AI in the Legal Space. Best Practices for Lawyers and Clients

AUTHOR: PAULINA PENA

There’s no question that Artificial Intelligence is reshaping the world and taking several industries by storm. With various AI platforms coming into play with the intention of alleviating workloads, assisting with strenuous daily tasks and laying down the framework for complex projects, AI is surely not going anywhere. However, what is meant to transform in many positive ways will also raise questions and the legal field is certainly no exception.

We recently published an article where we provided some key takeaways from a podcast episode Jacob Murad, Managing Partner at KPA Lawyers, had done with Main Street AI’s Stephen Whittier. In the blogpost, we highlighted some AI-related trends Jacob and other lawyers have been seeing in the field and briefly listed some strategies Bluestar has been implementing to support their lawyers and clients.

While AI tools are commonly used and certainly in the legal profession, they are accepted, over relying on them could muddy the waters for both lawyers and clients. Therefore, in this blogpost, we’re diving into best practices for both lawyers and clients when it comes to AI in the legal space:

Lawyers: AI Tools Should Only Serve as Your Guide. Not do the Work for You.

Take yourself back to the days you were in school. Do you recall getting lectured about plagiarism? This rule should apply to the usage of AI as well. Within the recent blogpost, Jacob said that AI should be used for brainstorming ideas and outlining the framework of non-final content. And that is a good practice to follow.

In fact, at Bluestar, our team of legal professionals is encouraged to use AI tools to support their work, using it to construct simple emails, summaries and basic checklists, without using it to draft final, client-facing documents. Using AI tools to draft filings and other final legal documents is heavily discouraged as this could lead to confidentiality issues and clients, overall, not feeling comfortable with the fact that a legal professional used a digital tool to create a document, affecting their relationship with the lawyer.

Relying on AI tools to supplement your research is not a deal-breaker. Sometimes certain tools can provide ideas, similarly to a search engine tool. However, these tools are simply meant to support your work. It is the responsibility of the legal professional to do the research and verify that the information they will be using is accurate. Simply relying on these tools to replace research and do the work for you can lead to issues, resulting in losing clients’ trust and risking your legal career.

Clients: Avoid Treating AI as Your Legal Professional.  

As a client, specifically one not in the legal profession, using a tool such as ChatGPT is tempting. After all, who wants to pick up the phone and schedule a consultation when you have an AI tool doing the work for you? While using AI seems like a sound alternative, it is not meant to replace the work of a legal professional.

“Using AI in place of a legal professional can be dangerous,” says Mitch Kahan, Associate Lawyer at Bluestar. “While can be a convenient tool for accessing legal information, it isn’t a substitute for a lawyer. One significant risk is that it can sound authoritative when it isn’t.”

The right legal professionals place their clients’ best interests at the forefront. AI, however, is not confidential, doesn’t understand your concerns and needs as well as a human and has no ethical obligations to protect you. Every legal concern is individual and, at the end of the day, only a human legal professional can tailor a solution to your specific concern.

It is also best practice for clients to avoid using tools such as ChatGPT to draft contracts. While this may save money, like with any software, it may lead to future issues for both parties. Furthermore, as a client, it’s best to steer clear from AI tools especially when drafting important legal documents.

“It’s important to note that while AI may draft, lawyers provide an actual service,” Jacob says. “They strategize, customize their advice specific to the client and it is based on years of education and experience, paired with the client’s needs. AI does not yet do this.”

Summary

AI is not going anywhere, and the legal profession is certainly not exempt. However, it’s best not to over rely on AI tools, but rather leverage them effectively. Think of AI as a personal assistant. While they can make it easier to brainstorm ideas, draft preliminary documents and supplement your research, they are not the end-all-be-all. As a lawyer or client, using AI tools effectively means treating it as a support tool. Not your replacement.