Meet our new professors: Jennifer Raso

JENNIFER RASO joined the Faculty of Law as an assistant professor on 1 August and teaches Administrative Process and Poverty and the Law. Her research investigates the relationship between discretion, data-driven technologies, and administrative law. She is the principal investigator on a SSHRC Insight Development Grant project titled "Shifting Front Lines in the Digital Welfare State: Coding Canadian Social Assistance Laws."

How did you become interested in administrative law and data-driven technologies?

I’ve always been interested in how laws are brought to life in everyday settings. For many people, that experience occurs through their interactions with “front-line” officials, such as filing taxes or crossing a border. These decisions are governed by administrative law, but they are also increasingly governed by data-driven technologies. Contrary to the assumption that bureaucracies are slow-moving, government agencies are sometimes the first to use innovative new technologies (computerized data management systems in welfare programs are an early example). Today, these tools are becoming deeply embedded within administrative agencies without a full appreciation of their social and legal consequences.

What’s a legal question that currently fascinates you?

How do interfaces mediate crucial interactions between the public and government officials? Today, most people have experienced “digital-first” government: that is, government via website, app, or kiosk. The information each of us provides about our circumstances is filtered through an online form or telephone menu, which shapes how it is understood by the human official(s) on the other side. Interfaces influence how these “claims” are presented and received. They moderate how senses of administrative (in)justice develop, and how (dis)trust in state agencies is fostered. I’m interested in how these tools are reshaping law and discretion when they moderate highly impactful decisions made in front-line settings like social assistance and border control.

What do you most look forward to about joining McGill Law?

I am keen to join a law school that is so obviously committed to multidisciplinary, cross-cultural exchange. This feature sets McGill Law apart from other Canadian law schools and makes it an ideal environment in which to examine the contemporary dilemmas posed by algorithmic or data-driven governance. A key component of this unique environment is the law school’s diverse student body. I cannot wait to get to know them better in the classroom and beyond.