Recently, I came across an interesting article by Senior Solicitor of England & Wales, Shane Hughes, specializing in white collar investigations   (Source : Legal Cheek) What lawyers can learn from pilots about using AI : An Advice By Solicitor Shane Hughes.

Shane Hughes has compared lawyers using AI tools to pilots addressing the risks associated with technology and human complacency in aviation sector. Shane Hughes gives interesting examples of how the aviation sector mitigates such risks. According to Hughes such risks include: 

“1. Continuous training: Pilots are required to engage in regular training and simulations. This keeps their skills sharp, and minds engaged, even when autopilot is activated and doing much of the work.

2. Mandatory checklists: Before every flight disembarks, pilot and crew follow a strict set of checklists to ensure all systems are functioning correctly and routine tasks completed. Doing so mitigates the risk of oversight due to monotony or over reliance on technology. 

3. Crew resource management : This practice encourages all team members to contribute to decision-making processes, ensuring that the captain’s and others’ decisions are vetted by another individual. “Crew : Cross-Check doors for departure” is a familiar phrase many of us know an cherish. It also illustrates how embedding a culture intended to mitigate the risk of human complacency extends to all levels of seniority in the aviation industry.

4. System configuration : Pilots announce and cross-check any inputs, mode changes, or other amendments to aircraft systems. This practice ensures both pilots are in the loop, able to check the accuracy of the changes, and can ensure the aircraft is operating as expected. 

5. Remote monitoring : Suitable qualified engineers monitor from the ground the performance of aircrafts’ systems enabling potential problems to be identified independently and communicated promptly to pilots in the air.

6. Rest requirements : Regulations mandate rest periods for pilots and crew to prevent fatigue. Fatigue can easily lead to complacency and errors in judgement.” 

 While US Law reports that AI has steadily entered the legal industry, enhancing the capabilities of legal professionals there where  does the Indian legal community stand in terms of a technology driven future and what are the  challenges lawyers here face? 

 Use of AI In India’s Legal Industry  Is  Slow

The use of AI in Indian legal industry is at a very nascent stage and challenges in this sphere are enormous.  Recently, the  Union Law Minister in a written answer to an “Unstarred Question No. 1014’ posed  by Members of Parliament - Mr. M. Selvaraj and  Dr. T.R. Paarivendhar  submitted that, “In order to promote regional languages in judicial procedure, Supreme Court has developed ‘Supreme Court Vidhik Anuwad Software (SUVAS) which is a machine assisted translation tool trained by Artificial Intelligence. SUVAS has been developed with technical support from Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.”

The answer to the starred-question further stated that the Chief Justice of India has constituted an AI assisted Legal Translation Advisory Committee headed by a Supreme Court Judge for Translation of e-SCR judgements into vernacular languages by using the  AI tool. A similar committee has been constituted in all the High Courts. As of now 31184 judgements have been translated in different vernacular languages and 21908 judgements are translated in Hindi alone. 

While speaking at the national conference in Chandigarh on 10 August,2024, on the Landscape of Technology in Courts in India & The Way Forward, the Chief Justice of India, Dr D Y Chandrachud said the use of technology is intrinsically linked to the values of transparency, democracy, and equitable access to justice, which lie at the cornerstone of our Republic. The CJI also emphasized the use of Artificial Intelligence in ‘mundane work’ for legal profession. He said, “Many may not realize that technology being a tool to access of justice is not just a modern convenience or a trendy topic - it is deeply intertwined with the very foundations of our Republic. Not only does the use of technology make our courts more accountable and responsive, but it also brings people closer to the courtroom”. He added that,’’ the advancements have freed young lawyers from hours of mundane tasks, allowing them to focus on honing essential skills like rigorous legal analysis, persuasive writing and problem solving’’. 

LexisNexis International Legal Generative AI Survey

In 2023 LexisNexis Legal & Professional, a leading global provider of information and analytics conducted the ’LexisNexis International Legal Generative AI Survey’. On 22 August 2023 they released the results of its International Legal Generative AI Survey. The survey involved 7,950 lawyers, law students and consumers across the U.S., U.K., Canada and France about their overall awareness, its anticipated impact on the practice of law, use of generative AI and expectations of its adoption.  

The survey revealed that across countries, there is an expectation that AI will substantially impact the practice of law. The survey’s key findings revealed that 47% of respondents believed generative AI will have a significant or transformative impact on the practice of law. Another 47% of respondents believed that generative AI will have some impact, while only about 7% believed generative AI will have no impact. 

The LexisNexis survey pointed out that  lawyers see the highest potential for generative AI tools to assist them in researching matters (65%), Drafting documents (56%), document analysis (44%), and email writing (35%). Overall, the survey results showed high awareness of generative AI, with 89% of legal professionals having heard of generative AI tools. For consumers, it was found that the awareness is lower at (61%). Amazingly 88% lawyers have some concerns about the ethical  implications of generative AI on the practice of law, with a third of respondents citing significant concerns regarding ethical implications. (www.lexisnexis.com/international-gai-survey )

 It Pays To Be AI Savvy

The ‘PricewaterhouseCoopers’ published a report - PwC’s 2024: AI Jobs Barometer, wherein endeavor is made to determine how AI will affect jobs, skills, wages and productivity. The report states that attention to AI’s impact on the job market exploded in November 2022 with the launch of ChatGPT 3.5. The reports also reveal that U.S. lawyers’ salaries attract a 49% premium where AI services are required, and UK lawyers’ salaries attract a 27% premium where AI skills are required. 

LexisNexis Research 

‘LexisNexis legal & Professional’ conducted a survey across 266 Managing Partners and C-suite leaders of law firms as well as legal professionals at Fortune 1000 companies between December 6, 2023, and January 9, 2024. (https://www.lexisnexis.com/pdf/genai-report.pdf?srsltid=AfmBOor5W9B10F3yTMr8Iww1mIOYRD74MV9CsxUfU71yS6mcpC-p1DGC )                                

 The research compiled by LexisNexis found that 26% of legal professionals are now using generative AI tools in their work at least once in a  month. Of those surveyed, 91% thought that AI could be used to assist with drafting, 90% felt a use in researching matters, and 73% felt the new tech to make communication more effective. The report, based on responses from 1200 lawyers, noted that 62% of law firms have made changes to their daily operations because of AI. These changes include running specialist training for staff, hiring AI experts, developing policies for  use and  limits of AI, and providing AI products for lawyers to use. Besides a third of the executives surveyed indicated that their firm had a dedicated budget for generative AI in 2024 (31%). 

Use Of AI In Judicial Work

Lord Justice Briss, a British Judge is the first known  to write part of a judgment using AI chatbot. Justice Briss, who specializes in intellectual property law, said that he had asked the AI tool to provide a summary of an area of law and received a paragraph that he felt was acceptable as an answer. In Columbia, a judge admitted to using ChatGPT in deciding whether an autistic child’s insurance should cover all the costs of his medical treatment. Legal Cheek - April 23,2024, quotes Matthew Leopold, Head of Brand & Insight at  LexisNexis UK, on the role of a lawyer and role of AI in legal research: He writes, “I think that both are the future., and that one can’t really exist without the other. We are very clear that AI is not created to replace a lawyer. Lawyers need to still be in loop because they can identify legal context, and other concepts which cannot be trained into an AI model. When one considers the human aspect of legal work, requiring negotiation skills, teamwork and often empathy. Ultimately AI’s ability to reduce manual, administrative legal tasks is huge leaving lawyers to focus on problem solving. 

Delivering his “Future Visions of Justice” speech at King’s College London Law School, Lord Justice Briss outlined a range of modern technology  already in use within the justice system of United Kingdom. He said that  his own view is that AI used properly has the potential to enhance the work of lawyers and judges enormously. AI will democratize legal help for unrepresented people. 

Guidance To UK Judges & Solicitors on Use Of AI 

In the meanwhile, Judges in the United Kingdom have received new ‘guidance’ on the use of AI tools in Courts. The report which was handed over to all judicial officers of UK, carries  potential uses of AI as well as  risks that AI poses. The guidance states that judges may find AI tools useful but in conducting research, the guidance is clear that AI bots are not recommended. These tools provide information which may be inaccurate, incomplete, misleading or out of date. A concern was also shown for AI’s tendency to show heavy reliance on U.S. caselaw. The guidance also showed concern over potential privacy risks with instructions to judges that any detail the judges give to a public AI tool, should be seen as being published all over the world. The ‘Solicitors Regulation Authority’(SRA) in a new report has highlighted the benefits, and risks of AI in the legal world. The report showed concerns over confidentiality and privacy, accountability, and regulatory divergence. The SRA report also notes the criminal potential of AI.(https://www.sra.org.uk/sra/research-publications/artificial-intelligence-legal-market/ )

I would like to call to memory  Solicitor Shane Hughes’s  note of optimism and caution  on AI  where he  suggests that similar to pre-flight checklists, implementing standard procedures for AI use can help to ensure all necessary precautions are taken and that people maintain a high level of scrutiny to over-reliance on AI outputs. He says that whether it’s a lawyer or a pilot, the key to delivering a successful outcome lies not only in the tools we use, but in how we use them. Most of us do not know how to fly an aircraft, but we all board flights regularly and regard them as one of the safest forms of transport. Hughes then poses a question: Why? And he answers: This is likely due to combination of regulation and safety record. 

Fear of AI making a lawyer obsolete is a Myth 

Understandably, there is a lurking fear among lawyers that AI which has the potential to automate certain legal tasks will replace them. While risks of AI have   already been discussed it is heartening to know that AI can never replace human element, including judgment, interpretation and  empathy  which is the hallmark of  legal profession. In the Indian legal industry only 4% of lawyers use  AI and its various tools which is a far cry  compared to  the  West  and reasons for this we must  acknowledge  are   fraught with challenges like ‘’Limited infrastructure, lack of data availability, insufficient skilled workforce in AI   and high cost of implementing advanced AI technologies’’. This is a noting of Rohan Sharan, founder and Chief Executive of Timechain Labs, an on-chain application development firm.  So while few  lawyers engage routinely in continuous learning and professional development activities, their numbers are alarmingly low and a way forward could be providing  training material at pace to address ethical concerns and risks as well as benefits  in using AI tools among the legal community. Bar Associations and Bar Councils could engage experts in AI and organize continuous training sessions to educate, guide and train lawyers to use AI effectively. If we aspire to revolutionize the Indian legal industry, then there must be an outreach to assist 90% of lawyers who are still not paperless to adopt AI tools in daily practice that would assist them to go paperless. ‘’AI will do the heavy lifting so lawyers can do the heavy thinking’’, said Sophie Dillon, Author at Legal Cheek.  In time I hope that  India’s teeming legal industry  will make AI an indispensable part of their profession and use it to their advantage .