Model based tools for inquiry into expungement law

Document Type

Conference Proceeding

Publication Date

2025

Department

Department of Computer Science

Abstract

Our project seeks to determine how and to what extent computational modeling and analysis can be used to foster greater understanding and ownership of statutory rules through interactive inquiry. We envision a digital sandbox environment where stakeholders with differing expertise and motivations can explore the consequences of statutory law through customized applications built on a common formal model. The Alloy language and analyzer provide both a means of expressing the law precisely and uncovering hidden assumptions and unintended consequences. Our initial case study concerns the Clean Slate law of the U.S. State of Michigan. In this tool demonstration, we discuss the Alloy model at the heart of our sandbox environment and show how we can represent aspects of the law in a comprehensive and flexible way. We then present two use cases for the digital sandbox, along with front-end applications to service them. The Record Checker is intended for lay individuals to check on the expungeability status of their personal conviction records and to learn what may be blocking the expungement of certain convictions. The Scenario Finder is intended for legal professionals and other interested individuals who seek to understand the law in a more comprehensive way. Using this interface, users can ask more general queries, in the form of underspecified conviction timelines, and view scenarios that satisfy their queries (if any exist).

Publication Title

2025 ACM/IEEE 28th International Conference on Model Driven Engineering Languages and Systems Companion (MODELS-C)

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