How to get the benefits of AI while maintaining your professional responsibilities.
AI tools can summarize documents, prepare first drafts and speed up research. The professional duties that apply to the rest of your work apply here too. The ABA addressed generative AI in Formal Opinion 512 (2024); your state bar may have its own guidance.
Competence
Understand what the tool does well and where it fails. Treat every output as a draft and verify facts, quotations and citations against the original sources before relying on them.
Confidentiality
Know where client information goes when you use a tool, how it is stored and who can access it. Check the provider's terms before entering confidential information.
Supervision
Set firm rules for when and how staff may use AI tools, and review their AI-assisted work the same way you review any other draft.
Communication and fees
Consider whether clients should be told about AI use on their matter, and make sure billing reflects the actual work performed.
Keep a human decision-maker
AI can help you work faster, but judgment, advice and the final product remain the lawyer's responsibility.