In a time where generative AI is rapidly advancing, many industries are on the brink of transformation. The legal services sector is crucial as it has the potential to significantly impact our societies.

Generative AI can revolutionize legal practice by streamlining repetitive tasks and augmenting legal research and analysis. This technology has immense potential for reshaping legal services.

Legal professionals can use generative AI to improve their productivity and efficiency, allowing them to focus on more complex and strategic endeavors. AI-driven solutions in areas such as contract review, case prediction, and legal documentation can reduce costs, mitigate human error, and speed up processes, leading to improved access to justice.

However, it’s essential to consider the ethical, regulatory, and societal implications of integrating generative AI in the legal sphere. Finding the right balance between technological advancement and preserving human judgment and accountability is important.

In this blog, we explore the world of generative AI and its impact on the legal services industry, discussing the opportunities, challenges, and potential pitfalls that lie ahead.

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AI Improves Accuracy

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to significantly enhance the accuracy of legal services. According to a study conducted by Duke and Stanford Law Schools, an AI system was tested against 20 top U.S.-trained lawyers with decades of experience in reviewing non-disclosure agreements (NDAs). The legal AI system completed the review in just 26 seconds, while human lawyers took an average of over 92 minutes.

The AI system achieved a 94% accuracy rate in surfacing risks, while the experienced human lawyers averaged 85% accuracy for the same task. This suggests that AI significantly reduces the time and effort required for routine document analysis and review tasks, while also improving accuracy.

Moreover, AI can be used by clients themselves to reduce complexity and ambiguity, two important reasons for consulting lawyers. For example, a “smart land registry” could automatically run all the searches and, combined with an autonomous home-inspector drone, produce an unambiguous report of the state of the title and physical property.

This would reduce the need for human lawyers to perform these tasks, freeing them up to focus on more complex and high-skill tasks.

AI can also be used to predict the outcomes of legal cases. An AI algorithm was applied to the judicial decisions of 584 cases that went through the European Court of Human Rights, and patterns were found in the text.

Having learned from these cases, the algorithm was able to predict the outcome of other cases with 79% accuracy. This suggests that AI can identify patterns and factors that are predictive of case outcomes, which can help lawyers better advise their clients.

We can see that AI technologies can perform at the same confidence and accuracy level, if not better when compared to humans. the next question that we should consider is whether it is cost-effective.

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Cost Effectiveness of AI in Legal

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AI has the potential to significantly reduce costs in the legal services industry. By automating repetitive and mechanical tasks, such as document review, contract drafting, and due diligence, AI can save countless hours of research time and dramatically decrease the expenses associated with discovery.

The annual cost for civil lawsuits in the US is estimated to be between $200 and $250 billion, while the Fortune 500 spends about $210 billion on total litigation costs, which represents approximately one-third of their profits. Tort litigation in the US has an economic impact of $263 billion, which includes administrative costs, defense costs, and benefits paid to third parties. The average cost of discovery in federal cases that involve any discovery is estimated to be around $35,000, according to several estimates available in a study by Duke Law School.

By leveraging AI technology, organizations can complete months or years of work in a matter of days or weeks, which cuts costs and increases efficiency. This cost-saving potential benefits not only businesses and firms but also makes legal services more affordable and accessible to a larger segment of the population.

Streamlining mundane tasks allows lawyers to focus on more complex aspects of their work and serve a greater number of clients efficiently. Automation also enables lawyers to compete with online platforms like LegalZoom, expanding their reach and providing more affordable legal services.

By embracing AI, the legal industry can evolve and adapt to the changing landscape, delivering efficient and cost-effective solutions to a broader clientele.

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Is This the End for Lawyers

The introduction of any new technology often leads to concerns about job displacement. The current rise of AI is no exception, with much concern about how AI will replace many job positions. While this may be true for some jobs, it is not necessarily the case for the average lawyer.

The impact of AI on the legal industry has been more measured than expected. AI tools, such as ChatGPT, have primarily served as assistants rather than replacements, focusing on tasks like identifying, sorting, and categorizing words in documents. This is exemplified in the tools being developed by AI agencies like 1001Epochs.

These tools are specialized software, fine-tuned for legal work, and utilize generative AI models. This suggests a complementary relationship between AI and lawyers, with AI tools improving efficiency and productivity.

A recent survey by Thomson Reuters Institute found that 51 percent of law firm professionals are receptive to using LLMs, such as ChatGPT. This positive response reflects the recognition of the potential benefits these AI technologies bring to the legal sector.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that jobs for lawyers and paralegals will continue to grow faster than the labor market as a whole, while a study by researchers at OpenAI and the University of Pennsylvania suggests that AI will change the role of those in the legal industry.

What those changes entail is still too early to evaluate, but we can conclude that the relationship between AI and lawyers will be complimentary. AI will only partially replace lawyers but rather augment their work by automating certain tasks and increasing efficiency.

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Conclusion

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The integration of generative AI in the legal industry can transform the way legal professionals work. It can streamline repetitive tasks, augment legal research and analysis, and enhance efficiency and productivity.

Automation of tasks such as document review, contract drafting, and due diligence can significantly reduce costs and save valuable time, making legal services more accessible and affordable for a wider range of clients. While concerns about job displacement exist, AI tools and technologies serve as assistants and enhance the capabilities of lawyers.

The relationship between AI and lawyers is expected to be symbiotic, with AI tools improving efficiency while lawyers focus on complex legal matters and build trusted relationships with clients. Lawyers will need to enhance their skills, specialize in areas of expertise, exercise judgment in complex cases, and adapt to the changing landscape.

By embracing AI, the legal industry can leverage its benefits to deliver more efficient, cost-effective, and accessible legal services to a broader clientele.

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Acknowledgment: This guide was skillfully crafted with the help of Sarjeel Y.