What Companies Searching for "AI Lawyer" Are Really Looking For
Hello, I'm Noriaki Asato, Representative Attorney at LegalAgent.
Some people may look for information about law firms by typing phrases such as "AI lawyer" or "generative AI lawyer." That said, I am cautious about using this term at the center of how we describe our firm.
This is because, in a law firm's communications, I want to convey concretely how attorneys use AI and what they check before making judgments, rather than creating the preconception that AI will completely replace attorneys. The areas that generative AI can handle in legal practice and the boundary where human judgment is required are discussed in detail in What Is an AI Lawyer? How to Divide Roles Between Attorneys and AI in Corporate Legal Work in the Age of Generative AI.
"AI Lawyer" as a Search Term
For people searching, the expression "AI lawyer" is an intuitive and easy-to-understand keyword. I think it is used in searches when people are interested in whether AI can be used to speed up contract review, whether they can put everyday legal questions to AI, and how the work of licensed professionals will evolve with AI.
From the standpoint of legal practice, however, expressions suggesting that AI itself takes on the entire professional responsibility of an attorney lack accuracy in some respects. Legal consultations and the handling of individual disputes deeply involve organizing complex facts, researching relevant laws and case law, and confirming the professional rules that attorneys must observe.
Therefore, while being mindful of search demand, when explaining what we actually do, we use expressions such as "corporate legal services leveraging generative AI," "a law firm built on the premise of AI," and "AI Native Law Firm" to describe how the work is actually carried out.
The Processing Speed and Quality of Judgment That Corporate Legal Work Requires
Behind the interest in law firms that adopt generative AI, there appears to be frustration with the speed of conventional legal support. Concerns include contract review responses taking days, consultations with outside counsel ending as one-off exchanges, legal know-how not accumulating within the company, and business teams being unable to grasp how far they may make their own decisions.
Generative AI can be useful for summarizing the key points of contracts, extracting clauses, and preparing to search for past cases. However, how much business risk to accept and how to adjust the wording in light of the relationship with the counterparty still require judgment by a human attorney. I think what companies are looking for is advice that takes their business circumstances into account and arrives in time for their decisions.
A Cautious Stance Toward Claims of Automation
In publicity related to generative AI, there are examples of expressions such as "complete automation of contract review" and "instant answers to legal questions by AI." As a matter of a law firm's professional stance, however, we should be cautious about such overstated assertions.
In actual contract review, the balance of power with the counterparty, the importance of the transaction, and the business customs for each type of contract all have an effect. AI output can be a useful draft, but the possibility of factual errors or oversights cannot be ruled out.
Therefore, even when explaining the convenience of AI, we also explain how attorneys check the output and how confidential information is managed. I want to avoid pandering excessively to words that are frequently searched and raising expectations beyond reality.
How the Work Is Actually Done
At LegalAgent, we explain concretely where AI is used in our work and which parts people handle. Specifically, this means completing contract reviews sooner, writing legal comments differently depending on their purpose, for internal review or for presentation to the counterparty, building a database of each company's decision criteria, supporting the formulation of AI use policies and the preparation of terms of use, and conducting legal DD for fundraising and M&A efficiently. These are matters that concern how the work is done, not merely the introduction of tools. While being mindful of the familiarity of the search term, we will continue to offer explanations rooted in the realities of corporate legal work.
Explaining to Readers Who Arrive from Search
It is important to consider how easily you can be found on search engines. At the same time, on a law firm's website, even when using eye-catching words, we check that the explanation matches reality. The more a phrase is prone to misunderstanding, the more careful contextual explanation it requires.
To readers who arrive out of interest in "AI lawyers," we convey not that AI reaches conclusions on its own, but how attorneys use AI and how they check its output. I want our explanations to serve as material for deciding whether to engage us. Even in work that uses AI, LegalAgent bears the responsibility, as professionals, for checking and making judgments.
Legal Support Services in the Age of Generative AI
Specific details of our legal support built on the use of AI are available through the following pages.
Services connected to this topic