7+ Innovative Applications of AI in the Legal Domain

AI has shifted the business landscape within multiple industries, creating various new opportunities for improved performance and productivity.

Today’s computers are so advanced they can execute high-level analysis, evaluating large volumes of data to extract meaningful insight which can be used to make better business decisions.

AI has already taken control of various aspects of our lives, despite many not viewing things this way. AI is integrated with our existence, a simple example being our consumption with smartphone technology.

As companies like Evisort are beginning to prove, AI is expanding far beyond the preconceived realm of possibility, now providing business solutions for legal professionals. But what are some of the applications of AI legal software in the legal domain?

Can AI Practice as a Lawyer?

AI can capably perform considerable research on a lawyer’s behalf, enabling legal representatives to handle multiple cases at once. What’s great about AI is it can tackle a bulk of the legwork, which is often time-consuming and can eat into a lawyer’s productivity.

A human lawyer spends considerable time researching each and every case, but AI can perform the same level of research in a matter of seconds. AI can overcome human deficiencies, for example computers don’t need to sleep or eat, meaning AI can in some situations produce greater output than your average lawyer.

But that doesn’t mean we should neglect the importance of the human element.

But could AI ever eradicate the need for lawyers entirely? This is certainly a case for debate, though it’s difficult to foresee at any time in the near future.

Leibniz Predicts the Use of Machines in Law

Leibniz is one of the pioneers of AI and believe it or not was actually a lawyer! He once proclaimed the preposterous nature of excellent men losing hours slaving through mundane tasks which could eventually be performed by machines.

As early as 1683, Leibniz presented a machine for arithmetic operations, suggesting we can correct our reasoning by making machines as tangible as our mathematicians. By doing so errors could be discovered at a glance, where human calculations are used to tackle disagreements between people.

This principle is highly applicable in today’s AI oriented business world, where we now have the technology necessary to complete multiple steps in an event chain which would conventionally takes place in a lawyer’s head.

It becomes a question of how advanced is AI in actuality, and how much more advanced human reasoning is in some contexts? It is interesting to see what the future holds, where machines could potentially calculate who is right in a dispute via a ‘robot mediator.’

AINOW: The Future of Legal AI?

AINOW is a research institute which has examined the social implications of AI. One of its recent workshops has brought together scientific, legal and technical advocates focused on litigating algorithmic decision-making in the legal domain.

The workshop was a real eye-opener into interactions between AI and law, discussing the best practices and strategy, while also exchanging experiences and ideas across litigation and other areas. The gathering united the vision of many high-profile researchers, advocates, technical experts, social scientists and other leading thinkers who visualize the algorithmic accountability of law.

The research executed by AINOW could open doors to various future AI and law applications.

Human-AI Lawyer Cooperation

A fusion of AI and law could generate significantly greater success for lawyers, where AI enables human lawyers to work faster and ultimately extract more data. But to be successful it’s important to establish a level of cooperation between human and AI.

AI should be introduced to make a Lawyer’s life easier and be utilized with a forward-thinking mentality. It shouldn’t be perceived as an enemy which will ultimately replace lawyers entirely, as it seems unlikely for humans to be rendered obsolete.

A human-centered approach is a beneficial one, where motives for data transfer should remain healthy. But what if they’re not? What if decisions are wrong?

It is possible for systems to adopt prejudices, in the same way humans have in years past, however it’s important to note today’s systems aren’t prone to social conflicts.

For a machine to create a serious, healthy judgment from data it must be manipulated by human collaborators and exposed to considerable past data for greater accuracy.

Intelligent Contract Management

Deploying leading AI practices is enough to secure a competitive edge, one which will ultimately lead to greater profitability. With intelligent recommendations, invested parties can deliver elite expertise within the legal industry. AI facilitates contract management by enabling people to weigh trade-offs like never before, so organizations can execute various corporate goals.

Here are some of the unique capabilities of AI when it comes to contract management:

Intelligent Agreement Risk Management

AI enables you to locate critical terms and topics that typically generate financial risk, while comparing negotiated wording to quantity and manage risk.

Intelligent Clause Recommendation

With alternate word choice and clause suggestions you can increase legal ops productivity, to reduce risk exposure and streamline negotiations.

Intelligent Third-Party Paper Automation

AI allows you to automatically map business terms and clauses in third party documents. These are instead located to your legal playbook, meaning contract managers can reconcile drafts, swap languages and seek approval as if you’d originally produced the contract.

Intelligent Contract Cycle Time Reduction

Cycle time prediction enables you to reduce the time required to receive a contract signature, using similar agreements as a precedent. You can negotiate with full visibility, leveraging alternative clauses and comparing predicted cycle times.

The future of AI in the legal domain is certainly an exciting one, especially as technology is evolving by the day.