AI liability directive
In “A Europe Fit for the Digital Age”
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Metadata
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Status:
Tabled
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Type:
Legislative
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In the spotlight:
JD 23-24
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Procedure:
2022/0303(COD)
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CWP:
2020
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CWP indicative date:
Q4 2020
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National parliaments opinions:
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Consultative bodies:
CoR
EESC
Rapporteur(s)
Sharing
The European Commission published a proposal for a directive on adapting non-contractual civil liability rules to artificial intelligence (so-called AI liability directive) on 28 September 2022.
In its 2020 report on the safety and liability implications of artificial intelligence, the internet of things and robotics, the Commission identified the specific challenges posed by artificial intelligence to existing liability rules. The European Parliament voted in 2020 a legislative resolution by Axel Voss (EPP, DE) calling for harmonising the legal framework for civil liability claims and for imposing a regime of strict liability on operators of high-risk AI systems.
In the draft AI liability directive, the Commission proposes to complement and modernise the EU liability framework to introduce new rules specific to damages caused by AI systems. The new rules intend to ensure that persons harmed by AI systems enjoy the same level of protection as persons harmed by other technologies in the EU. The AI liability directive would create a rebuttable 'presumption of causality', to ease the burden of proof for victims to establish damage caused by an AI system. It would furthermore give national courts the power to order disclosure of evidence about high-risk AI systems suspected of having caused damage.
In parallel, the Commission published a proposal to revise the product liability directive (PDL) that covers producer’s no-fault liability for defective products (see specific carriage on new product liability directive).
In the EP, the file is attributed to the Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) and Axel Voss (EPP, Germany) has been appointed as a rapporteur.
In Council, preliminary discussions have been held in meetings of the Working Party on Civil Law Matters in January 2023.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) adopted an opinion on the proposal on 25 January 2023.
The discussions on that file were suspended until the adoption of the closely linked AI Act and have not resumed yet (see carriage on the Artificial intelligence Act). The JURI committee requested a complementary impact assessment study from the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS). The study was published on 19 September 2024, proposing that the AI liability directive should extend its scope to include general-purpose and other 'high-impact AI systems', as well as software. It also discusses a mixed liability framework that balances fault-based and strict liability. Notably, the study recommends transitioning from an AI-focused directive to a software liability regulation, to prevent market fragmentation and enhance clarity across the EU.
References:
- EP Legislative Observatory, Adapting non-contractual civil liability rules to artificial intelligence (AI Liability Directive), 2022/0303(COD).
- Council, Overview of the current legislative proposals under the Swedish
Presidency, March 2023 - European Parliament, , Resolution on a civil liability regime for artificial intelligence, (2020/2014(INL))
- Economic and Social Committee, Artificial intelligence liability directive, January 2023
- European Commission, Report on the safety and liability implications of Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Things and robotics, COM/2020/64 final
- European Commission, Adapting liability rules to the digital age, the circular economy and global value chains, June 2021
- European Parliament, Committee on Legal Affairs draft report with recommendations to the Commission on a Civil liability regime for artificial intelligence, 2020/2014 (INL)
Further reading:
- European Parliament, EPRS, Proposal for a directive on adapting non-contractual civil liability rules to artificial intelligence: Complementary impact assessment, Study, September 2024
- European Parliament, EPRS, Artificial intelligence liability directive, Briefing, February 2023
Author: Stefano De Luca, Members' Research Service, legislative-train@europarl.europa.eu