This article has been written by Prasad Khasnis pursuing a Personal Branding Program for Corporate Leaders from Skill Arbitrage.
This article has been edited and published by Shashwat Kaushik.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Artificial intelligence has been present for a long time but was only available for researchers and scientists as it required technical knowledge and high-end computer systems. With the advent of tools like ChatGPT and Gemini, the general public can now access the power of AI by just chatting with it.
Many professionals have embraced AI, particularly the tech-savvy and the first adopters, in the last two years. Now that many different tools have been introduced, more professionals like doctors, managers, lawyers, and students have started using AI.
What is artificial intelligence (AI)
Artificial intelligence (AI) is a captivating field in computer science that delves into the creation of intelligent machines. It involves training computer systems with vast amounts of information and data, empowering them to retrieve meaningful insights and assist users in various ways. AI systems are not mere static entities; they possess the remarkable ability to continuously learn and evolve through their interactions with users.
At the core of AI is the concept of machine learning. Machine learning algorithms enable computers to identify patterns and relationships within data without being explicitly programmed to do so. This allows AI systems to make predictions, recommendations, and decisions based on the information they have processed.
One of the most significant applications of AI is in the realm of natural language processing (NLP). NLP enables AI systems to understand and respond to human language. This has led to the development of virtual assistants like Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant, which can engage in conversations, answer questions, and perform tasks based on verbal commands.
AI is also making significant strides in the field of image recognition. AI-powered image recognition systems can identify objects, faces, and scenes in images with remarkable accuracy. This technology has applications in various domains, such as security, healthcare, and autonomous vehicles.
Another exciting area of AI research is robotics. AI-powered robots are becoming increasingly sophisticated, capable of performing complex tasks and interacting with the physical world. These robots have the potential to revolutionise industries such as manufacturing, healthcare, and space exploration.
The potential of AI is vast and far-reaching. As AI systems continue to learn and evolve, they will likely transform numerous aspects of our lives. From healthcare to transportation, education to entertainment, AI has the potential to make our world more efficient, convenient, and interconnected.
However, it is essential to acknowledge the ethical considerations surrounding AI. As AI systems become more powerful, it is crucial to ensure that they are used responsibly and in accordance with human values. We must address concerns about privacy, bias, and the potential for job displacement.
By approaching AI development with a thoughtful and ethical mindset, we can harness its immense potential while mitigating potential risks. Together, we can create an AI-powered future that benefits all of humanity.
Types of artificial intelligence
There are two broad types of artificial intelligence:
Weak AI aka narrow AI
These systems are built to solve a specific problem or provide a specific service. They cannot solve or provide input to problems outside their built-in scope. Most of the AI available now is a form of weak AI.
Examples of weak AI:
- Face recognition.
- Text to speech.
- Playing different games, etc.
Strong AI
These systems mimic the intelligence of the human brain. They can learn on their own and, hence, keep expanding their knowledge. Strong AI is still under research and no tool has been developed yet for public use.
Where can AI assist lawyers?
AI provides innumerable benefits for lawyers, some of which are listed below.
- Time-saving through automation
AI can be used to automate repetitive tasks that end up taking a lot of time from humans. Thus, lawyers can focus on more important aspects of their day-to-day work. AI can also help in creating chatbots that can answer specific repetitive client queries.
- Research of vast data
AI systems, with their large amount of computing power, can read through vast sets of data, find patterns, and do comparisons and summarization. For example, AI can research numerous laws, acts, and related court cases, analyse them, and create a summary of the important points. This research can help lawyers use them to solve critical client cases.
- Improved data analysis
AI can find patterns within data sets that humans can miss out on, hence improving correctness. AI can create charts to convert data into visualisations that humans can relate to and derive meaningful insights from. For example, AI can help in judicial analytics by analysing previous related cases and hearings.
- Document management
AI can transcribe, review, and draft complex legal documents, reducing the time and efforts of lawyers while ensuring correctness and ensuring that important points are not missed, thus reducing human error.
- Predictive analysis
AI can be used in predictive analysis by analysing existing open cases with similar past cases, arguments, and witnesses presented and predicting the success of winning the case. It can also provide suggestions for improvements.
5 AI Tools for Lawyers
ChatGPT is a generative AI tool from OpenAI that is based on the format of interactive chat. ChatGPT can help lawyers create legal documents, for example, contracts, case briefings, etc. Note: ChatGPT may use very elaborate language and may give false or unverifiable statistics.
Rare Labs, which creates AI bots, has launched LadwBotPro. It is a bot for legal questions and queries based on the format of a simple chat. LawBotPro can help with case analysis, consultation on legal issues, client counselling, etc.
- Manuputrachat.
Manuputra has one of the largest databases and has incorporated AI and machine learning (ML technologies. It can assist in researching law cases, acts, articles, etc. The main features are legal research, contract management, compliance management, litigation management, etc.
Kira Systems uses AI and machine learning (ML) technologies for contract analysis and review. Its main use cases are M&A due diligence, deal points, compliance, and lease abstraction.
KonProz GPT is specifically built for Indian professionals in the legal, taxation and regulatory fields. It can help lawyers and other professionals with predictive analysis and provide strategies for litigation and negotiation.
Use of AI in legal profession in India
The Indian judicial system has been making efforts to use AI. AI can be used to aid judges in various aspects like review, research, taking input on possible judgements, etc.
Following are a few of the initiatives taken for the use of AI in the Indian judicial system:
SUVAS – Supreme Court Vidhik Anuvaad Software
The Supreme Court of India, in a press release dated November 25, 2019, launched SUVAS. As per the release, the “Official Multilingual Mobile App. of the Supreme Court of India, developed with the technical consultation of the National Informatics Centre will also be launched. It will be available for download on the website of the Supreme Court and will provide authentic real-time access to case status, the display board, daily orders, judgements, office reports, circulars, and several other useful pieces of information for lawyers and litigants and citizens. This app., as of now, will be available in English, Hindi, and six regional language scripts.”
E-courts
E-Court India, an initiative of the Supreme Court of India, was launched in 2007 to provide better access to justice and to make the judicial system more transparent and efficient. The E-Court website serves as a centralised platform where citizens can access information about court cases, orders, and judgements.
The E-Court platform offers a range of features and services that make it easier for individuals to navigate the legal system. These include:
- Case Status and Tracking: Citizens can check the status of their cases, track their progress, and view the next hearing date. This feature helps litigants stay informed about the proceedings and avoid unnecessary visits to the court.
- Electronic filing: E-Court allows lawyers to file cases and documents electronically, reducing the need for physical submissions. This not only saves time and effort but also promotes efficiency in the judicial process.
- Online payments: Individuals can make court fee payments and other charges online through the E-Court portal, providing a convenient and secure payment option.
- Court Orders and judgements: The E-Court website provides free access to court orders and judgements, making it easier for citizens to understand the legal framework and precedents related to their cases. This transparency promotes accountability and allows for better decision-making.
- Virtual hearings: During the COVID-19 pandemic, E-Court played a crucial role in enabling virtual hearings. This helped ensure uninterrupted access to justice while minimising the risk of physical interaction.
The E-Court initiative has had a significant impact on the Indian judiciary. It has improved the efficiency of the judicial process, reduced the pendency of cases, and provided greater transparency and accessibility to citizens. The platform has also played a vital role in promoting digital literacy and enabling legal professionals to adapt to technological advancements.
Overall, E-Court India has transformed the way legal services are delivered in India, bringing the judiciary closer to the people and ensuring a more equitable and accessible justice system.
AI Takes Legal Action: Delhi Gets the First Pilot Hybrid Court ,
The Delhi court has launched a hybrid court in pilot mode at Tiz Hajari Court, inagurated by Justice Manmohan. It’s a speech-to-text platform aimed at aiding in recording evidence. This platform aims at reducing the time of judiciary officials, including stenographers, and optimising costs.
Justice Manmohan said during the inauguration, “As a chief justice, the biggest problem that I face is that all judges are requesting a large number of stenographers, and there is not enough pool available.” With the introduction of speech-to-text AI solutions, this challenge would be addressed.
Challenges of using AI
While using AI in the legal profession can have many benefits, it also has its own set of challenges. AI is still relatively new compared to other fields of study in computer science. Some of the challenges are listed below:
Lower adoption
The law profession and its practitioners are generally not the earliest adopters of technology; they would like to continue the old-fashioned way. Moreover, there is no guidance from a competent authority, and AI adoption is relatively low.
Privacy and data protection
There needs to be a large amount of data to train AI models to make them effective. There is a question of privacy, as many legal cases are sensitive in nature. The decision on which data can be used for AI models is still unresolved. Further computer systems are prone to hacks; misuse of data by employees or other individuals raises concerns over privacy.
Ethical challenges
All AI models are trained on historical data and are thus prone to bias. This bias raises ethical concerns about the data analysis that AI provides and its use in the complex law structure of Law.
Intellectual property rights
One of the major concerns is the novelty, uniqueness, and ownership of AI-generated content with respect to property rights, trademarks, and patents. Since there are no clear guidelines, it is leading to confusion on these issues.
Expensive
AI systems are inherently expensive to build, right from the cost of expertise required to high-end hardware requirements, the cost of data and the cost of training the models. Most big companies are investing in building large language models (LLMs) because they have the financial muscle. Others can take these generic LLLMs and train them for specific uses.
Future of AI in legal profession
Regulatory framework
A regulatory body needs to be constituted specifically to govern the use of AI in the judiciary. This body should come up with clear guidelines and a framework to apply AI. It should also clearly specify areas where AI assistance will not be acceptable.
Data protection regulations
Currently, India has the Indian Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 to ensure data protection for individuals. However, a more robust data protection act should be enacted to specify which type of data can be used for modelling AI systems for legal use.
Intellectual property regulations
The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) has sparked a global debate about the ownership of AI-generated content. As AI becomes increasingly sophisticated, it is becoming more difficult to determine who should hold the intellectual property (IP) rights to the content and creations produced by AI systems.
Currently, intellectual property (IP) and patents in India are governed by three main acts:
1. The Trade Marks Act, 1999:
- This act protects trademarks, service marks, and trade names.
- It does not specifically address the issue of AI-generated content.
- However, it could potentially be applied to protect AI-generated trademarks or service marks that are distinctive and capable of identifying the goods or services of a particular source.
2. The Patents Act, 1970 (amended in 2005):
- This act provides protection for inventions, including processes, machines, and products.
- While it does not explicitly mention AI, it can be interpreted to cover AI-related inventions.
- For example, an AI-powered system that invents new drugs or materials could potentially be patented under the Patents Act.
3. The Copyright Act, 1957:
- This act protects original works of authorship, including literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works.
- It does not explicitly address AI-generated content, but it could potentially be applied to protect AI-generated works that meet the criteria of originality and creativity.
- For example, an AI-generated poem or song could potentially be copyrighted under the Copyright Act.
In addition to these three main acts, there are a number of other laws and regulations that could potentially be relevant to AI-generated content in India.
For example, the Information Technology Act, 2000, governs the use of computers and the internet in India. This act could potentially be used to regulate the creation and distribution of AI-generated content.
The Consumer Protection Act, 1986, protects consumers from unfair trade practices. This act could potentially be used to protect consumers from AI-generated content that is misleading or deceptive.
Another challenge is that AI systems are constantly learning and evolving. This means that the content they generate can change over time. This raises questions about whether the IP rights to AI-generated content should be fixed at a specific point in time or whether they should be subject to change as the content evolves.
To address these challenges, more structured and robust IP regulations are needed. These regulations should provide clear guidelines on who owns the IP rights to AI-generated content and how these rights can be protected. They should also take into account the unique characteristics of AI-generated content, such as its dynamic and evolving nature.
By establishing a clear and comprehensive framework for IP rights in AI, we can encourage innovation in the field of AI and ensure that the creators of AI-generated content are fairly compensated for their work. This will help to foster a healthy and vibrant AI ecosystem and promote the responsible development and use of AI technologies.
Conclusion
AI holds a lot of promise for lawyers in reducing their efforts and time, helping in drafting legal documents, and addressing common questions from clients. Further, many companies are investing in building specific AI advances for lawyers during the next few years.
Lawyers can use the currently available and upcoming tools while addressing the challenges and concerns that people have regarding AI. Overall, the next wave will be driven by AI and ML and it is up to us how we best make use of these new technologies.
References
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About the Author:
Prasad Khasnis is a Founder, CPO, CTO @Stealth and student of Skill Arbitrage. You may want to follow him on LinkedIn
