MAY/JUNE 2018
54
INHOUSE
I
was always encouraged to get a law degree.
Aside from being a profession that is challenging
and rewarding, it would provide a stable career;
after all, there would always be work for lawyers.
Then I saw the results of a LawGeex study.
LawGeex, an AI company specializing in contract re-
view, pitted its artificial intelligence platform against 20
lawyers to review five non-disclosure agreements. The
outcome? The AI platform achieved a 94-per-cent ac-
curacy rate at identifying risks in the NDAs. The law-
yers averaged an 85-per-cent accuracy rate. The kicker?
It took an average of 92 minutes for the lawyers to re-
view the NDAs. It took the AI platform 26 seconds!
The emergence of AI and automation has become a
subject of much discussion for in-house lawyers. Un-
doubtedly, big changes are coming to the provision of
legal services. A New York Times article published last
year cited a McKinsey study that looked at the global
economy's automation potential. Applying the study
findings, the article estimated that 23 per cent of a law-
yer's job could be automated.
Many questions are being asked regarding how AI
will affect the job market for in-house lawyers; but are
we asking the right questions? The question should not
be, "Will AI take my job?" In-house lawyers should be
asking, "What opportunities will AI provide?" "How
will AI empower me to do my job better?" Change al-
ways presents opportunity.
A Microsoft publication, The Future Computed: Arti-
ficial Intelligence and its Role in Society, notes that the one
constant over generations of technological change is its
impact on jobs — the creation of new jobs, the elimina-
tion of existing jobs and the evolution of existing jobs.
For existing jobs, new technology requires evolving ex-
isting skills by leveraging technological advancements.
Although AI may fundamentally change the provision
of legal services, the market itself isn't going anywhere.
A Deloitte study surveying in-house legal services pur-
chasers found that both demand and spend for legal
services are actually growing.
So what new opportunities will AI bring? The Fu-
ture Computed cites the example of the "privacy law-
yer." In the late 1990s, it was difficult to find a full-time
By Jonathan Leibtag
In Closing
Is artificial intelligence going to take my job?
A distinction must be made between looking at AI through the lens of work
activities as opposed to jobs.
"privacy lawyer." Now, many corporations (especially
those in financial services) have dedicated privacy law-
yers. Today, the International Association of Privacy
Professionals has more than 20,000 global members.
Technology created a market for in-house privacy law-
yers. AI will provide similar opportunities to broaden
skills and services. Questions about regulatory over-
sight, corporate responsibility and ethics around the
adoption of AI are certain to come across the desks of
in-house lawyers.
AI augments the services currently provided to busi-
ness clients and enhances the value of astute in-house
counsel. Commentators note that today AI isn't capable
of replacing a majority of human skills. It certainly is
not capable of replacing human judgment. Sound judg-
ment is what clients look to us for. A Harvard Business
Review article suggested that the adoption of AI will
substantially raise the value of human judgment; those
who display good judgment will become more valuable,
not less. Advances in AI, the authors argue, lead to "a
drop in the cost of prediction." This is significant be-
cause prediction improves decision-making. However,
prediction is only one component of decision-making;
the other key component is judgment.
A distinction must be made between looking at AI
through the lens of work activities as opposed to jobs.
AI may output comprehensive legal research at dizzy-
ing speeds to assist in litigation, but advocacy and for-
mulating an effective litigation strategy remains a very
human virtue. AI will put enhanced and intelligent
data at our fingertips, but it cannot replace instinct in
negotiating transactions or the ability to navigate the
corporate environment to ensure information is being
presented in a meaningful way to the right corporate
decision-makers. Data is vital, but judgment, relation-
ships and creativity are paramount.
Al will lead to a redeployment of legal resources and
empower in-house lawyers to spend more time focusing
on essential work. AI may change a lawyer's activities,
but the job remains the same. Those who adapt to and
embrace AI to provide the best advice, to enable the best
service rooted in sound judgment and ingenuity will be
the successful in-house lawyers of the future.
IH
Jonathan Leibtag is
corporate counsel with
Microsoft Canada.
