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dc.contributor.authorWiseman, Leanne
dc.contributor.authorCockburn, Tina
dc.contributor.authorSanderson, Jay
dc.date.accessioned2019-02-03T23:32:45Z
dc.date.available2019-02-03T23:32:45Z
dc.date.issued2018
dc.identifier.issn1449-2210
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10072/382093
dc.description.abstractWith the increasing world population placing greater and greater pressure on food production, the issue of food security is high on the world agenda. In the search for strategies to address this looming crisis, attention is being drawn to the power of new digital and autonomous technologies to increase agricultural productivity: “the next leg of food production growth will come from greater precision in agriculture, with advances in hardware, software and computing power converging with technologies like self-driving tractors and drones to help farmers feed humanity's next century. (Revich, 2015) Along with the growth in precision farming, there has been the increasing automation of processes and farm machinery. Goldman Sachs said it sees a $240-billion market for automation on the farm and the predicted $45-billion market for small driverless tractors alone is evidence of this. (Revich, 2015) The potential economic impact that these new autonomous technologies will have in Australian agriculture has not gone unnoticed (Perrett, 2017) however to date there has been little attention paid to the potential legal consequences of autonomous farming. The aim of this paper is to do just that: to highlight the potential legal consequences of the introduction of autonomous machines and technologies into Australian agriculture. As autonomous and robotic equipment use increases so too will the rate of incidents or accidents involving such autonomous and robotic equipment. We will focus on the potential legal issues that may arise where an autonomous farming machinery causes an incident or accident that results in legal action for compensation for personal injury and/or property damage and discuss how the current laws in Australia are likely to respond. Legal issues relating to potential criminal liability; workers compensation and specifically the CASA regulations around the use of drones claims are beyond the scope of this paper. While more transparency and equity in the contractual provisions that are governing liabilities for these new technologies will improve understanding in the sector of the legal consequences, we conclude by suggesting that is some cases the strength of the Australia’s consumer laws may give some confidence of compensation to those who suffer harm caused by autonomous farming equipment. However, as is happening in other countries, we argue it is time for a review of the current schemes of compensation available for loss or injuries caused by autonomous farm machinery, keeping in mind those who are using these technologies are ultimately contributing to a food secure future.
dc.description.peerreviewedYes
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherAustralian Farm Institute
dc.publisher.urihttp://www.farminstitute.org.au/publications/journal/farm-policy-journal
dc.relation.ispartofpagefrom37
dc.relation.ispartofpageto46
dc.relation.ispartofissue2
dc.relation.ispartofjournalFarm Policy Journal
dc.relation.ispartofvolume15
dc.subject.fieldofresearchTort Law
dc.subject.fieldofresearchAgriculture, Land and Farm Management
dc.subject.fieldofresearchLaw
dc.subject.fieldofresearchcode180126
dc.subject.fieldofresearchcode0701
dc.subject.fieldofresearchcode1801
dc.titleLegal consequences of autonomous farming
dc.typeJournal article
dc.type.descriptionC1 - Articles
dc.type.codeC - Journal Articles
dc.description.versionVersion of Record (VoR)
gro.facultyArts, Education & Law Group, Griffith Law School
gro.rights.copyright© 2018 Australian Farm Institute. This publication is protected by copyright laws. The publication may be reproduced in whole or in part for study purposes subject to the inclusion of an acknowledgement of the source and no commercial usage or sale. Reproduction for purposes other than that indicated above requires the written permission of the Executive Director, Australian Farm Institute, Suite 73, 61 Marlborough Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010, AUSTRALIA.
gro.hasfulltextFull Text
gro.griffith.authorWiseman, Leanne G.


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