Also I wanted to get the topic up for a new question...
I watched Legacy today and got puzzled (and amazed - but still puzzled) about Data's reactions and behaviours towards Tasha's young sister. Am I the only one to think he acted a lot like he was in love with her, I mean, in his own specific way ? I know he can't exactly "feel" without the emotion chip, yet in that episode he did appear attracted, bonded, shocked and even hurt. I may just be anthropomorphizing him by thinking that way, though.
No, you're not alone. It does seem that way. I studied Spiner's performances in the episodes, and then crossed my fingers that his body movements, gestures and facial expressions were being made deliberately, rather than something like "Oh, I was hungover that day, so Data accidentally winces there." He does seem like he becomes infatuated with Ishara, especially after a facial expression of hers reminds him of Tasha.
On a different topic, I was reading Asimov's "Bicentennial Man" again yesterday, and it made me think about androids' legal status in TNG. I didn't watch the whole series yet, still I don't remember a single episode in which Data is confirmed to be legally recognized as a person. In The Measure of a Man, Louvois gives a decision in favor of Data's freedom of choice, yet she doesn't grant him legal personhood. Does it mean that his legal status is still unclear and submitted to personal opinions ?
That's how I read it, as well. While you would think that his legal status was hammered out when applied to Starfleet, it seems more like each time there's a hearing, only the bare minimum decision is made. Is Data a legal citizen of the UFP with full rights? Ummm... we'll save that for later and just rule that Data has the right to join Starfleet and be an officer in its ranks. ... Is Data a legal citizen of the UFP with full rights? Umm... we'll just rule right now that Data has the right to choose and to refuse dismantlement.
Why did I come to this conclusion? Because nobody gave a flying leap about Lore, who was obviously just as sentient. They left him in space for years, without even a thought to it. There's no mention of a trial to come, in the Descent Part 2 captain logs. Also, the EMHs were put into slavery, as seen in Voyager, despite there being a concern about their sentience. And the Doctor's own sentience is outright refused and, again, they do the bare minimum: The Doctor has the rights to his creative works, and that's it.
In January 2017, Netflix put ST Nemesis on, and I hadn't seen it since it opened in the theater. I came out, not wanting my money back, but wanting my TIME back. So, here it was 15 years later and I thought "I'll watch it while I walk. Maybe it's not as bad as I remember." When it ended, I'd burned 900 calories, but my mind was also burning. Nemesis was worse than I remembered. This time, though, it had a cascade in my head, causing my brain to write a Fan Fiction without my wanting to. My husband noticed I was 'thinking' more, and asked about it. He told me to write the story, because he wanted to read it. I didn't know about David Mack's books at the time, and anyway, I wanted to delve into the aspects of Data and the Soong androids and holography AI that were lightly hinted at, but never deeply gone into. I approached Data (and B-4 and Lore) from the cybernetics, programming and neural net design aspects in my story. This includes some bits about how Data receives sensory input and also AI rights.
You're welcome to read it and maybe it gives you some ideas or inspirations. I have the story on Archive of their Own and Fanfiction .Net as Data Recovery. When Data Recovery was finished, I got private messages from some of the readers, asking for more, so I'm currently working on the sequel, Wayward Son.