Eric Martínez

Eric Martínez

Earl B. Dickerson Fellow, Instructor in Law

Eric's research interests lie at the interplay of law, language, cognition and AI. His research investigates how humans and machines understand and interpret law, along with the implications of these findings for questions of legal doctrine and policy. His interests also include evaluating how new technologies, such as large language models, can and should be used as cognitive aids to legal practice. His scholarship complements traditional doctrinal analysis with empirical methods, including both computational and experimental approaches.

Eric's research has been published or is forthcoming in Georgetown Law Journal, Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Artificial Intelligence and Law, Cognition, Cambridge University Press and Oxford University Press, among other venues.

Eric holds a Ph.D. in Cognitive Science from MIT, a J.D. from Harvard Law School, and a B.A. from Florida State University.

Education

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

PhD, Cognitive Science, 2024

Harvard Law School

JD, 2019

Florida State University

BA, 2015

Academic Appointments

University of Chicago Law School

Dickerson Fellow & Instructor in Law, July 2024-Present

Awards and Honors

  • APA Editor’s Choice Award, American Psychological Association, 2024
  • Ig Nobel Prize in Literature, Annals of Improbable Research, 2022
  • Computational Modeling Prize in Applied Cognition, Cognitive Science Society, 2022
  • Theodore Eisenberg Award (Runner Up), Society for Empirical Legal Studies, 2022
  • Henry A. Singleton Fellowship, McGovern Institute for Brain Science, 2021
  • Presidential Fellowship, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2020
  • 2015 President’s Award, Office of the President, Florida State University, 2015
  • Honors Medallion & Latin Honors, Honors Program, Florida State University, 2015
  • Dorothy Hoffman Award, Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics, Florida State University, 2013, 2014
  • Phi Beta Kappa, College of Arts & Sciences, Florida State University, 2013

Legal Service

  • Founding Board Member, Institute for Law & AI, 2020-Present
  • Panelist (AI in Immigration Law Course), American Immigration Law Association, 2024
  • Speaker (Task Force on Law & Technology), New York State Bar Association, 2024
  • Speaker & Consultant, Oak Academy for AI in the Legal Profession, 2023-24

Licenses & Skills

  • Natural languages: English (native-fluent), Spanish (heritage-fluent)
  • Programming languages: R, Python, Java, JavaScript, & MATLAB
  • Bar Membership: Massachusetts