PhD in Law, Science and Technology

Academic Year 2019-2020
Subject area Legal, Politological, Economic and Statistical Sciences
Cycle 35
Coordinator Prof.ssa Monica Palmirani
Language English
Duration 3 years
Positions 19 positions. More information in the PhD Programme Table
Application deadline May 15, 2019 at 01:00 PM (Expired)
Enrolment period From Jul 05, 2019 to Jul 17, 2019
Doctoral programme start date Nov 01, 2019
Operating centre
Bologna
Erasmus Mundus Programme
yes
Main Department
Department of Legal Studies - DSG
Associated Departments
"A. Gaudenzi and G. Fassò" Interdepartmental Centre for Research in the History, Philosophy, and Sociology of Law and in Computer Science and Law - CIRSFID
Associated locations (agreements)
Università di Torino (UNITO)
Autonoma Universidad de Barcelona (UAB)
University of Luxembourg (UL)
Mykolas Romeris University (MRU)
Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
Leibniz Universität Hannover (LUH)
University of Vienna (UNIVIE)
Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM)
Mobility abroad
Yes
Research topics

- Human Rights and Ethical Principles in new and emerging technologies
- Doctor-patient relationships: confidentiality, informed consent, research and experimentation
- Human Assisted Reproductive Technologies
- End-of-life Decision Making: legal and ethical issues
- Ethics and law in Genetics: genetic testing, screening, gene therapy and personalized medicine
- Biotechnology and patent law: stem cells and gene patents
- Biobanks, DNA and research
- E-health and Privacy by Design
- Private-public interactions in health care provision
- Ethical, Legal and Social Issues in genetic counselling
- Semantic Web and Legal ontologies modelling
- Information Retrieval and Database techniques in the Legal Domain
- Legal document modelling and representation including Open Data, XML, and standardization
- Computer Forensics
- Information Systems for eJustice, eGovernment, and eLegislation
- Computational models of legal and ethical reasoning including educational applications
- Intelligent Information extraction and NLP of legal resources
- e-Discovery and data mining in Legal domain
- Formal Models of Norms and Legal Reasoning
- Logic-based models of norms and legal knowledge
- Legal reasoning, including argumentation and reasoning about evidence
- Argumentation and Argumentation systems
- Game theory as applied to the law
- Normative Multi-Agent Systems and e-Institutions
- Regulatory Compliance
- Robot and Intelligent System ethics
- Privacy and Security with New Technology
- Cybercrime and Computer Forensics
- e-Business and Consumer Law
- e-Governance and e-Democracy social modelling
- IPR and New Technology
- Alternative Dispute Resolution and On-line Dispute Resolution
- Cloud computing modelling and regulation
- A Comparative Perspective on ICT Law
- Constitutional crowd sourcing
- Management of Geopolitical Social Crises
- Regulation of Robotics and Related Ethical Issues
- Contracts and ICT
- Protection of children online
- Technology regulation: fundamental issues

Job opportunities and potential areas of employment
The doctoral programme offers innovative and up-to-date integrated training enabling candidates to carry out cutting-edge research in different subjects, such as bioethics and law & computer science, in topics that require a genuine interdisciplinary approach. It includes an internship in the third year offered by 14 industries, where candidates can apply their research and complement it with a professional experience. Upon completing the programme, graduates will become highly skilled researchers and professionals, meeting the requirements of the public and private sectors.
They will be able qualified to seek employment, for example, in
- law firms working on IPR, privacy, e-commerce, and patenting;
- high-tech software houses where artificial intelligence is applied;
- specialised research centres such as medical genetic centres, nanotechnology centres, and robotics laboratories;
- government offices that manage innovative ICT and eGovernment, eJustice, and eParliament projects;
- ethics committees that analyse scientific innovations and write policy documents.
Admission Board

Surname Name Institution Role e-mail
Durante Massimo  Università di Torino member massimo.durante@unito.it
Gomez-Perez Assuncion Universidad Politécnica de Madrid member Asun@fi.upm.es
Kiskis Mindaugas  Mykolas Romeris University member mkiskis@mruni.eu
Krügel Tina  Leibniz Universität Hannover member kruegel@iri.uni-hannover.de
Palmirani Monica Università di Bologna member monica.palmirani@unibo.it
Roig Antoni  Universidad Autonoma de Barcelona member antoni.roig@uab.cat
Schweighofer Erich University of Vienna member erich.schweighofer@univie.ac.at
Van Der Torre Leon  University of Luxembourg member leon.vandertorre@uni.lu
Vedder Anton  Katholieke Universiteit Leuven member anton.vedder@kuleuven.be
Baldoni Matteo Università degli Studi di Torino substitute matteo.baldoni@unito.it
Bouvry Pascal  Université du Luxembourg  substitute pascal.bouvry@uni.lu
Caso Roberto Università di Trento substitute roberto.caso@unitn.it
Heinze Christian Leibniz Universität Hannover substitute christian.heinze@iri.uni-hannover.de
Sartor Giovanni Università di Bologna substitute giovanni.sartor@unibo.it
Tadas  Limba Mykolas Romeris University substitute tlimba@mruni.eu
Learning outcomes
The objective of the doctoral programme in Law, Science and Technology (LAST-JD) is to offer interdisciplinary integrated competences making it possible to deal with the new challenges the information society and the newly emerging technologies will increasingly pose in the future in the legal domain and the socio-ethical field. Upon completing of the doctoral programme, participants will be able to become legal professionals in specific ICT domains like software, databases, big data, AI, blockchain, robotics; government officials capable of managing eGovernment projects; researchers in specialised laboratories (medical genetic or nanotechnology); members of ethics committees; computer-forensics and security experts; legal-knowledge engineers. IoE technologies are viewed through the lens of the law, ethics, and human rights. Particular attention is dedicated to the Internet of Data, the Internet of Things, the Internet of Persons, the Internet of Health, the Internet of Money.
Activities to be carried out by Doctoral candidates
The first year is spent at UNIBO, providing the methodological instruments needed to do research, while harmonizing the educational stock of knowledge that doctoral students bring from different backgrounds.
The first semester is organized as follows:
- 12 ECTS of lecture courses
- 2 ECTS for Personal Career Development Plan (PCDP)
- 16 ECTS of research.
In the second semester students are to research their thesis topic in depth at either UNITO or UAB:
- 12 ECTS of lecture courses
- 18 ECTS of research.
In the third term candidates choose a location — UL, MRU, KUL, LUH, UNIVIE, or UPM — which in their assessment is best suited for an internship pertaining to the thesis domain:
- 12 ECTS of lecture courses
- 18 ECTS of research.
In the remaining semesters we have the following activities:
- 24 ECTS of research
- 24 ECTS for internships
- 2 ECTS for PCDP
- 40 ECTS for thesis writing.
Research training activities compliant with the Doctoral programme's learning outcomes
Bologna University
20 hours of lectures for a methodological course on doctoral research instruments.
40 hours of lectures providing an overview of the main topics, or specific courses for each type of degree background in order to fill gaps in students’ knowledge not provided by previous education.
Torino University
20 hours of lectures
20 hours of a high-level methodological workshop
Mykolas Romeris University
20 hours of lectures on International Legal Framework for E-Business
20 hours of lectures on Legal Framework and Strategic Aspects of E-Democracy
20 hours of lectures on International Legal Framework of Biomedicine and Biotechnology
University of Luxembourg
20 hours of lectures – Deontic Logic
20 hours of lectures – Legal Argumentation
20 hours of lectures – Regulation of the Internet; a trans-national challenge (offered by the Law Faculty)
Internationalization features
The LAST-JD-RIoE is an International Ph.D. programme under the Horizon 2020 EU project 814177, MSCA ITN (Marie Sklodowska-Curie actions European Joint Doctorates). Doctoral candidates will acquire joint degrees in INTERNATIONAL DOCTORAL DEGREE IN LAW, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY. The consortium is composed of 29 partners (9 beneficiaries, 2 research centers, 4 associate universities, 14 industries) with seven EU countries (Italy, Luxembourg, Lithuania, Spain, Austria, Germany, Belgium) and two non-EU countries (Australia, USA). The nine universities are: the universities of Bologna, Turin, Luxembourg, the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Mykolas Romeris University, the Centre for IT and IP Law, KU Leuven, Leibniz Universität Hannover, Universität Wien.
Three terms of mobility, for a total of 18 months, are required to ensure that all students follow courses in an integrated way and can benefit from the specific expertise available at partners universities, providing in particular an opportunity to experience research activity in departments of different kinds (law, computer science, bioethics, genetics) and to familiarize with local languages and the different legal systems of the EU. The research topics are fixed and they concern the Internet of Things coupled with the rights and freedoms. We have also six associated partners, two research centers (ITTIG-CNR, Data61- CSIRO), and four associate universities (Univ. del Piemonte Orientale, Univ. of Pittsburgh, La Trobe, and Observatorio de Bioética y Derecho of UB). They guarantee a connection with a high-technology centre from an international perspective.
Expected research results and products
By end of first semester:
Literature and archival map presented to, discussed with, and approved by, the Academic Committee
By end of second semester:
Review of archival work completed and draft outline of the dissertation approved by the Academic Committee.
By end of third semester: analytical table of contents presented to , and approved by, the Academic Committee.
By end of fourth semester: completed chapter presented to, and approved by, the Academic Committee.
By end of fifth semester: majority of chapters complete and presented in pre-final draft to Committee.
By middle of sixth semester:
written text entirely completed in pre-final form; then archival checks and polishing of prose, work ready for defence.
At the end the doctoral candidate must achieve two papers published in conference proceedings or journal, and to attend at least two international or national conferences.
Doctoral programme Academic Board

Surname

Name

University/Institution

Qualification

ARTOSI

ALBERTO

Università di Bologna

Professore Ordinario

BALDONI

MATTEO

Università degli Studi di Torino

Professore Associato

BAROGLIO

CRISTINA

Università degli Studi di Torino

Professore Associato

BIASIOTTI

MARIANGELA

CNR-ITTIG

Ricercatore Ente

BOELLA

GUIDO

Università degli Studi di Torino

Professore Associato

BOUVRY

PASCAL

 Université du Luxembourg 

Professore Ordinario

CASANOVAS

POMPEU

La Trobe University

Professore Ordinario

CASO

ROBERTO

Università degli Studi di Trento

Professore Associato

COLE

MARK

Luxembourg University

Professore Ordinario

DE LECUONA

ITZIAR

Universitat de Barcelona

Professore Associato

DI CARO

LUIGI

Università degli Studi di Torino

Ricercatore

DURANTE

MASSIMO

Università degli Studi di Torino

Professore Associato

FARO

SEBASTIANO

CNR-ITTIG

Ricercatore Ente

FINOCCHIARO

GIUSELLA DOLORES

Università di Bologna

Professore Ordinario

GOMEZ-PEREZ

ASUNCION

Universidad Politécnica de Madrid

Professore Ordinario

HEINZE

CHRISTIAN

Leibniz Universität Hannover

Professore Ordinario

KISKIS

MINDAUGAS

Mykolas Romeris University

Professore Associato

KRÜGEL

TINA

Leibniz Universität Hannover

Professore Associato

LIMBA

TADAS

Mykolas Romeris

Professore Associato

NORIEGA

PABLO

Consejo Superior de Investigaciones   Científicas

Ricercatore Ente

PAGALLO

UGO

Università degli Studi di Torino

Professore Ordinario

PALMIRANI

MONICA

Università di Bologna

Professore Ordinario

POBLET

MARTA

Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

Professore Ordinario

RODRÍGUEZ DONCEL

VÍCTOR

Universidad Politécnica de Madrid

Ricercatore

ROVERSI

CORRADO

Università di Bologna

Professore Associato

SARTOR

GIOVANNI

Università di Bologna

Professore Ordinario

SCHWEIGHOFER

ERICH

University of Vienna

Professore Ordinario

VAN DER TORRE

LEON

University of Luxembourg

Professore Ordinario

VEDDER

ANTON

Katholieke Universiteit Leuven

Professore Ordinario

VITALI

FABIO

Università di Bologna

Professore Ordinario

ZICCARDI

GIOVANNI

Università degli Studi di Milano

Professore Associato

Notices

Final ranking list

Final ranking list avaiable at the page http://studenti.unibo.it (“Summary of requests in progress” -> “See detail” -> pdf file at the bottom of the page “35° Graduatoria/Final Ranking List LawScienceTechnology”)