AI: Is the law ready?

We are at a crossroads in the regulation of artificial intelligence. In the EU, lawmakers are reaching ever-closer to an agreement on the flagship EU AI Act which is likely to have a global impact akin to the GDPR. China, perhaps surprisingly, continues to regulate AI at pace. Meanwhile, in the UK, Rishi Sunak announced last week that the UK will not 'rush to regulate' AI, thereby dampening any expectations that the UK’s Safety Summit this week will result in meaningful legislative proposals.

In the US, the eagerly-anticipated White House Executive Order was issued on Tuesday, paving the way for a wide range of measures to be adopted in the US to address the risks of AI. One of the most interesting features of the executive order is the clear acknowledgement of the risk of job displacement, which has not yet received much attention in regulatory proposals or state-level AI policy. The executive order states that one of its overarching principles is to support American workers and that, accordingly, 'AI should not be deployed in ways that… cause harmful labor-force disruptions'. More tangibly, the US secretary of labor is mandated by the executive order to develop principles which should address, amongst other things, 'job-displacement risks' arising from the use of AI.

Multiple research papers have shown that the legal profession is one of the most vulnerable to AI. Powerful generative AI models are already demonstrating an ability to undertake legal research, review contracts and summarise legal documents. Given the current rate of technological advancement, AI might fundamentally alter the practice of law.

With these trends and factors in mind, the City of London Law Society (CLLS) – the professional representative body for solicitors and law firms in the City of London – has established a specialist AI Committee, of which I have the honour of chairing. The CLLS AI Committee will aim to make important contributions to policy discussions around the regulation of AI and other legal issues relating to AI technologies, not just in the legal sector but also more widely.

Wider engagement at an AI policy level has never been more crucial and lawyers play an important role in this process, not least given the impact that AI will have on the legal profession. Today’s generation of lawyers – who have grown up with technology and are increasingly adopting it in their professional roles – have already lived through multiple examples of the application of societal efforts at digital regulation; notably, the GDPR. These lawyers can draw upon this experience to offer valuable insights into how future digital regulation should be shaped.

If AI is going to fundamentally alter our profession, let alone wider society, then lawyers must be part of that change – not playing catch-up.

Minesh Tanna is global AI lead at Simmons and chair of the City of London Law Society AI Committee