Ethical Use of AI: Risks, Responsibilities, and Realities for Lawyers

As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly integrated into legal practice, lawyers face new opportunities - and new ethical challenges. From contract review and legal research to eDiscovery and litigation strategy, AI tools are reshaping how attorneys serve clients and manage workloads. But with these tools come significant professional obligations.

In this program, attorney Megan Stumph-Turner provides a foundational understanding of AI technologies used in the legal profession, including generative AI and large language models, and explores the ethical implications of their use. Through the lens of recent state bar opinions and the Rules of Professional Conduct, the program addresses key concerns including confidentiality, competence, supervision, client communication, and bias. Attendees will learn how to responsibly integrate AI tools into their practice while upholding the highest ethical standards.

Learning Objectives:

1. Define and distinguish key AI concepts relevant to legal practice, including generative AI and large language models, and identify common tools lawyers are using today
2. Apply the Rules of Professional Conduct, particularly those addressing competence, confidentiality, and supervision, to evaluate the ethical risks and responsibilities associated with AI use in various legal tasks
3. Identify best practices for safeguarding client confidentiality when using AI, including how to assess providers' terms of service, anonymize data, and determine when informed client consent is required
4. Recognize the dangers of over-reliance on AI tools, including the potential for hallucinated content, data bias, and unauthorized practice of law, and develop protocols for oversight, verification, and independent legal judgment
5. Analyze recent ethics opinions and case law to understand how courts and regulators are addressing the ethical boundaries of AI in legal work, and how to remain compliant