Decoding AI Companions for Litigation: Real Insights from Legal Professionals
Generative AI is transforming industries worldwide, and the legal sector is no exception. From client intake to case management and legal research, legal AI assistants are becoming invaluable tools for lawyers seeking to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance client service. Three practicing attorneys: Marina, Arash, and Carl each offer a candid look at how AI shows up in their work and where it actually makes a difference.
What is a Legal AI Assistant?
A legal AI assistant is an advanced tool designed to handle various tasks within a law practice, including client interaction, document review, legal research, and case management. These tools are built to automate time-consuming, repetitive tasks, freeing attorneys to focus on higher-value aspects of their work.
For Carl, an experienced commercial litigator, the adoption of AI in legal practices represents a significant opportunity for improving efficiency. "The first place AI can play a huge role is before the engagement even starts, that is, at the client intake stage," Carl explained. AI tools, he noted, can provide a more efficient and professional experience by handling the initial stages of client interaction.
Arash, an expert in intellectual property and entertainment law, also highlights the potential of AI to improve the efficiency of legal practice. He envisions AI playing a crucial role in trademark research. For example, AI tools could automatically track trademark filings, flagging potential conflicts for a lawyer's review. "AI helps you sift through large amounts of information, but at the end of the day, it's the lawyer's judgment that makes the final call in mitigating risk," Arash emphasized.
What Does a Legal AI Assistant Do?
Legal AI assistants are versatile tools that can be integrated into various stages of a legal practice. From the moment a client makes contact, an AI tool can handle initial communications, gather necessary case information, and summarize it for the attorney to review. This helps streamline client onboarding, allowing the lawyer to focus on more critical tasks.
Client Intake and Communication: AI assistants can handle client intake by engaging prospects in natural language conversations, capturing relevant case information, and summarizing it for further review. Not only does this improve efficiency, but it also enhances the client experience by providing quick responses to their inquiries.
Document Review and Legal Research: Legal AI assistants can sift through large volumes of documents and data, highlighting key information or potential issues. Arash mentioned how AI tools can help intellectual property lawyers quickly spot potential trademark conflicts by scanning databases and legal filings.
Workflow Automation: Both Marina and Arash agree that AI tools can enhance workflow efficiency. By automating routine tasks, these tools free up valuable time for lawyers to focus on complex aspects of cases that require human expertise. "AI does not affect pricing because people are paying for my expertise," Marina explained. "What AI does is make my workflow more efficient, allowing me to handle more cases without compromising on quality."
Is ChatGPT Good for Legal Advice?
While AI systems like ChatGPT are impressive in their ability to answer basic questions, both Marina and Carl caution against relying on them for detailed legal advice. Marina emphasized the need for human oversight: "We still need to double-check and verify its outputs," she said. AI can assist with gathering information, but it cannot replace the nuanced judgment and legal expertise that a licensed attorney provides.
Arash echoed this caution, pointing out that the actual value of AI lies in its ability to perform tasks efficiently while requiring human validation. "AI can provide quick drafts, but the accuracy is only as good as the sources it pulls from," he explained. Both attorneys emphasized that AI outputs should always be double-checked and verified before they are used in any legal proceedings.
Will AI Replace Legal Assistants?
The question on many legal professionals' minds is whether AI will replace human legal professionals. Marina and Arash both agree that AI will augment or amplify rather than replace these roles.
"AI will not replace me or my assistants," Marina said. "It helps me get through the administrative side of things faster, but it can't replace the human touch that is so important in my practice." Arash echoed this sentiment, adding that AI is better viewed as a "partner" rather than a replacement. "AI can handle the routine tasks, but it will never replace the creativity, judgment, and relationship-building that a lawyer brings to the table," he noted.
Rather than being a threat, AI systems are a valuable asset that enables legal professionals to focus on more meaningful tasks, such as client relationships and legal strategy.
How Do Paralegals Use AI?
Paralegals play a crucial role in integrating AI into law firms. From document review to assisting with legal research, AI helps paralegals handle tasks more efficiently, enabling them to focus on higher-level legal work.
Carl shared how AI can relieve paralegals from the heavy lifting of document review, stating that AI can "handle the bulk of the repetitive work, allowing paralegals to focus on higher-value tasks." AI tools can be programmed to learn from previous work and adapt over time, streamlining the research and review process.
How Do I Use AI in My Law Practice?
For law firms looking to incorporate AI into their practice, the journey begins with identifying areas where AI systems can enhance productivity. Here are some practical ways to get started:
Operational Efficiency: AI-powered tools can handle the client intake process, collecting and summarizing information for the attorney's review. It improves efficiency and enhances the client experience by providing quick responses to their inquiries.
Enhance Legal Research and Analysis: AI tools can assist in searching legal databases, finding relevant case law, and identifying legal precedents. Arash explained that AI tools can analyze case law, helping lawyers quickly find the most relevant references and citations for their cases.
Simplify Document Review and Summarization: Large sets of contracts, transcripts, or disclosures can be scanned and broken down automatically. Dates, key parties, restrictive clauses, or unusual terms can be flagged for attorney review, which is especially valuable in litigation and due diligence work.
Drafting and Automation: AI can prepare first-pass drafts, track deadlines, organize exhibits, and move information between systems. Instead of managing reminders and administrative details, attorneys can stay focused on argument and advocacy.
Case Management and Client Engagement: A legal AI companion can hold conversations with clients through a chat interface, answer common procedural questions, collect follow-up documents, translate instructions, or draft client update letters in your tone.
What is an Example of a Legal Assistant?
A prime example of a legal assistant is LeIA - Legal Intelligent AI companion. LeIA is a web-based agentic legal AI sidekick that enables an integrated workflow experience, streamlining, democratizing, and unifying various redundant legal processes. LeIA becomes an increasingly efficient companion for attorneys, helping them save time and improve their productivity.
Both Marina and Arash mentioned how legal AI assistants are similar to training your own assistant. As Marina put it, "AI is like training your own assistant; it learns and adapts as you use it." However, she also emphasized the importance of validating and ensuring that AI outputs are accurate and relevant. As Carl wisely noted, "AI is not about replacing the human element but empowering it."
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The Learning Curve: Training Your Legal AI Assistant
Both Marina and Arash pointed out that working with AI is very much like training a new assistant. AI systems must be trained to understand the needs of the lawyer and adapt to the specific way the practice operates.
Arash highlighted the learning curve: "AI tools can help you gather and synthesize large amounts of information, but they need to be trained. It's like working with a new assistant, you give it guidance, it learns, and then you refine the results," he explained. Marina echoed this, noting, "The learning curve is there, and you must put in the time to train the AI to ensure it's pulling from the right sources and providing the information you need."
Both emphasized the importance of good sources. Arash discussed how essential it is to work with trustworthy data, saying, "AI is only as good as the data it's trained on. If you're not feeding it high-quality sources, it won't deliver the best results."
The adoption of legal AI systems as companions is rapidly changing the way law firms operate. We will see enhanced adoptions, productive collaborative and emotional relationships between humans and such AI sidekicks to improve the traditional way of practicing law. As Arash aptly put it, "AI is a partner, not a replacement."