Artificial intelligence, or “AI,” has been a buzzword in recent years. Interestingly, AI has actually been around for much longer than you may think. The term artificial intelligence was officially coined in 1956 at a conference at Dartmouth College. Since then, technology has become much more sophisticated with increased data volumes, advanced algorithms, and improvements in computing power and storage. These advancements may explain why it has taken until recently to hear so much more about AI.
Before diving into the ways in which AI could impact family law, let’s first explore what AI is from a broad perspective. AI is a set of technologies that enable computers to perform a variety of advanced functions. This may include but is not limited to the ability to see, understand and translate spoken and written language and analyze data. The driving factor behind AI is the algorithms that essentially set the rules to guide the analysis and the way in which AI systems learn and improve through exposure to vast amounts of data. Fun fact – AI helped curate some ideas included in this article!
AI in Family Law
The ideas for how AI can be used in family law are endless, and the technology will only get stronger as it takes on new inquiries and larger sets of data. Some examples of how AI can be used in family law cases include:
- Document review and summary – legal professionals, as well as financial experts, know that “document dumps” are an important part of every case. We also know that sorting through the hundreds and sometimes even thousands of documents we receive is incredibly time-consuming. AI technologies have the ability to review a batch of documents, summarize the types of documents and even extract relevant information so that at a high level you know what is included in your large batch of documents.
- Identify risk areas in sets of data – this concept falls more into the scope of financial analysis, but it is immensely important for family law cases. AI has the ability to analyze a set of data and identify areas of abnormalities or areas of high risk. Two examples come to mind when considering issues we often see in family law matters. One concern is unreported and underreported income. It is not uncommon that we see cases in which one party does not believe income is accurately reported on the parties’ tax returns. This requires us to analyze a large set of transactions in order to determine if funds coming in are accurately reflecting what is being reported on tax returns. AI can help us analyze that data in a quicker, more efficient way. Another example is the search for undisclosed accounts. When one party believes the other is hiding assets, AI can help us scan through bank statements and identify funds being transferred to different accounts, some of which may not have been disclosed.
- Scheduling – as financial experts and family law attorneys take on more and more cases, scheduling meetings can become an increasing challenge. AI can help mitigate the burden of scheduling by reviewing a person’s calendar and identifying all of the “available” time slots. One example of this technology is an application called Scheduler AI. It can sync multiple calendars, so all you have to do is prompt it to find a time slot by simply sending it an email. The email could read something as simple as “Scheduler, find us a time next week” and it will find time on the calendars associated with the email addresses that are included in the prompting email.
- Email summaries – with large workloads come large quantities of emails from current clients, potential new clients and other attorneys. AI technologies have the ability to review a large batch of emails and summarize each one. You can even prompt it to point out specific things like dates or times embedded in the emails. This can help professionals prioritize how to respond to each email.
Risk Factors
The above examples just brush the surface of AI’s capabilities and how we can apply them to family law cases. With all of these ideas, we are left to wonder: What risks could be associated with relying on AI?
- Confidentiality – several AI applications retain queries and share inputs with third parties; therefore, it is important to review terms and conditions to ensure you are maintaining the confidentiality that is expected in family law professionals.
- Security and privacy – similar to confidentiality, the examples given above regarding AI analyzing data would require that sensitive information, like bank account numbers, be shared with the technology. This further emphasizes the need to utilize trusted AI tools that comply with data protection regulations.
- Human touch – AI lacks the personal and empathetic aspects of legal advocacy. Relying too heavily on AI risks removing the emotional connection that is often involved in family law matters.
So the question remains: can AI replace real people, and more specifically, can AI replace family law professionals?
The short answer is no. While AI will continue to assist family law professionals, it is unlikely to fully replace them. Technology will evolve to provide even more sophisticated tools to support the legal practice, but the human element will remain essential.
GBQ’s Forensic & Dispute Advisory Services team stands ready to provide sound advice and support. Click here to learn more.
Article Written By:
Abby Abbott
Forensic & Dispute Advisory Services Senior
