Everyone talks about artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), and experts in the legal field do take advantage of these technological capabilities. However, the extraordinary progress in legal AI technology has worried some lawyers about future prospects in the legal profession, fearing that AI could replace them.
AI removes the routine from legal work
This fear is unfounded because AI and machine learning technology cannot replace a trained legal professional. On the contrary, technology enables better growth and productivity as it increases accuracy, besides making legal work efficient. AI algorithms transforms several tasks, offering contract management, discovery, excellent corporate compliance, besides due diligence. Intelligent software is better, cheaper, and faster for in-depth legal research, document retrieval, and predicting case outcomes. Legal AI enables lawyers to focus on cognitive tasks, difficult to eliminate. Moreover, AI in the legal world cannot be ignored because lawyers refusing to embrace it, will be less efficient and productive. Clients demand that legal representatives and law firms embrace latest technologies and offer enhanced services. This means that legal teams offer increased value and more sophisticated services to clients. Technology adoption allows lawyers to solve clients’ legal and business problems more efficiently and effectively.
Are legal jobs in danger?
According to experts, even though technology eliminates nearly 50 % of all tasks, only 5% of these are entirely automated. Thus, only 23% of a lawyer’s actual work can be quite easily automated with routine legal tasks left to technology or non-lawyers. This ensures that legal professionals have more time to work on jobs requiring specialist/ cognitive skills.
AI predictions can understand human insights
AI plays a very significant role than ever before, in predictions about case success. This means that human predictions for outcomes will decline. This is good for lawyers as AI predictions complement human insights, enhancing value. Such advanced legal technology allows legal teams in law firms /corporates, the ability to deliver immediate insights, saving their clients’ money and time. AI also offers improved decision-making and enhanced efficiencies. Technology is unable to replicate what the advocates are professionally trained to do, including above and beyond the higher cognitive thinking. Advocates rely on independent professional judgment, based on ability to practice creative and critical thinking. AI allows faster completion of work, more accurately and efficiently.
Concerns about AI affordability and training
AI solutions were expensive to implement but are more affordable now. Smaller law firms avail of software solutions to meet their needs. Concerns about time and effort being taken to implement AI initially, prevented legal firms from investing in new AI technology. AI has become mainstream and automated solutions easy to use and requires less training and its implementation requires less work. AI improves productivity without extensive training, and its accuracy ensures few corrections are needed. As AI learns through training and implementation, a large data pool available ensures better AI performance. AI technology is readily implementable when installed in a legal office system.
Final take
The legal profession has embraced technology challenges with transformation taking place. There are no indications about making lawyers obsolete. Clients need the expertise and professional judgment of qualified lawyers. However, lawyers adopt new technologies could leverage for providing excellent, cost-effective legal services and represent their clients. These lawyers secure a competitive advantage, besides ensuring growth for their firms.