British solicitors want ‘clear’ set of AI rules
The Law Society of England and Wales has called for a clear set of rules on how solicitors can use AI to prepare court documents.
According to the England-and-Wales Gazette, the organisation has called on regulators and the British Government to set out exactly how AI can be managed responsibly in court proceedings, as well as kick-start discussions on how litigation will be affected by technology advances.
The advisory Civil Justice Council (CJC) is currently consulting on whether rules are needed to govern the use of AI by lawyers, following a series of cases in which false citations generated by AI have been presented to the court.
Public debate
The Law Society said that it welcomed the intervention of the CJC but added that guidance and oversight needed to come from further afield – including the Solicitors Regulation Authority reviewing its code of conduct and HM Courts & Tribunals Service introducing simple rules for AI use in court.
The solicitors’ body also called for a further public debate and a review of the role of AI across the justice system.
Law Society chief executive Ian Jeffery said: “We need a balanced framework to support the use of AI in court proceedings.
“Artificial intelligence can improve efficiency and level the playing field for everyone to be able to access timely justice. However, there have to be safeguards for accuracy and fairness that build public trust in the system,” he stated.
Declaration
According to the Gazette, the CJC has proposed that lawyers involved in the preparation of court documents should be required to make a declaration where AI has been used.
This would apply where AI has been used to generate evidence on which the court is being asked to rely, but would not be necessary where AI was involved in transcription and spell checking.
Last week, Ms Justice Eileen Roberts of the High Court told a webinar on generative AI that the Irish judiciary was developing a detailed practice note to guide practitioners and parties on the use of AI in litigation.