How Do I Use AI as a Lawyer?

In this episode, Rikka founder, Charlyn Ho explains the importance of ethical obligations for using AI in legal practice. The American Bar Association’s formal opinion emphasizes the need for lawyers to understand AI’s limitations and verify its outputs to ensure competent representation. A cautionary tale from New York illustrates the risks of relying on AI without proper oversight, as two lawyers faced sanctions for using fabricated case references. Lawyers are reminded to maintain client confidentiality, inform clients about AI’s role, and bill fairly for AI-related tasks. Overall, while AI can enhance efficiency, adherence to ethical guidelines is crucial.

Transcript

So today we’re gonna be talking about something critical, your ethical obligations when using AI. The American Bar Association recently released formal opinion five twelve, which provides guidancefor lawyers navigating this evolving landscape.

But before we dive into specific, let’s start with a real world example that highlights why these obligations matter.

Many of you might remember the recent cautionary tale from New York where two lawyers were sanctioned after they used AI generated cases in a legal brief.

The AI tool they use fabricated case references, in essence cases that simply don’t exist.

Because the lawyers didn’t verify the AI’s output, they ended up submitting false information to the court, which led to disciplinary action against them.

This serves as a stark reminder of how critical it is to understand AI’s limitations and to uphold our ethical duties when using these tools.

Now let’s break down the key ethical obligations from the ABA’s formal opinion five twelve and how they can help you avoid situations like the one in New York. First, competence under model rule one point one. When using AI, you must provide competent representation by understanding the capabilities, limitations, and risks of the tools you’re using.

AI tools, including ChatGPT and others, can generate text that seem accurate but could be completely fabricated as we saw in the New York case. It’s your duty to verify any AI generated content before relying on it in any case or legal matter.

Next, let’s talk about confidentiality.

When using AI, you must ensure that client information is kept confidential.

Feeding sensitive client data into an AI tool, especially one hosted on external servers, could risk exposing that data.

So always assess the privacy risks involved and get informed consent from your clients if needed prior to using AI tools in your legal work.

Communication.

This is another key obligation when you use AI in your legal work. You need to inform your clients of AI is playing a significant role in your case or matter. They deserve to know how these tools are being used and this transparency is crucial to maintaining trust. Supervision is equally important. Under model rules five point one and five point three, if you’re supervising junior lawyers or non lawyer staff who are using AI, you need to make sure they’re using it responsibly.

This means preventing errors like AI hallucinations where the AI confidently generates false information.

It’s your job to ensure that everyone on your team is aware of the risks and knows how to verify AI generated outputs.

Then there’s billing, our least favorite topic. So under model rule one point five, you should bill your clients fairly for tasks involving AI. If AI significantly reduces the time needed for tasks, the savings should be passed on to your client.

Billing for hours that weren’t actually spent is not only unethical, but it’s fraud.

Lastly, avoiding misleading conduct is paramount.

As lawyers, we are obligated to provide accurate information to the court and other parties.

So if using AI to draft documents or arguments, you must verify all facts and ensuring that what you’re presenting is truthful.

The New York lawyer situation shows just how quickly things can go wrong when this step is overlooked. So to wrap up, when using AI in your legal practice, remember your ethical duties.

Confidence, confidentiality, communication, supervision, billing, fairness, and avoiding misleading conduct.

AI is an incredible tool that can save time and improve your work, but only if used responsibly.

Don’t forget, always verify AI generated content. The risks of not doing so could be serious.

So if you’re practicing law in a different jurisdiction, don’t forget to consult the equivalent ethical guidelines and rules for using AI in your jurisdiction.

Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to like and subscribe for more insights on how technology is reshaping the legal landscape.