Abstract

The Arizona Supreme Court has sought ways to innovate justice by lowering costs for legal services. Artificial intelligence (AI) appears as a possible solution. Using AI in the field of law may help decrease costs for legal services. Additional benefits include saving time for lawyers and helping lawyers better communicate with the client. However, an AI tool inherently comes with shortcomings due to the way it operates, e.g., deep learning. The nature of being a black box to programmers and developers causes the AI to have unknown risks especially in lawsuits. Although many AI tools exist on the market and the public can envision the future of their applications, legal disputes may arise when those unknown risks become realities. An AI tool may fail in giving optimal outputs or give biased outputs, resulting in claims like ineffective assistance of counsel or legal malpractice. Apart from the legal ambiguities of topics around using AIs, the client’s interest is not best served by adding additional litigation. This Note proposes ways for lawyers to mitigate their liabilities through contracting indemnification clauses with AI program providers. Alternatively, to suing lawyers and adding additional legal disputes, the client may seek insurances against unknown risks caused by AIs. State supreme courts may gradually increase the amount of AI uses and protect clients through express written consent. Lastly, state legislatures also have an interest in passing laws protecting citizens’ data privacy.

How to Cite:

Maoyu Wang, Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the Field of Law, 6 Ariz. L. J. Emerging Tech., no. 5, 2023, https://doi.org/10.2458/azlawjet.5766