Fellows
Eric Martínez
Earl B. Dickerson Fellow, Instructor in LawBiography
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 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 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Georgetown Law Journal, Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, Artificial Intelligence and Law, Cognition, Harvard Journal of Law & Technology, 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. Prior to coming to University of Chicago Law School, Eric was a research fellow at the Institute for Law & AI.
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
Earl B. Dickerson Fellow & Instructor in Law, 2024 – Present
The Institute for Law & AI
Research Fellow, 2020 – 2024
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Research Associate in Brain & Cognitive Sciences, 2019 – 2020
Teaching Experience
University of Chicago Law School
Instructor for Law, Mind & Brain Seminar, 2025
MIT Brain and Cognitive Sciences
Teaching Assistant for Cognitive Sciences, 2022 – 2023
Spanish Ministry of Education
Teacher for English and the Humanities, 2015 – 2016
FSU International Affairs
Teaching Assistant for Freshman Interest Group Colloquium, 2013
Awards and Honors
- SHASS+ Connectivity Grant, 2025
- 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