The legal system probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of tech-centric industries. That’s a fair assumption, too, as the sector has historically been slow to adopt new technologies, but that’s changing. Artificial intelligence (AI) is starting to transform legal tech.
Today, 48% of law firms use AI, and another 41% plan to implement it in the future. If this trend continues, AI could play a part in almost all firms across the country. That level of growth is impressive considering how legal professionals haven’t always shown such enthusiasm for new technology.
This transformation wouldn’t happen if AI didn’t have vast potential in the industry. Here’s how it’s driving innovation in legal tech.
Streamlining Research
One of the most popular use cases for AI in the legal sector is research. Compiling a case or assessing a contract involves substantial research into similar proceedings and fine print within relevant laws. This work can be remarkably time-consuming, but AI can make it much faster.
AI can analyze far more data points in much less time than humans, making it an ideal research tool. Legal AI software can search for, examine and highlight relevant documents in a fraction of the time humans can. One system claims it can complete research 40% faster the first time attorneys use it and up to 90% faster as it gains experience.
AI also doesn’t get tired, bored or irritated as it researches, helping it reduce errors. Consequently, these tools can make due diligence faster and more accurate.
Accelerating Data Discovery
Similarly, AI can assist law firms and courts by automating the data discovery process. Legal proceedings like probation require professionals to search for and assess dozens or even hundreds of documents to approach a case thoroughly. As a result, it can take several years to complete the process.
AI can perform the same amount of work in mere minutes. An advanced algorithm can analyze a case’s parameters, gather the relevant documents and file them appropriately faster than a human can perform just one of those steps. As it does that, law professionals can focus on more nuanced, value-adding work.
JP Morgan implemented such a system to automate the contract creation process to impressive results. Its solution, dubbed COIN, can perform what once was 360,000 hours of legal work in seconds.
Automating Repetitive Tasks
Data entry and billing are other pain points for the legal industry. The field has extensive regulatory considerations, requiring a lot of documentation at every step of the process. That results in highly skilled professionals performing lots of repetitive, non-value-adding work, but AI provides a way forward.
AI-powered billing and data-entry automation software are already common across multiple industries. These tools can analyze past cases to predict future costs more accurately, leading to fewer billing discrepancies. Similarly, they can prevent costly errors by eliminating human mistakes from extensive forms.
One AI invoice review tool saved legal firms an average of six figures by more accurately analyzing travel-related billing. Improvements like this can help law offices provide more value to their clients and minimize operational costs.
Predicting Case Outcomes
A more cutting-edge emerging use for AI in the legal industry is litigation prediction. Law firms use predictive analytics to determine how a given case will likely play out in court in these applications. They can then craft the most effective strategy to deliver the best outcome for their clients.
Past outcomes can be excellent predictors of future, similar cases. AI algorithms can analyze these past trends, find relevant examples and suggest how a case will proceed given its location, subject, context, judge and opposing counsel. Some of these solutions claim they can predict case outcomes with up to 90% accuracy, far more than a human could claim.
Attorneys and their clients can craft a more effective argument when they know what to expect. They may rely more heavily on a specific type of evidence or prefer to plead guilty and work toward a lesser sentence.
Ethical Considerations of AI in Law
As helpful as AI is in legal tech, some obstacles remain. Most notably, it can raise some ethical questions as it plays a larger role in the legal system.
AI still isn’t perfect, and as such, lawyers shouldn’t use it in their clients’ cases without their permission. Lawyers have a duty to communicate how they intend to help someone reach their goals, and that includes the use of AI. If these tools become standard without discussing their potential shortcomings with clients, firms could find themselves in trouble.
Using AI tools also could put sensitive data at risk. Firms giving confidential legal documents to AI programs may unintentionally share private data with the third parties who run the software. Similarly, storing this information in digital databases for AI to use could put it at risk of a data breach.
If courts start using AI to inform sentencing, it raises questions of bias. While AI itself is unbiased, these algorithms will carry and could expand on the subconscious biases of the people and systems that create them. Consequently, they could worsen issues like the uneven treatment of people of color in the legal system.
AI Could Reshape the Legal Industry
AI is already transforming the legal sector. Professionals must understand its potential and its downsides as its role grows. It can be an excellent tool to help people, but it could also lead to ethical complications if left unchecked and unsupervised.
This technology’s full impact on the legal system remains uncertain. However, if law firms and government bodies understand it and use it responsibly, it could make the sector far fairer, more affordable and efficient.
