Document Type
Article
Publication Date
4-2025
Abstract
This short essay explores the concept of bias in artificial intelligence tools used in dispute resolution. Biases are not necessarily flaws to be avoided, but inevitable and potentially constructive features of these tools. They reflect values and design choices that AI developers should disclose.
There are both market and ethical imperatives for AI tools to disclose their features and embedded values. As developers compete for users, people will want to know what they’re getting. Disclosure helps users understand the effects of assumptions, priorities, and frameworks built into a tool’s design, and thus should be treated as a core ethical principle.
As an illustration, the essay focuses on RPS Coach – a custom AI tool grounded in Real Practice Systems (RPS) Theory based on the author’s publications. It outlines the structure of RPS Coach’s knowledge base and the instructions that shape its responses, which are designed to support good decision-making by mediators, lawyers, parties, and educators. Coach encourages users to tailor dispute resolution processes based on multiple case-specific factors, rather than simply follow any one model. It reflects a practice systems perspective that favors professional growth over tactics and adaptation over scripts.
Recommended Citation
John Lande,
RPS Coach is Biased - And Proud of ItUniversity of Missouri School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2025-17
(2025).
Available at: https://scholarship.law.missouri.edu/facpubs/1262