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Texas trial lawyer Mark Lanier revealed that his legal team used AI extensively while preparing a lawsuit against Meta and Google. The case ended with a jury awarding the plaintiff $6 million, or more than Rs. 50 crore, after finding the companies negligent in a lawsuit tied to social media addiction and user safety concerns.
Lanier said the technology helped his team review evidence, analyze testimony, and prepare arguments during the month-long trial, dramatically reducing the time required to process large volumes of information.
In large civil cases, there may be many thousands of pages of documentation, including expert opinions, emails, and statements from witnesses. To streamline the process of sifting through such vast amounts of material, Lanier's legal team relied on a platform based on artificial intelligence known as BoodleBox.
According to Lanier, the tool worked as yet another resource for his team, freeing him from having to work with too much documentation. The lawyer claimed that artificial intelligence enabled him and his team to analyze the notes taken by the jurors and experiment with different arguments.
For Lanier, it was imperative that artificial intelligence should not substitute attorneys as decision-makers for the legal team. It is still the role of the attorney to review evidence, formulate a legal strategy, question witnesses, and argue in court.
Artificial intelligence was only there to help make their work easier and more productive. This became relevant in light of the scrutiny by courts on the use of AI in law.
The case arrives as law firms globally test AI-based technologies that facilitate research, contract reviews, document analyses, and litigation. Proponents of the technology claim that AI could make legal processes more efficient.
On the other hand, skeptics claim that lawyers need to be careful when checking AI-derived information after a series of cases involving citation fabrication and false legal references. The case demonstrates the growing role that AI plays in preparing for trials.
