Pietro Ortolani – How Platforms Already Run the Biggest Courts on Earth

About this episode

Billions of decisions. Zero judges. And a justice system that lives inside your phone.

Pietro Ortolani, Professor of Digital Law and Dispute Resolution at Radboud University, reveals why major platforms like Meta, Amazon and eBay already operate the largest dispute resolution systems on the planet. Much larger than any court we know. And far faster.

In this wide ranging conversation, Pietro explains how platforms became de facto courts, why automation and AI already settle the vast majority of online disputes, and what the legal world can learn from this silent revolution. He shows how young lawyers can create new forms of online courts, why the hourly billing model is collapsing and why this moment is the best time in history to enter the legal profession.

You will hear why justice at scale is possible, how the Digital Services Act is reshaping content moderation and why the next generation of lawyers should build the future instead of fearing it.

What you will learn

• How online platforms created the world’s largest dispute resolution systems

• Why AI already handles the majority of disputes you never hear about

• What judges and lawyers must understand about automated decision making

• How the DSA creates a new market for out of court dispute resolution

• Why law students should embrace creativity instead of fearing automation

• How AI can act as a mirror for judicial bias

• Why this is the best moment in history to become a lawyer

Quote

“It has never been a better or more interesting time to be a lawyer.”

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Chapters

0:00 Opening

1:03 What platforms can teach us about dispute resolution

3:14 How eBay accidentally built the first online court

6:18 Why platforms settle billions of disputes without judges

8:49 The limits of automated moderation

11:09 Should we fear the Amazonification of justice

13:27 The Oversight Board as a model for modern justice

16:42 The rise of a new market for digital dispute resolution

18:58 Can we copy these systems into public courts

21:12 How AI empowers rather than replaces judges

24:11 AI as a mirror for judicial bias

26:32 The real danger of private control over public justice

27:49 Do we already have a robot judge

30:00 Why banning AI in courts makes no sense

31:52 What young lawyers can build in this new legal world

34:48 How the DSA transforms transparency and fairness

38:22 Can we create global standards for algorithmic justice

42:01 Why innovation meets resistance inside the legal sector

45:11 What esports teach us about fast and fair dispute resolution

48:46 Should law schools ban AI or embrace it

51:31 Why this is the best moment to become a lawyer

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