Dark Future Precedents: Science Fiction, Futurism and Law

In the next decade a collection of technological and biological advances will enable incredible breakthroughs. These advances will also reveal perils, threats and problems that have yet to be imagined. In the legal domain strategic passivity may be the tradition, but it will only become more expensive. Disruptive global trends in innovation and technological development, increased needs for artificial and natural catastrophe risk management, and more complex domestic and transnational regulatory ecologies make reactivity impractical. Futurism, long term strategic foresight and particularly futurecasting paired with science fiction prototyping are effective tools to model and begin exploring these possible futures and their implications. The intersection of science fiction, futurism and the law gives firms the tools to not only imagine and understand possible futures but also lays out the specific steps that clients need to take to be ready for the complex legal and business realities that are coming.