Artificial Intelligence systems, subjects or objects in the legal relationship?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56294/ai2026379Keywords:
Artificial Intelligence, Legal relationship, Person, Subject, ObjectAbstract
As the first quarter of the 21st century has passed, humanity has witnessed a phenomenon that has impacted various sectors, and the legal field has been no exception. Artificial Intelligence is transforming the world as we knew it until now. The development achieved by Artificial Intelligence systems and their widespread use in all human activities have certainly benefited society by facilitating and expediting these tasks with greater efficiency than humans. However, it has also raised the question of where to place Artificial Intelligence when it interacts within civil legal relationships, with various differing viewpoints existing today. Through a bibliographic study that included the analysis of classical and modern texts, publications, articles, and other sources, it was concluded that Artificial Intelligence systems do not meet the necessary requirements to be granted legal personhood and thus acquire the corresponding rights and obligations. Instead, Artificial Intelligence belongs to the objective element of civil legal relations, as despite possessing certain intelligence and reasoning capabilities, it remains an object within legal transactions.
References
1. Acosta Mugas PE. El robot inteligente y su categorización jurídica. Rev Blockchain Intell Artif. 2022;(4):29-46. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22529/rdm.2022(1)02
2. Aidid A, Alarie B. The Legal Singularity: How Artificial Intelligence Can Make Law Radically Better. 2023.
3. Akhmetshin E, Kirillova E, Abdullayev I, Fedorov A, Tretyak E, Kochetkov E. LEGAL STATUS AND THE ISSUES OF LEGAL PERSONHOOD OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE. Relacoes Internacionais No Mundo Atual 2024;1:356–66. https://doi.org/10.21902/Revrima.v1i43.6722.
4. Al-Qodsi EM, Arenova L. Smart Contracts in Contract Law as an Auxiliary Tool or a Promising Substitute for Traditional Contracts. Journal of Legal Affairs and Dispute Resolution in Engineering and Construction 2024;16. https://doi.org/10.1061/JLADAH.LADR-1132. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1061/JLADAH.LADR-1132
5. Al-Qodsi EM, Gura D. High tech and legal challenges: Artificial intelligence-caused damage regulation. Cogent Social Sciences 2023;9. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2023.2270751. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2023.2270751
6. Atabekov A. Artificial Intelligence in Contemporary Societies: Legal Status and Definition, Implementation in Public Sector across Various Countries. Social Sciences 2023;12. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12030178. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12030178
7. Azzam OM, Saleh AM, Eleshmawy N. Delay Analysis in Construction Contracts: Assessing Claims and Legal Implications. Journal of Legal Affairs and Dispute Resolution in Engineering and Construction 2025;17. https://doi.org/10.1061/JLADAH.LADR-1198. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1061/JLADAH.LADR-1198
8. Balachandran M, Rabbiraj C. Artificial intelligence: a support system in inclusive education. International Journal of Knowledge and Learning 2025;18:52–64. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJKL.2025.143069. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1504/IJKL.2025.143069
9. Bozorgi M. The impact of procedural law on artificial intelligence by improving the healthcare systems, 2023, p. 172–92. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-6684-8337-4.ch010. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-6684-8337-4.ch010
10. De Micco F, Grassi S, Tomassini L, Di Palma G, Ricchezze G, Scendoni R. Robotics and AI into healthcare from the perspective of European regulation: who is responsible for medical malpractice? Frontiers in Medicine 2024;11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2024.1428504. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2024.1428504
11. Dey A, Jagadanandan J. Unveiling the realm of AI governance in outer space and its importance in national space policy. Acta Astronautica 2025;228:253–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actaastro.2024.11.022. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actaastro.2024.11.022
12. Díaz Alabart S. Robots y responsabilidad civil. En: Los Robots y el Derecho. 2018. p. 99-114.
13. Ellamey Y, Elwakad A. THE CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SYSTEMS: A PROSPECTIVE ANALYTICAL STUDY. Corporate Law and Governance Review 2023;5:92–100. https://doi.org/10.22495/clgrv5i1p8. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22495/clgrv5i1p8
14. Ferhataj A, Memaj F, Sahatcija R, Ora A, Koka E. Ethical concerns in AI development: analyzing students’ perspectives on robotics and society. Journal of Information, Communication and Ethics in Society 2025;23:165–87. https://doi.org/10.1108/JICES-08-2024-0111. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JICES-08-2024-0111
15. Fuentes V. Acusada de homicidio la conductora de Uber cuyo coche autónomo atropelló a una mujer en Arizona. Motorpasion. 2020. Disponible en: https://www.motorpasion.com/seguridad/acusada-homicidio-conductora-cocheautonomo-uber-que-causo-atropello-mortal-arizona
16. Fujita M, Onaga T, Ueyama A, Kano Y. Legal Textual Entailment Using Ensemble of Rule-Based and BERT-Based Method with Data Augmentation by Related Article Generation. vol. 13859 LNAI, 2023, p. 138–53. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-29168-5_10. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-29168-5_10
17. Grijalva J, Huang T-Y, Yu J, Buzzini P, Williams D, Davidson JT, et al. Analysis of major cannabinoids using Raman microscopy, density functional theory, chemometrics and a novel artificial intelligence approach. Talanta Open 2024;10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.talo.2024.100337. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.talo.2024.100337
18. Gyevnár B, Ferguson N, Schäfer B. Bridging the Transparency Gap: What Can Explainable AI Learn from the AI Act? vol. 372, 2023, p. 964–71. https://doi.org/10.3233/FAIA230367. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3233/FAIA230367
19. Hamsin MK, Anggriawan R, Jiatrahman F. Unveiling Ethical Implications: AI Robot Accountability in Islamic Context. Jurnal Media Hukum 2023;30:117–35. https://doi.org/10.18196/jmh.v30i2.18524. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18196/jmh.v30i2.18524
20. Hernigou P, Lustig S, Caton J. Artificial intelligence and robots like us (surgeons) for people like you (patients): toward a new human–robot-surgery shared experience. What is the moral and legal status of robots and surgeons in the operating room? International Orthopaedics 2023;47:289–94. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00264-023-05690-4. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00264-023-05690-4
21. Hu M, Yuan F. Legal regulation of clinical application of artificial intelligence. National Medical Journal of China 2023;103:1363–6. https://doi.org/10.3760/cma.j.cn112137-20230217-00227.
22. Hudima T, Kamyshanskyi V. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AS A TOOL FOR DIGITALIZATION OF FOREIGN ECONOMIC POLICY: PECULIARITIES OF LEGAL REGULATION. Financial and Credit Activity: Problems of Theory and Practice 2023;3:398–409. https://doi.org/10.55643/fcaptp.3.50.2023.4039. DOI: https://doi.org/10.55643/fcaptp.3.50.2023.4039
23. Hussein S, Al-Obeidi A. Robotics and AI Systems: Legal Personality for AI System Under UAE Law and Islamic Jurisprudence, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACIT58888.2023.10453710. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/ACIT58888.2023.10453710
24. Koos S. The Digitization of Notarial Tasks-A Comparative Overview and Outlook of ‘Cyber Notary’ In Indonesia and Germany. Indonesian Journal of Socio-Legal Studies 2023;2. https://doi.org/10.54828/ijsls.2023v2n2.1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.54828/ijsls.2023v2n2.1
25. Kostenko OM, Bieliakov KI, Tykhomyrov OO, Aristova IV. “Legal personality” of artificial intelligence: methodological problems of scientific reasoning by Ukrainian and EU experts. AI and Society 2024;39:1683–93. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-023-01641-0. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-023-01641-0
26. Kretschmer M, Margoni T, Oruc P. Copyright Law and the Lifecycle of Machine Learning Models. IIC International Review of Intellectual Property and Competition Law 2024;55:110–38. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40319-023-01419-3. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40319-023-01419-3
27. Laptev VA, Feyzrakhmanova DR. Application of Artificial Intelligence in Justice: Current Trends and Future Prospects. Human-Centric Intelligent Systems 2024;4:394–405. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44230-024-00074-2. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s44230-024-00074-2
28. Le Y, Xiao S, Xiao Z, Li K. Topology-aware Multi-task Learning Framework for Civil Case Judgment Prediction. Expert Systems with Applications 2024;238. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eswa.2023.122103. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eswa.2023.122103
29. Lim EWK. Law by Algorithm†. Oxford Journal of Legal Studies 2023;43:650–70. https://doi.org/10.1093/ojls/gqad009. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/ojls/gqad009
30. Mahardhika V, Astuti P, Mustafa A. Could Artificial Intelligence be the Subject of Criminal Law? Yustisia 2023;12. https://doi.org/10.20961/yustisia.v12i1.56065. DOI: https://doi.org/10.20961/yustisia.v12i1.56065
31. Malinverni ES, Abate D, Agapiou A, Di Stefano FD, Felicetti A, Paolanti M, et al. SIGNIFICANCE deep learning based platform to fight illicit trafficking of Cultural Heritage goods. Scientific Reports 2024;14. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-65885-6. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-65885-6
32. McCarthy J, Minsky M, Rochester N, Shannon C. A proposal for the Dartmouth Summer Research Project on Artificial Intelligence. New Hampshire; 1956.
33. Mengual LA. A legal status for Avatars in the Metaverse from a Private Law perspective. InDret 2024:102–35. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31009/InDret.2024.i2.03
34. Minbaleev AV, Titova EV. LEGAL ISSUES AND RISKS OF HOLDING SPORTS EVENTS IN THE METAVERSE. Human Sport Medicine 2023;23:136–42. https://doi.org/10.14529/hsm23s119.
35. Muñiz C. “Para nosotros, para nuestra posteridad, y para todos los robots del mundo que quieran habitar el suelo argentino”. ¿Puede la inteligencia artificial ser sujeto de derecho? 2018:1-7.
36. Muñoz Vela JM. Derecho de la Inteligencia Artificial. Un enfoque global de responsabilidad desde la ética, la seguridad y las nuevas propuestas reguladoras europeas [Tesis doctoral]. Valencia: Universidad de Valencia; 2021.
37. Namysłowska M. The Silent Death of EU Consumer Law and Its Resilient Revival: Reinventing Consumer Protection Against Unfair Digital Commercial Practices. Journal of Consumer Policy 2025;48:317–36. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10603-025-09590-5. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10603-025-09590-5
38. Novelli C. Legal personhood for the integration of AI systems in the social context: a study hypothesis. AI and Society 2023;38:1347–59. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-021-01384-w. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-021-01384-w
39. Okuno MJ, Okuno HG. Legal frameworks for AI service business participants: a comparative analysis of liability protection across jurisdictions. AI and Society 2025;40:5667–83. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-025-02288-9. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-025-02288-9
40. Padovan PH, Martins CM, Reed C. Black is the new orange: how to determine AI liability. Artificial Intelligence and Law 2023;31:133–67. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10506-022-09308-9. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10506-022-09308-9
41. Parlangeli O, Curro’ F, Palmitesta P, Guidi S. Asymmetries in the Moral Judgements for Human Decision-Makers and Artificial Intelligence Systems (AI) Delegated to Make Legal Decisions, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1145/3605655.3605676. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/3605655.3605676
42. Parlangeli O, Curro’ F, Palmitesta P, Guidi S. Moral judgements of errors by AI systems and humans in civil and criminal law. Behaviour and Information Technology 2024;43:1718–28. https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2023.2283622. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2023.2283622
43. Pashentsev DA, Babaeva YG. Artificial intelligence in law-making and law enforcement: Risks and new opportunities. Vestnik Sankt-Peterburgskogo Universiteta Pravo 2024;15:516–26. https://doi.org/10.21638/spbu14.2024.214. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21638/spbu14.2024.214
44. Ponce Gallegos JC, Torres Soto A, Quezada Aguilera FS, Silva Sprock A, Martínez Flor EU, Casali A, Scheihing E, Túpac Valdivia YJ, Torres Soto MD, Ornelas Zapata FJ, Hernández JA, Zavala C, Vakhnia N, Pedreño O. Inteligencia Artificial. Inteligencia Artificial. 2014. Disponible en: http://www.proyectolatin.org/
45. Quattrocolo S, Sacchetto E. EU and AI: Lessons to be learned, 2024, p. 636–56. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108980197.034. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108980197.034
46. Radetzky MA. The Impact of Artificial Technology on Authors of a Cinematographic Creation. Hasanuddin Law Review 2024;10:21–42. https://doi.org/10.20956/halrev.v10i1.4780. DOI: https://doi.org/10.20956/halrev.v10i1.4780
47. Ramli TS, Ramli AM, Mayana RF, Ramadayanti E, Fauzi R. Artificial intelligence as object of intellectual property in Indonesian law. Journal of World Intellectual Property 2023;26:142–54. https://doi.org/10.1111/jwip.12264. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jwip.12264
48. Rojek I, Mikołajewski D, Mroziński A, Macko M. Machine Learning- and Artificial Intelligence-Derived Prediction for Home Smart Energy Systems with PV Installation and Battery Energy Storage. Energies 2023;16. https://doi.org/10.3390/en16186613. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/en16186613
49. Ruffle JK, Foulon C, Nachev P. The human cost of ethical artificial intelligence. Brain Structure and Function 2023;228:1365–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-023-02662-7. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-023-02662-7
50. Shentu X. A review on legal issues of medical robots. Medicine (United States) 2024;103. https://doi.org/10.1097/MD.0000000000038330. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1097/MD.0000000000038330
51. Siddiqi MH, Alshammeri M, Khan J, Khan MF, Khan A, Alruwaili M, et al. A Hybrid Framework Combining Rule-Based and Deep Learning Approaches for Data-Driven Verdict Recommendations. Computers, Materials and Continua 2025;83:5345–71. https://doi.org/10.32604/cmc.2025.062340. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32604/cmc.2025.062340
52. Sitiris M, Busari SA. THE LEGAL CAPACITY (AL-AHLIYYAH) OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FROM AN ISLAMIC JURISPRUDENTIAL PERSPECTIVE. Malaysian Journal of Syariah and Law 2024;12:31–42. https://doi.org/10.33102/mjsl.vol12no1.453. DOI: https://doi.org/10.33102/mjsl.vol12no1.453
53. Staszkiewicz P, Horobiowski J, Szelągowska A, Strzelecka AM. Artificial intelligence legal personality and accountability: auditors’ accounts of capabilities and challenges for instrument boundary. Meditari Accountancy Research 2024;32:141–67. https://doi.org/10.1108/MEDAR-10-2023-2204. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/MEDAR-10-2023-2204
54. Suárez-Muñoz F. Inteligencia Artificial: Una mirada crítica al concepto de personalidad electrónica de los robots [Tesis]. Guanajuato: Universidad de Guanajuato; 2024. DOI: https://doi.org/10.24215/15146774e060
55. Sukanya G, Priyadarshini J. Modified Hierarchical-Attention Network model for legal judgment predictions. Data and Knowledge Engineering 2023;147. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.datak.2023.102203. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.datak.2023.102203
56. Swart M. Constructing “electronic Liability” for International Crimes: Transcending the Individual in International Criminal Law. German Law Journal 2023;24:589–602. https://doi.org/10.1017/glj.2023.28. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/glj.2023.28
57. Valdés Díaz CC, Pérez Gallardo LB, Fernández Martínez M, Díaz Magrans MM, Cobas Cobiella ME. Derecho civil: parte general. La Habana: 2000.
58. Wyawahare M, Roy S, Zanwar S. Generative vs Intent-based Chatbot for Judicial Advice, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1109/IATMSI60426.2024.10502550. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/IATMSI60426.2024.10502550
59. Zeleznikow J. The benefits and dangers of using machine learning to support making legal predictions. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Data Mining and Knowledge Discovery 2023;13. https://doi.org/10.1002/widm.1505. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/widm.1505
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Vania Jacomino González, Bárbara Rosa Chinea Cárdenas (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The article is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. Unless otherwise stated, associated published material is distributed under the same licence.
