Benjamin Alarie

Benjamin Alarie
BornOctober 27, 1977 (age 48)
Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
EducationWilfrid Laurier University (BA)
University of Toronto (MA, JD)
Yale University (LLM)
OccupationsLegal scholar, entrepreneur
Employer(s)Blue J, University of Toronto

Benjamin Alarie (born October 27,1977) is a Canadian legal scholar and entrepreneur. He is a co-founder and CEO of Blue J[1][2][3], a company that develops artificial intelligence tools for tax research. Alarie also serves as professor at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, where he also holds the Osler Chair in Business Law. His academic work focuses on taxation, judicial decision-making, and the application of artificial intelligence to law, with particular emphasis on taxation and fiscal federalism.[4][5]

Education

Alarie earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wilfrid Laurier University, a public university in Waterloo, in 1999. He subsequently enrolled at the University of Toronto, where he was a junior fellow at Massey College. In 2002, he completed a Master of Arts in economics and a Juris Doctor degree with honours from the University of Toronto. Alarie continued his legal studies at Yale Law School, receiving his Master of Laws (LL.M.) in 2003.[6][7][8]

Career

Law practice and academic career

Alarie’s scholarly research examines taxation law, judicial behavior, and the practical implications of artificial intelligence in legal decision-making.[9][10] In 2003, Alarie began his legal career as a law clerk for Madam Justice Louise Arbour at the Supreme Court of Canada.

In 2004, Alarie joined the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law as a full-time professor. He has taught courses in tax law, constitutional law, and law and technology, and was awarded the Alan Mewett QC Prize for excellence in teaching by the law school’s graduating class in 2009. Alarie is also an affiliated faculty member of the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence[9] and the Schwartz Reisman Institute.[6]

He is a co-author of several editions of a textbook on tax law, Canadian Income Tax Law.[11][12] In 2016, he introduced the concept of the “legal singularity,” describing the potential for artificial intelligence to improve the coherence and consistency of legal systems.

He later co-authored the peer-reviewed books Commitment and Cooperation on High Courts (Oxford University Press, 2017)[13] and The Legal Singularity: How Artificial Intelligence Can Make Law Radically Better (University of Toronto Press, 2023).[14] These publications examine themes of artificial intelligence, institutions, and justice. Alarie is under contract with Oxford University Press to publish his third university-press monograph, Superjustice, forthcoming in 2026.

Blue J

In 2015, Alarie co-founded Blue J,[15] alongside Brett Janssen, Anthony Niblett and Albert Yoon. Blue J is a Toronto-based company focused on applying artificial intelligence and machine learning to tax research.[16][17]

In 2023, Blue J relaunched its platform as a generative AI tax research tool designed to provide citation-backed answers grounded in authoritative tax sources. By 2025, the platform was used by more than 4,000 organizations, including firms such as KPMG UK, Crowe, Larson Gross, and RCM, as well as several Fortune 500 companies.[18]

A central component of Blue J’s platform is its licensed content library, which includes agreements with Tax Analysts (publisher of Tax Notes) and IBFD[19], enabling access to U.S. and international tax materials covering more than 220 jurisdictions.

In August 2025, Blue J raised a $122 million Series D funding round led by Sapphire Ventures and Oak HC/FT.[20] The funding supported continued product development and international expansion. That same year, Blue J was named one of Accounting Today’s Top Apps for Accountants.[21]

In September 2025, Blue J co-authored the AI Tax Research Solution Outlook Report in partnership with CPA.com, examining trends in the adoption of artificial intelligence in tax accounting.[22]

Notable publications

  • Benjamin Alarie, Abdi Aidid, "The Legal Singularity: How Artificial Intelligence Can Make Law Radically Better"[14]
  • Benjamin Alarie, Andrew Green, Commitment and Cooperation on High Courts"[13]
  • Benjamin Alarie, Samuel Becher, "Superjustice," forthcoming 2026
  • Benjamin Alarie, Anthony Niblett, Albert H Yoon, "How artificial intelligence will affect the practice of law"[23]
  • Benjamin Alarie, Anthony Niblett, Albert H Yoon, "Law in the future"[24]
  • Benjamin Alarie, "The path of the law: Towards legal singularity"[5]
  • Duff, David; Alarie, Benjamin (2006). Canadian Income Tax Law (2nd ed.). LexisNexis. ISBN 978-0-433-45416-8.
  • Alarie, Benjamin; Green, Andrew J. (2017). Commitment and Cooperation on High Courts. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-939759-4.
  • Benjamin Alarie, "Turning Standards into Rules Part 1: Using Machine Learning to Predict Tax Outcomes" [25]
  • Benjamin Alarie, "Turning Standards into Rules Part 2: How Do Financial Risk Factors Affect Debt vs. Equity Determinations?" [26]
  • Benjamin Alarie, "Turning Standards into Rules—Part 3: Behavioral Control Factors in Employee vs. Independent Contractor Decisions" [27]
  • Benjamin Alarie, "Turning Standards into Rules Part 4: Machine Learning and Economic Substance" [28]
  • Benjamin Alarie, "Turning Standards into Rules—Part 5: Weighing the Factors in Capital Gains vs. Ordinary Income Decisions" [29]
  • Benjamin Alarie, "The Path of the Law: Toward Legal Singularity" [30]
  • Benjamin Alarie and David Duff, "The Legacy of UK Tax Concepts in Canadian Income Tax Law" [2008] British Tax Review 228.[31]
  • Benjamin Alarie, "Mutual Misunderstanding in Contract" (2009) 46(4) American Business Law Journal 531.[32]
  • Benjamin Alarie and Andrew James Green, "The Reasonable Justice: An Empirical Analysis of Justice Frank Iacobucci's Career on the Supreme Court of Canada" (2007) 57 University of Toronto Law Journal 195.[33]
  • Benjamin Alarie and Andrew James Green, "Policy Preference Change and Appointments to the Supreme Court of Canada" (2009) 47(1) Osgoode Hall Law Journal [34]

References

  1. ^ Legal, Blue J. "Blue J Legal | Predictive Tax Law Software". www.bluejlegal.com. Retrieved 2019-08-15.
  2. ^ "This Toronto startup uses A.I. to help lawyers predict trial outcomes". www.canadianbusiness.com. 7 February 2017. Retrieved 2019-05-16.
  3. ^ "AI technology can enhance a practice | Law Times". www.lawtimesnews.com. Retrieved 2019-05-16.
  4. ^ "Benjamin Alarie's Publications". Google Scholar.
  5. ^ a b Alarie, Benjamin (Fall 2016). "The path of the law: Towards legal singularity". University of Toronto Law Journal. 66 (4): 443–455. doi:10.3138/UTLJ.4008. S2CID 151579966.
  6. ^ a b "Benjamin Alarie University Profile". University of Toronto - Faculty of Law.
  7. ^ "The Promise of AI for Positive Comparative Law". Faculty of Law. Retrieved 2019-05-16.
  8. ^ "Laurier explores the impact of computational and design thinking at its first annual Ignite Your Teaching event | Wilfrid Laurier University". www.wlu.ca. Retrieved 2019-05-16.
  9. ^ a b "Benjamin Alarie | University of Toronto Faculty of Law". www.law.utoronto.ca. Retrieved 2019-08-15.
  10. ^ "Transcending Books: What's Next For Law and Society?". TED. 14 August 2018.
  11. ^ Duff, David; Alarie, Benjamin; Loomer, Geoffrey; Philipps, Lisa (January 2018). "Canadian Income Tax Law, 6th ed". Books. Osgoode Digital Commons.
  12. ^ Canadian Income Tax Law, 6th ed. WorldCat. OCLC 1045387116.
  13. ^ a b Alarie, Benjamin; Green, Andrew. Commitment and Cooperation on High Courts: A Cross-Country Examination of Institutional Constraints on Judges. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199397594. Retrieved 2026-01-02. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  14. ^ a b Alarie, Benjamin; Aidid, Abdi (June 23, 2023). The legal singularity: how artificial intelligence can make law radically better. [S.l.]: University of Toronto Press. doi:10.3138/9781487529413 (inactive 4 January 2026). ISBN 978-1-4875-2941-3. OCLC 1348635469.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of January 2026 (link) CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  15. ^ "Company's Team". Blue J Legal.
  16. ^ "Artificial intelligence takes the drudgery out of legal work". The Global and Mail.
  17. ^ "LegalTech is Building its Profile in the Professional Community". BornDigital. 23 April 2018.
  18. ^ Nuñez, Michael (November 18, 2025). "How AI tax startup Blue J torched its entire business model for ChatGPT—and became a $300 million company".
  19. ^ IBFD (2025-09-03). "Blue J and IBFD Unveil AI Platform for Instant Cross-Border Tax Research". GlobeNewswire News Room (Press release). Retrieved 2026-01-02.
  20. ^ Shen, Lucinda (2025-08-03). "Blue J swoops up $122M Series D". Axios. Retrieved 2026-01-02.
  21. ^ Gaetano, Chris (2025-10-03). "Top apps for accountants 2025". Accounting Today. Retrieved 2026-01-02.
  22. ^ O'Bannon, Isaac (2025-09-17). "Blue J and CPA.com Co-Author the AI Tax Research Solution Outlook Report to Set the Benchmark for the Future of Tax Research". CPA Practice Advisor. Retrieved 2026-01-02.
  23. ^ Alarie, Benjamin; Niblett, Anthony; Yoon, Albert H. (January 2018). "How artificial intelligence will affect the practice of law". University of Toronto Law Journal. 68 (1): 106–124. doi:10.3138/utlj.2017-0052. hdl:1807/88092.
  24. ^ Alarie, Benjamin; Niblett, Anthony; Yoon, Albert H. (Fall 2016). "Law in the future". University of Toronto Law Journal. 66 (4): 423–428. doi:10.3138/UTLJ.4005. S2CID 147775292.
  25. ^ Alarie, Benjamin (2018-09-19). "Turning Standards into Rules Part 1: Using Machine Learning to Predict Tax Outcomes". Rochester, NY. SSRN 3374042. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  26. ^ Alarie, Benjamin (2018-12-04). "Turning Standards into Rules Part 2: How Do Financial Risk Factors Affect Debt vs. Equity Determinations?". Rochester, NY. SSRN 3374049. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  27. ^ Alarie, Benjamin (2018-12-17). "Turning Standards into Rules — Part 3: Behavioral Control Factors in Employee vs. Independent Contractor Decisions". Rochester, NY. SSRN 3374051. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  28. ^ Alarie, Benjamin (2018-12-27). "Turning Standards into Rules Part 4: Machine Learning and Economic Substance". Rochester, NY. SSRN 3374053. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  29. ^ Alarie, Benjamin (2019-01-15). "Turning Standards into Rules — Part 5: Weighing the Factors in Capital Gains vs. Ordinary Income Decisions". Rochester, NY. SSRN 3374054. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  30. ^ Alarie, Benjamin (2016-05-27). "The Path of the Law: Toward Legal Singularity". Rochester, NY. SSRN 2767835. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  31. ^ Duff, David G.; Alarie, Benjamin (2008). "The Legacy of UK Tax Concepts in Canadian Income Tax Law". Rochester, NY. SSRN 1120784. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  32. ^ Alarie, Benjamin (2009). "Mutual Misunderstanding in Contract". Rochester, NY. SSRN 1142941. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  33. ^ Green, Andrew James; Alarie, Benjamin (2007-09-07). "The Reasonable Justice: An Empirical Analysis of Justice Frank Iacobucci's Career on the Supreme Court of Canada". Rochester, NY. SSRN 1012925. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  34. ^ Green, Andrew James; Alarie, Benjamin (2007-09-18). "Policy Preference Change and Appointments to the Supreme Court of Canada". Rochester, NY. SSRN 1013560. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Alarie