Constitutionalism in the Digital Age

Over the next 50 years, lawyers will need to develop innovative solutions to uphold the rule of law, democracy, and human rights in the digital world.

Humanity is forever moving forward. From the agricultural revolution, which saw a substantial increase in agricultural productivity based around novel tools and methods, through to the industrial revolution, we have an insatiable desire for progress. More recently, we have made the transition from the industrial age to an era of information technology, driven by a mix of rapidly growing computational power and network connectivity. All kinds of devices are now permanently connected to the internet, collecting, and processing vast amounts of data related to absolutely everything imaginable.

With the dawn of technologies such as AI, machine learning, blockchain and quantum computing, the next 50 years are likely to bring exponential growth in the digitalization of governments. As these tools become more widespread, state institutions around the world will look to incorporate them into their operations. This rapid evolution will be aided by further technological advancements, increasing global connectivity and a pressing need for efficient public administration in the face of complex societal challenges.

Such a surge in “e-government” will of course bring with it tremendous opportunities. It will allow more informed decision making, superior quality in the delivery of public services, greater transparency, and increasingly robust civic engagement.

However, it also presents significant challenges, key among which are concerns related to data privacy, the potential for widening digital divides, and cybersecurity threats. Data has become a new source of value, and the challenge is to strike a balance between the development of this new form of economy and the protection of privacy. The expansion of AI offers great economic and technological opportunities; however, governments need to make sure that nobody will be left behind, and all people will have access to and benefit from such technology. Finally, the increasing reliance on the new digital ecosystem will require advanced security protocols because cybersecurity threats would inevitably lead to new forms of emergencies.

Furthermore, as we have seen in recent years, there exists a real and present risk that authoritarian leaders will leverage these technologies to tighten their grip on power. Indeed, the question of striking a balance between upholding free speech and managing the spread of misinformation and other harmful content in the online space is one that many established democracies are already struggling to grapple with.

As we embark on the next 50 years, one of our most pressing challenges as lawyers will be to come up with innovative solutions to uphold democracy, the rule of law and human rights in the digital age. In this new digital setting, we will be forced to reimagine the very meaning of constitutionalism.