Assessing Fundamental Rights Risks of AI: Opportunities and Challenges Ahead

  • Panel
  • Grande Halle
  • Wednesday 21.05 — 11:50 - 13:05

Organising Institution

FRA

The European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), established by the EU as one of its specialised agencies in 2007, provides independent, evidence-based advice on fundamental rights to the institutions of the EU and the Member States on a range of issues. The staff of the FRA, which is based in Vienna, includes legal experts, political and social scientists, statisticians, and communication and networking experts.
  • Academic 1
  • Business 1
  • Policy 4
The use of AI presents both opportunities and challenges to fundamental rights, and its regulation will impact the future of Europe. Two important legal instruments adopted in 2024 – the EU AI Act and the Council of Europe Framework Convention on AI – include a variety of safeguards to address challenges ahead. Among other things, the AI Act foresees that providers and certain deployers have to identify, analyse and manage risks that high-risk AI systems pose to fundamental rights through risk management obligations and a fundamental rights impact assessment, respectively. The Council of Europe has developed a methodology to assess AI systems’ impact on human rights, democracy and the rule of law. There is much discussion about what these assessments should encompass. This panel will consider ways ahead and the relevance of fundamental rights assessments to protect European values when using AI.

Questions to be answered

  1. What are the major opportunities in the implementation of existing laws when it comes to the protection of fundamental rights?
  2. What fundamental rights challenges lie ahead of us when implementing these laws?
  3. What are the most important aspects to consider when assessing the fundamental rights impact of AI systems?
  4. How to best enhance mutual learning and best practices from different initiatives on fundamental rights impact assessments, including by learning from data protection impact assessments?

Moderator

Alyson Kilpatrick

European Network of National Human Rights Institutions (ENNHRI); Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission - Europe

Alyson Kilpatrick studied law at Queens University Belfast, the Inns of Court School of Law London and the College of Europe Bruges. She was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 1992. In 2008, she returned to the Bar of Northern Ireland. Alyson has extensive experience of litigation in the higher courts in a range of public law and human rights cases with a particular emphasis on cases concerning the protection of individuals’ rights. For example, she has represented litigants in cases concerning gerrymandering and malfeasance in public office; the rights of Irish Travellers to establish serviced sites; the closure of residential care homes; the right of a transgender child to medical treatment; misdiagnosis of psychiatric injury, and the application of the Human Rights Act to private contracts. Between 2005 and 2007, she was junior counsel to the Robert Hamill Inquiry (examining the death of a young man in Portadown). Throughout her practice, Alyson has published extensively including legal textbooks, law reports’ series and encyclopedia of law and practice. For example, she was a contributing author to The Human Rights Act 1998: A Practitioner’s Guide and the author of Discrimination Law and Housing Law in Northern Ireland. Alyson was a Commissioner on the Independent Commission on the Future of Housing in Northern Ireland, which reported to government in 2008. Until November 2017, she was Chair of the Board of the Simon Community Northern Ireland. She is member of the board of the One Safe Place Family Justice Centre and Vice Chair of the Board of the Northern Ireland Co-Ownership Housing Association. Until May 2021, she was a member of board of CRJI, an accredited community restorative justice scheme. In 2009, Alyson was a member of the Irish Government’s delegation to Timor Leste on United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 where she spoke on policing oversight and provided recommendations for a revised code of conduct for UN military personnel overseas. Between 2009 and September 2017, Alyson was the Independent Human Rights Legal Advisor to the Northern Ireland Policing Board. During that time, she published annual human rights reports and thematic review reports on, for example: domestic violence; lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights; race hate crime; stop and search; child sexual exploitation, and policing with children and young people. In 2016, she was appointed special legal advisor to the UK’s Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation and continued until September 2021. In 2018, Alyson conducted, on behalf of the Irish Council for Civil Liberties and Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, an independent human rights inspection of An Garda Síochána. She reported in September 2018. Alyson was appointed to carry out an independent review of the ECHR compliance of a number of NI ‘legacy’ investigations, known as Operation Kenova. Her final report was published on 31 August 2021. On 1 September 2021, Alyson was appointed Chief Commissioner to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. Alyson was elected as one of the new Board Members of the European Network of National Human Rights Institutions (ENNHRI) at its General Meeting held in Brussels on 29 October 2024. In addition, Alyson was selected to serve as the new Secretary to the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI), and was officially appointed to a three-year team, during the 2025 GANHRI Annual Meeting which took place on 10-12 March in Geneva.

Speaker

Kilian Gross

AI Office - Europe

Kilian Gross is Deputy Director of the AI Office and Head of Unit for CNECT A/2 Artificial Intelligence – Regulation and Compliance. The core task of the Unit is to ensure the implementation and compliance with the Artificial Intelligence Act within the European Union. In this respect the Unit is preparing various implementing tools such as guidance documents, implementing and delegated acts and it is supporting the development of codes of practice. The Unit supports the standardisation process related to the AI Act and the international cooperation regarding the regulation of AI. Previously, the Unit had prepared the legal proposal for the AI Act and had followed the legislative negotiations until the adoption of the Act. In addition to his work on AI, Kilian Gross has led the legal team, which has prepared and supported the negotiations of the proposal for a European Chips Act. Beforehand since November 2015 Kilian Gross was a member of the Cabinet of Commissioner Oettinger. Within the Cabinet, he was mainly responsible for the Commission anti-fraud policy, DG HR and at an earlier stage for various digital files. Kilian Gross has started his career in the Commission in the Legal Service followed by five years as Deputy and Acting Head of Unit in DG ENER where he worked on energy policy and on legal matters. Kilian Gross is German lawyer by training with a strong focus on European law.

Speaker

Hanne Juncher

Council of Europe - Europe

Before becoming Director of Security, Integrity and Rule of Law, Hanne was the Executive Secretary of the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) and in charge of the Council of Europe’s action against economic crime, including MONEYVAL and large-scale technical assistance programmes on economic crime. Before that she headed the Council of Europe’s work on justice and legal co-operation, including the European Commission for the Efficiency of Justice (CEPEJ), on private and public law, and on judicial reform. Prior to that, she worked for the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT), represented the Council of Europe in North Macedonia, and headed the Council of Europe’s human rights support and awareness-raising work. Hanne joined the Council of Europe as a legal adviser in 1997. She also worked for the Ministries of Defence of Denmark and the United Kingdom. She has postgraduate degrees in law from Copenhagen and Essex Universities.

Speaker

Sirpa Rautio

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights - Europe

Sirpa Rautio is Director of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). She started in March 2024. Previously, she was the first Director of the Finnish National Human Rights Institution, the Finnish Human Rights Centre that she established. She served as its Director from March 2012 until February 2024. She was also Chairperson of the European Network of Human Rights Institutions (ENNHRI) from March 2022 until 2024. Prior to returning to Finland in 2012, Sirpa Rautio worked abroad for some 20 years in expert and managerial positions in international organisations, including at the World Bank, the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the OSCE and the EU. Sirpa Rautio was a member of the FRA's Management Board from 2015-2020 and Chairperson of the Board from 2017. She has worked on human rights and rule of law both in the field and at the headquarters. She has extensive experience working in post-conflict settings and countries in transition. Ms Rautio is a lawyer by profession, having graduated from the University of Turku, Finland.

Speaker

Wojciech Wiewiórowski

European Data Protection Supervisor - Europe

Wojciech Wiewiórowski is the European Data Protection Supervisor. Before his EDPS appointment, he served as Assistant European Data Protection Supervisor, as Inspector General for the Protection of Personal Data at the Polish Data Protection Authority, and as Vice Chair of the Working Party Article 29 Group.