Project Purpose

Human Rights AI Impact AssessmentGovernments and organizations around the world are developing or promoting “Trustworthy AI” frameworks to assure the public that AI systems will be beneficial, lawful, and accountable.

AI impact assessments (AIAs) have emerged as a leading strategy to promote “Trustworthy AI” for government and private sector AI systems across the world.

Most AIAs are based on American laws, European laws, or international “ethical AI” norms. Many also overlook human rights, focussing instead on privacy issues, data security, and other regulatory compliance issues.

In response to this need, the Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) and Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) developed the first AI human rights impact assessment (HRIA) based on Canadian human rights law. The LCO/OHRC HRIA is a practical step-by-step guide that will help Canadian public and private sector organizations embed “human rights by design” in their AI systems. The Canadian Human Rights Commission was a collaborator on this project.

The impact of human rights law on AI is often not well-understood. Accordingly, the LCO/OHRC HRIA is intended to:

  • Strengthen knowledge and understanding of AI and human rights.
  • Provide practical guidance on AI and Canadian human rights law.
  • Identify mitigation strategies to address bias and discrimination from AI systems.

AIAs are part of a comprehensive strategy to promote and protect human rights in AI public and private sector AI systems. AIAs have many benefits and limitations and embed many choices. To help explain these issues, the LCO prepared an AI impact assessment Backgrounder that discusses the key issues and stakeholder perspectives on these important AI governance tools.

The HRIA does not constitute legal advice and does not provide a definitive legal answer regarding any adverse human rights impacts, including violations of federal or provincial human rights law or other relevant legislation. Organizations and individuals should seek independent legal advice if they have concerns regarding their compliance with applicable legislation and their legal obligations.

Project Lead and Information

The LCO’s HRIA project lead is Susie Lindsay. Susie can be reached at slindsay@lco-cdo.org.

Project Documents