{"id":2538,"date":"2025-02-11T12:24:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-11T17:24:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/?p=2538"},"modified":"2025-02-26T09:14:10","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T14:14:10","slug":"dkm-2024-ai-in-law-practice-and-law-school-tomorrows-challenge-or-todays-reality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/dkm-2024-ai-in-law-practice-and-law-school-tomorrows-challenge-or-todays-reality\/","title":{"rendered":"DKM 2024 \u2014 AI in Law Practice and Law School: Tomorrow\u2019s Challenge or Today\u2019s Reality?\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Dan K. Moore moderators speak on the evolution of AI <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI have been taking Continuing Legal Education for 50 years and today\u2019s class<\/a> may have been the best I have ever taken,\u201d declared one veteran attorney after the UNC School of Law\u2019s annual Dan K. Moore Program in Ethics<\/a>. \u201cSo well planned, so well executed\u2026 All of the presenters were experts in their content. Just remarkable!\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The enthusiastic response came as no surprise. Artificial intelligence has revolutionized legal practice. \u201cAlthough we tackled AI last year, this year brought a whole new program with new speakers and new developments,\u201d explained Lissa Broome<\/a>, professor and director of the Center for Banking and Finance<\/a>, and co-planner of the program with professors Tom Hazen<\/a> and Caleb Griffin<\/a>. The rapidly evolving technology drew over 230 attorneys from 11 states to learn from experts already using AI in their daily work.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLawyers who use these tools will replace lawyers who don\u2019t,\u201d warned Bill Garcia, chief practice innovation officer at Thompson Hine LLP.<\/a> His stark assessment set the tone for a day focused on balancing AI\u2019s potential with professional responsibility.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aaron Kirschenfeld \u201915, clinical associate professor of law and digital initiatives law librarian<\/a> at UNC School of Law, opened with a reality check. While demonstrating how the new Lexis Plus AI could analyze complex legal questions instantly, he shared a troubling Stanford University study: leading AI platforms can be wrong up to 33% of the time.” The systems aren’t making up fake cases anymore, but they may mischaracterize cases or provide citations that don’t support their claims,” he warned. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Law firms must navigate these benefits and risks carefully. Garcia shared his firm\u2019s approach to building AI tools that analyze billing data and predict case timelines. \u201cThe tools are the dumbest today they will ever be,\u201d he noted, suggesting firms should start exploring AI now. But he cautioned against rushing to buy expensive technology: \u201cSometimes a process change or additional training might be the better solution.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clients are watching these developments closely. Jennifer Venable \u201996, vice president, general counsel, and corporate secretary at Capitol Broadcasting Company<\/a>, voiced what many clients want to know: \u201cIs there human oversight of the work, and is our confidential information protected?\u201d Her company has already created specific policies for AI use.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Law schools now face a critical challenge: preparing students for this new reality while still teaching essential legal skills. April Dawson, associate dean of technology and innovation and professor of law at North Carolina Central University School of Law,<\/a> described innovative approaches to teaching with AI. Professor Joe Kennedy<\/a> of Carolina Law pushed further: \u201cHow do junior attorneys develop experience to become senior attorneys if AI handles the early career tasks?\u201d The answer involves teaching students both traditional legal analysis and new technology skills \u2014 a balance that mirrors the ethical challenges practicing attorneys face.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those ethical considerations took center stage as Ted Claypoole, partner at Womble Bond Dickinson<\/a>, addressed everything from billing for AI-assisted work to handling deep fakes in evidence. His discussion was especially timely given the new American Bar Association Ethics Opinion on AI use and a proposed North Carolina State Bar opinion on the same topic. With 38 states now requiring technological competence, lawyers must master AI while maintaining their professional standards\u2014exactly the skills today\u2019s law students are learning to balance.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The program proved AI isn\u2019t tomorrow\u2019s challenge, but rather today\u2019s reality. Success requires understanding both AI\u2019s capabilities and its proper role in legal practice. The future belongs to those who can adapt while upholding their professional responsibilities, making programs like this essential for lawyers at every stage of their careers. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“Lawyers who use these tools will replace lawyers who don’t,” warns a top innovation officer at Carolina Law’s packed AI ethics program, where 230 attorneys learned why artificial intelligence isn’t tomorrow’s challenge but today’s reality.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":2565,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2538"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2538"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2538\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2656,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2538\/revisions\/2656"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2565"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2538"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2538"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazine.law.unc.edu\/march-2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2538"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}