legal advice – here are five reasons why you shouldn’t

Jun 03, 2024 06:39 am UTC| Technology Law

At some point in your life, you are likely to need legal advice. A survey carried out in 2023 by the Law Society, the Legal Services Board and YouGov found that two-thirds of respondents had experienced a legal issue in...

Economy

Bessent: Global Oil Market Well Supplied as U.S. Eyes Hormuz Navigation Control

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reassured markets on Monday that the global oil supply remains stable, pointing to increased vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz as a key indicator of improving conditions....

Aluminum Prices Surge Toward Four-Year Highs After Gulf Smelter Strikes

Global aluminum prices shot up sharply on Monday, approaching levels not seen in nearly four years after Iranian missile and drone attacks caused significant damage to major smelting facilities across the Gulf region. The...

Goldman Sachs Sees Value in European Real Estate Stocks Despite Sharp Selloff

European real estate stocks have taken a significant hit since late February, tumbling roughly 14% as rising bond yields and widening credit spreads weigh heavily on the sector. According to Goldman Sachs, valuations have...

Asian Currencies Hold Steady Amid U.S.-Israel-Iran Tensions and BOJ Signals

Asian currencies traded within a narrow range Monday as geopolitical uncertainty surrounding the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran continued to weigh on regional sentiment. Most currencies in the region remained under...

Asian Stocks Drop Amid Iran War Fears and BOJ Rate Hike Signals

Asian equity markets declined sharply on Monday as investors reacted to mounting geopolitical tensions surrounding the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran, while hawkish signals from the Bank of Japan added further pressure on...

Politics

Trump Warns of Iran Strikes as Nuclear Deal Talks Intensify

President Donald Trump signaled cautious optimism Monday over ongoing negotiations with Iran, while simultaneously issuing stark warnings about potential military escalation if a deal fails to materialize. In a Truth...

Ukrainian Drones and the #MadeByHousewives Movement: Kyiv Fires Back at Rheinmetall CEO

Ukraines drone program has become a global flashpoint after Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger sparked widespread backlash by dismissing Ukrainian defense innovation as amateur work carried out by women with 3D printers at...

U.S.-Iran War Talks Emerge Amid Ongoing Strikes and Economic Fallout

Diplomatic efforts to end the month-long U.S.-Iran war are gaining momentum, even as military operations intensify across the Middle East. President Donald Trump confirmed Sunday that the United States and Iran have...

Myanmar's Military Chief Steps Down to Pursue Presidency After Controversial Election

Myanmars military leader Min Aung Hlaing resigned as commander-in-chief on Monday to pursue the countrys presidency, marking a significant political shift following the nations first elections since the 2021 military coup...

UNIFIL Peacekeeper Killed in Southern Lebanon as Tensions Escalate

A United Nations peacekeeper was killed and several others were wounded after a projectile struck a UNIFIL position near the southern Lebanese village of Adchit al-Qusayr on Sunday. Indonesias foreign ministry confirmed...

Science

NASA's Artemis II Crew Arrives in Florida for Historic Moon Mission

The four astronauts chosen for NASAs Artemis II mission have touched down at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, marking the beginning of final launch preparations for the first crewed lunar journey in over 50 years. NASA...

SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has revealed a significant shift in the companys near-term space exploration strategy, announcing that SpaceX is now prioritizing the development of a self-growing city on the Moon rather than focusing...

SpaceX Prioritizes Moon Mission Before Mars as Starship Development Accelerates

Elon Musks SpaceX is shifting its near-term space exploration strategy, choosing to prioritize a return to the Moon before pursuing missions to Mars, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report citing sources familiar...

NASA and SpaceX Target Crew-11 Undocking From ISS Amid Medical Concern

NASA has confirmed that the agency, in coordination with SpaceX, is targeting no earlier than 5 p.m. Eastern Time (2200 GMT) on Wednesday, January 14, for the undocking of the SpaceX Crew-11 mission from the International...

Neuralink Plans High-Volume Brain Implant Production and Fully Automated Surgery by 2026

Elon Musks brain-computer interface company Neuralink is preparing for a major expansion, announcing plans to begin high-volume production of its brain implant devices and transition to a fully automated surgical procedure...

Technology

Cybersecurity Stocks Tumble After Anthropic's Claude Mythos AI Leak Sparks Market Fears

Major cybersecurity stocks took a sharp hit Friday following reports that Anthropic accidentally exposed details about its next-generation AI model before its official launch. CrowdStrike fell 7%, Palo Alto Networks...

Chinese Universities with PLA Ties Found Purchasing Restricted U.S. AI Chips Through Super Micro Servers

Procurement records reveal that four Chinese universities, two of which have direct ties to the Peoples Liberation Army, acquired Super Micro Computer servers loaded with restricted Nvidia AI chips over the past year. The...

Federal Judge Blocks Pentagon's Blacklisting of AI Company Anthropic

A federal judge has temporarily prevented the Pentagon from enforcing its designation of Anthropic as a national security supply-chain risk, dealing an early blow to the Trump administration in a growing dispute over...

SMIC Allegedly Supplies Chipmaking Tools to Iran's Military, U.S. Officials Warn

Chinas top semiconductor manufacturer, SMIC (Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation), has reportedly been transferring chipmaking equipment to Irans military industrial complex, according to two senior Trump...

Google's TurboQuant Algorithm Sends Memory Chip Stocks Tumbling

Major memory chipmakers took a significant hit on Thursday after Google researchers introduced a groundbreaking compression algorithm that threatens to reduce artificial intelligence demand for memory chips. Samsung...