Digital Twins and the Doctrine of Identity: Reimagining Legal Personhood and Representation in the Age of Virtual Replication

Abstract

As digital twins utilized in numerous developing industries, it is important to address the legal considerations around their creation and deployment as they become more prevalent. With the advent of human digital twins, precise virtual replicas that are capable of mirroring a person's behavior, biometrics and decision patterns, existing legal doctrines are facing substantial challenges. In this paper, we discuss how digital twins disrupt the traditional Doctrine of Identity. This study raises questions about the scope of legal personhood, representation, and liability in virtual environments. The legal frameworks governing privacy, consent, data ownership and personality rights are insufficient to deal with fraud and identity manipulation. In this research, gaps in cyberlaw, data protection statutes and digital identity jurisprudence are evaluated through an interdisciplinary legal analysis. Digital ecosystems must be protected by new legal safeguards that protect autonomy and prevent misuse of human likeness. Virtual representation boundaries, accountability standards and consent requirements are outlined in this rights-based regulatory framework. The goal of this study is to reimagine how modern law should evolve in order to govern digital twins and preserve the integrity of legal identity.