AI can be a useful tool for lawyers to save time and increase efficiency. However, this makes me wonder if the time saving measure will impact lawyers' pockets negatively. I also wonder if it will make it more difficult for lawyers that do not use AI to compete in the market when trying to gain new clients; because if two lawyers are charging the same hourly rate but one is taking less time because of the use of AI, clients have the potential to choose the cheaper lawyer. But is there a way to really know in the initial consultation that one lawyer may be using AI? Probably not.
The only thing I found from the Florida Bar on AI and legal fees is that the client charges for AI related costs must be reasonable and not duplicative. They also stated that lawyers cannot charge for the time spend developing minimal competence in the use of AI.
As a millennial, I am not up to date on AI and its uses. I have never used it in school or for my job. However, I have noticed its increasing prevalence especially in education. While I think there can be benefits, I also think there are a lot of risks associated with the use of AI. In January, there was another New York lawyer disciplined after an AI chatbot cited to a fake case.
Is the potential for increased efficiently and time savings worth potentially compromising thoroughness and quality work?
This is something that I have been wondering about. How does an attorney bill for work that isn't being done by them or anyone in their firm but instead is produced by AI. I guess they are the ones to plug it in to AI so they can reason that that is how they got their answers.
ReplyDeleteThis problem is not new with AI. It actually dates back to the earliest days of law firm automation and even to the creating of standard paper forms that were filled in by typewriters or by hand. Some lawyers work hard to create "systems" that make their practices more efficient. That takes many hours.
ReplyDeleteThe result is less time devoted to each legal task thanks to the many hours invested in creating the system. So how does the lawyer receive compensation for that investment if billing hourly? Is it ethical to charge for 3 hours to produce a document that, thanks to the system, takes only 15 minutes to produce? Maybe flat fees or value billing are the answer. Despite all the predictions of its demise, however, the billable hour remains the most prevalent way to charge clients outside of the PI area where contingency fees dominate.