December News You Can Use

IRL / URL

A collection of interesting finds across the web (URL) and updates on where to meet with the Lupl team in real life (IRL).

• Cat Moon and Mark Williams Launch the New Vanderbilt AI Law Lab (VAILL). Our take - Law schools are going all in on AI, too. Vanderbilt Law School announced the launch of Vanderbilt AI Legal Lab (VAILL), led by Cat Moon, Director of Innovation at Vanderbilt’s Program on Law and Innovation, and Mark Williams, Associate Director for Collections and Innovation at the Massey Law Library. This new initiative aims to explore how artificial intelligence can transform legal services and access to justice. VAILL's mission focuses on harnessing AI, particularly GenAI, to improve the delivery of legal services and expand access to legal knowledge. The lab emphasizes an ethically grounded, human-centered approach. It plans to collaborate with various sectors, including courts, law firms, and legal aid organizations, to develop prototype AI applications addressing real legal needs. Ethics are a foundational aspect of VAILL, with an emphasis on teaching students the practical uses of AI in law practice and its broader policy and societal implications. Vanderbilt’s law librarians will play a critical role in assessing new AI tools, and the lab is seen as a "risk-free" testing ground for innovations in legal education.

• What does reliability mean when it comes to legal AI? Our take - Reliability is crucial for professional-grade AI products and encompasses more than just avoiding errors like hallucinations in large language models. It involves developing AI solutions specifically for law, integrating both AI and legal expertise, and maintaining high privacy and security standards. Reliability also means prioritizing the law in AI development, requiring domain-specific expertise, and ensuring that the product meets the long-term needs of legal professionals. Furthermore, a reliable legal AI tool builds a proven track record in legal tech and offers sustained support and partnership, not just a product. This includes understanding user needs, providing consistent support, and being responsive to customer feedback and the evolving needs of the industry.

• Antitrust disruption could accelerate next year, specialist says. Our take - The Biden Administration's intensified focus on antitrust laws could have big impacts in 2024. Key initiatives include proposed merger guidelines, revisions to the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) process, and a ban on noncompete agreements. Colin Kass, a partner at Proskauer Rose and head of its antitrust practice, notes these changes are significant, especially the ban on noncompetes, which will likely face legal challenges. The proposed changes to the HSR process are also substantial, requiring companies to provide detailed information upfront, including a narrative for the deal, projected revenue streams, data on previous acquisitions, labor market impacts, and a transactional analysis of market conditions. This represents a shift from the past, where companies could passively wait for regulatory feedback. Kass highlights the administration's changing view of antitrust law, evident in the proposed merger guidelines, which he describes as a return to a 1960s-era enforcement approach focusing on industry-level activity. These changes could lead to instability, as future administrations might replace these guidelines, potentially impacting how courts view and use them in antitrust rulings.

• OMG, China Has ACTUAL Legal Robots And All The Legal Tech Patents. Our take - China's advanced use of legal technology, which includes actual legal robots and a dominant position in filing legal tech patents, is aimed at modernizing the practice of law. In the Chinese justice system, robots assist litigants with case filing, cost estimation, and success predictions, while AI advises judges on sentencing for specific crimes. This technology is designed to assist rather than replace lawyers. The ripple effect of AI's role is highlighted by its use in legal aid centers, where it helps users prepare their cases. The result is a reduced burden on courts and expanded access to legal knowledge. The article points out that while China's use of legal tech is innovative, it's also motivated by regulatory and control aspects, like monitoring for corruption. The article also notes that China's dominance in legal tech patent filings is part of a broader national strategy and does not necessarily imply global leadership in legal tech innovation.