There have been some significant disputes over data usage recently in the legal artificial intelligence space. If your startup has ever dealt with the courts, you know the feeling—like you’re drowning in an ocean of jargon, deadlines, and endless red tape.
You think hiring a lawyer will solve everything, only to be hit with sky-high fees that make you question whether justice is worth pursuing or if it’s even possible to defend yourself. For many, the process feels hopeless.
Legal software designed to bring order to a complex system is now entangled in a lawsuit. The dispute between CanLII, a nonprofit celebrated for its accessible legal resources, and Caseway, an AI legal tech innovator transforming legal research, goes beyond a mere corporate conflict. This battle has significant implications for controlling court decision data essential to ensuring access to justice.
The Fight for Control Over Legal Knowledge
For two decades, CanLII has been the gold standard for public access to Canadian legal resources. Need to know your rights? CanLII is where you’d go whether you’re a self-represented litigant, a small business owner, or someone trying to make sense of a complicated legal document you receive.
But then Caseway entered the scene aggressively, offering machine learning-powered research that gives you legal documents and information and helps make sense of them. These court decisions can be hundreds of pages long.
Sounds like a win for the everyday person. But not so fast. CanLII is accusing Caseway of scraping its database to fuel its platform, claiming it’s an improper use of its content. Caseway argues that it’s simply building on what’s already public (court decisions) and making it more accessible. Caseway says that no one can own these court decisions.
Disputes Over Data Usage
This legal situation concerns who holds the keys to legal knowledge in a world increasingly driven by technology. There are plenty of other lawsuits out there against companies like OpenAI. However, most of these types of lawsuits revolve around content created by the plaintiff (like the Toronto Star or Globe and Mail.)
Jurisage, Canada’s second largest provider of case law, has also taken shots at Caseway, trying to keep them out of the industry.
Caseway shot back at Jurisage, saying that they have a direct or indirect relationship with CanLII, and that’s how Jurisage gets the court decision data. But at the same time, CanLII doesn’t make this court data available to other AI companies requesting it.
Why This Legal Case Should Matter to You
Let’s break it down: if you’re facing a legal issue, you’re already up against a system designed for insiders—lawyers, judges, and those who can afford them.
Resources like CanLII help level the playing field by giving you the information you need to fight back, acting as a search engine. However, Caseway took it further, adding machine learning to court decision data to turn that mountain of legalese into actionable insights and results.
Now imagine if this lawsuit results in stricter rules around how legal technology companies can access and use public data. The ripple effects could be catastrophic for anyone without deep pockets. What happens if you can’t afford to spend $500 an hour to hire a law firm? Fewer machine learning products would mean fewer options for affordable legal help. Paywalls could and have gone up, shutting out the people who need these services the most.
And paywalls have already gone up, and companies like LexisNexis and Thompson Reuters have paywalled the court decisions they receive from the courts.
The Real Cost of Losing Access
Machine learning makes it possible to use the Internet to address issues such as eviction notices, divorce proceedings, and wrongful termination claims. They’re the kinds of crises that can ruin lives.
For marginalized communities, who already face systemic barriers in accessing legal help, the stakes are even higher. A single mistake can spiral into losing a home, custody of a child, or financial ruin. The idea that a legal database—or legal software simplifying it—might become less accessible isn’t just frustrating. It’s terrifying.
Small business owners aren’t spared either. Imagine getting a 50-page contract from a large law firm to review, dealing with regulatory compliance, or resolving employee disputes without affordable tools to guide you.
Innovation vs. Tradition: A Profession at War
The legal world is notoriously resistant to change. Many institutions view innovation as a threat rather than an opportunity, clinging to outdated systems even when they fail to serve the public effectively. This case between CanLII and Caseway perfectly sums up that struggle.
CanLII, once a disruptor that replaced court decision book companies, now defends traditional boundaries. Caseway, meanwhile, represents the wave of innovation that became possible once AI became accessible in January 2023.
Caseway says they promise to make legal help faster, cheaper, and more accessible. But instead of collaboration, we see a fight to the death, in which the public will be the real losers.
This tension between tradition and innovation isn’t new. We saw it between taxi companies and Uber, and we also saw it with Airbnb and hotels.
Disputes Over Data Usage And The Future of Justice
This lawsuit concerns the future of justice itself. If barriers to innovation keep rising, the legal profession risks becoming even more inaccessible. Holding onto tradition for tradition’s sake isn’t the answer. We need a balance that embraces innovation while ensuring it serves the public good.
Legal information belongs to the public, not corporations. Restricting access only perpetuates inequality. Imagine if CanLII and Caseway worked together to improve legal artificial intelligence tools. Instead, we’re stuck watching a turf war. Legal help must be affordable for startups through AI or traditional means. Period.
