Papers on Lexon
The following papers define and discuss Lexon. They are by the creator of Lexon and professors and students of law.
Asst. prof. Carla L. Reyes, SMU
Creating Cryptolaw for the Uniform Commercial Code
Using Lexon to Write Law.
Lexon allows for law to be executed as a program. Asst. prof. Carla L. Reyes of SMU pioneers the use of Lexon to write statute in her seminal 2021 paper. She created Lexon code as a proposal to the commission that is tasked with the reform of the U.S. trade law, which she advises on blockchain topics. This code could become model law, be adapted by states to be executed on the computers of their local agencies and protect billions of dollars of collateral.
The salient point is that the law itself, without further changes is the program that the respective office runs to implement it (the law).
The motivation for this proposal is a concrete shortfall of the existing statute. Asst. prof. Reyes writes (emphasis added):
“Under certain conditions, security interests not only bind the creditor and debtor, but also third-party creditors seeking to lend against the same collateral. To receive this extraordinary benefit, creditors must put the world on notice, usually by filing a financing statement with the state in which the debtor is located. Unfortunately, the Uniform Commercial Code (U.C.C.) Article 9 filing system fails to provide actual notice to interested parties and introduces risk of heavy financial losses. To solve this problem, this Article introduces a smartcontract-based U.C.C.-1 form built using Lexon, an innovative new programming language that enables the development of smart contracts in English. The proposed “Lexon U.C.C. Financing Statement” does much more than merely replicate the financing statement in digital form; it also performs several U.C.C. rules so that, for the first time, the filing system works as intended. In demonstrating that such a system remains compatible with existing law, the Lexon U.C.C. Financing Statement also reveals important lessons about the interaction of technology and commercial law.”
Read >Prof. Christopher C. Clack, UCL
Languages for Smart and Computable Contracts
Contract Language Comparison
Smart Contracts use computer technology to automate the performance of aspects of commercial agreements. Yet how can there be confidence that the computer code is faithful to the intentions of the parties? To understand the depth and subtlety of this question requires an exploration of natural and computer languages, of the semantics of expressions in those languages, and of the gap that exists between the disciplines of law and computer science. Here we provide a perspective on some of the key issues, explore some current research directions, and explain the importance of language design in the development of reliable Smart Contracts, including the specific methodology of Computable Contracts.
Read >Florian Idelberger, EUI
Merging traditional contracts (or law) and (smart) e-contracts – a novel approach
Contract Language Comparison
For a long time, there have been various parallel developments in the area of AI and Law, Legaltech more recently or computable law, data exchange formats, e-contracts, agreement systems and similar. Some working more on creating normative or logical systems outside of traditional law such as business logic systems, others on bringing probabilistic approaches to reasoning about law or understanding human language, and as an extension, law written in that language. A particular important development are computable contracts, either through DSLs, understanding of natural language or repurposing of other languages such as logic-based languages. In this paper, the most important competitors for writing computable contracts that translate to the environment of a blockchain’s normative environment will be examined in light of their usefulness for creating and merging contracts and e-contracts, functionality and legal looks. Championing the idea that the machine does not actually have to understand anything to be useful, as long as it can comprehensively translate, all the while keeping syntax and semantics intact, making for a more closely integrated contract stack.
Read >Henning Diedrich
Lexon - Legal Smart Contracts
2017 Lexon Whitepaper
A language and virtual machine is proposed to allow lawyers, lawmakers and judges to read and write legally correct smart contracts that can build on comprehensive legal code libraries and can express and adjust to court decisions, fictions, changes in regulations, arbitration and the differences between jurisdictions. We make the point that a different language is needed for smart contracts and why going forward, reversibility will be provided by the system layer, while retaining irreversibility on its lower, foundational parts. The proposed language structure, grammar and vocabulary are showcased and its compilation rules are listed. We lay out its multi-lingual and -jurisdictional potential and the mechanics of the reversibility layer. We close with an outlook on the potential and notes on required governance and involvement of governments. The appendix has a brief survey about what some relevant smart contract languages look like and what their focus is. The intended audience are the legal profession and programmers. A best effort is made to support both sides.
Read >Henning Diedrich
The Holy Grail of Computational Law
2023 Lexon Whitepaper
This paper describes an approach to realize a centuries-old goal of Computational Law, its implementation, how to use it, and how trustlessness can augment its usefulness. The basics of a plain-text programming language are explained; how to use its compiler to translate controlled English into programs; the utility of its programmable token, and the foundational capabilities it adds to trustless computing.
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