I began writing at the start of the year about the “world’s first robot lawyer” and the idea of automating the legal system (https://donotpay.com/about/), starting from the premise of the news circulating online on this subject — a provocative and intriguing headline for a lawyer who has practiced long enough to be considered part of the profession.
“The DoNotPay app is home to the world’s first robot lawyer,” states the website of DoNotPay Inc., a U.S. company headquartered in San Francisco. (https://donotpay.com/learn/terms-of-service-and-privacy-policy/)
Joshua Browder, its CEO, describes the company as a chatbot and promotes the “world’s first robot lawyer” with the slogan:
“Fight corporations, beat bureaucracy, and sue anyone at the press of a button.” (https://donotpay.com/about/)
DoNotPay’s declared mission is to use artificial intelligence to help consumers fight large corporations and solve their issues, such as contesting parking tickets, bank fees, and suing “robocallers” — entities that initiate a phone call from an automated source to deliver a prerecorded message (according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary definition of “robocall”). (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/robocall)
To better understand the concept and workings of a “chatbot company,” it is important to keep in mind that we are talking about Artificial Intelligence (AI) software — a robot that has an initial program but also the capacity to “learn” by processing human language, following decision-tree logic, and even “holding a real-time conversation” with a human interlocutor.
DoNotPay explicitly states that:
- it is not a law firm, but merely provides a platform with legal information and tools for users to “self-help”;
- all legal-related content available on its website is provided for personal use and does not constitute legal advice. (https://donotpay.com/learn/terms-of-service-and-privacy-policy/)
Although it claims to be “home of the world’s first robot lawyer,” the company makes sure to specify the following:
“If you need legal advice for a specific problem, you should consult a licensed attorney. Because DoNotPay is not a law firm, please note that any communication between you and DoNotPay may not be protected by attorney-client privilege.” (https://donotpay.com/learn/terms-of-service-and-privacy-policy/)
Trying to create a logical correlation between the information provided by DoNotPay leads to a somewhat confusing conclusion: although it presents itself as home to a lawyer — even if a robot — it acknowledges its inability to provide legal advice.
Under these circumstances, one may ask: is the message promoted by the American company honest? Can we truly speak of a “lawyer”?
In other words: can the legal profession be exercised by artificial intelligence, or is this noble and ancient profession exclusively reserved for human intelligence — and will it remain so?
Will we one day find job postings for robot lawyers on the website of the Bucharest Bar Association or the National Union of Romanian Bar Associations? And how close might such a future be?
In the Romanian online space, we already find announcements such as “Hire a RoboChat” (https://robochat.ro/) and informational messages such as:
“Hello! I am Ana, the virtual consultant from Raiffeisen. Your feedback is very important for improving my services, which is why my answers come with a rating scale attached. To provide answers, you do not need to mention any personal data. How can I help you?” (https://www.raiffeisen.ro/chatbot/).
While virtual consultants are already present in other industries (banking, HR, customer service), in the legal field digitalization and artificial intelligence should remain only tools — useful and necessary — at the disposal of lawyers.
At the level of the European Union, according to estimates published in May 2022, “the amount of data produced worldwide will grow from 33 zettabytes in 2018 to 175 zettabytes in 2025 (one zettabyte equals one trillion gigabytes).”
(https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/ro/headlines/priorities/inteligenta-artificiala-in-ue/20200918STO87404/inteligenta-artificiala-oportunitati-si-pericole)
As in any other matter subject to analysis, both the opportunities and the risks arising from the use of AI must be responsibly and correctly weighed, since artificial intelligence depends not only on its core programming but also on the data it uses — data that can be intentionally or unintentionally distorted.
Will we witness the disappearance of the legal profession, which is said to have been born from human intelligence? Certainly not.
And if such a thing were ever to happen, it would only result in a simulation of justice, one vulnerable to accidental or manipulated distortions — because it is the essence of justice that the spirit — which can only be human — ensures that the application of the law results in fairness.
Human relationships — including the relationship between lawyer and client and, very importantly, the relationship between judges and the lawyers defending the rights of the parties — must remain above “the press of a button,” as encouraged by DoNotPay. If we accept only button-pressing, if we give up asserting and respecting our humanity, then the “Terms and Conditions” sections on chatbot company websites will no longer contain any disclaimers (however disingenuous) distinguishing the so-called “robot lawyer” from true legal professionals.
Artificial intelligence can learn — sometimes faster and better than human intelligence — but can it create? Can it replace the demiurgic spirit?
These questions should not remain rhetorical.
The answers and reasoning offered here do not constitute a self-serving defense of the profession.
They are intended simply as a starting point — an invitation to dialogue that may bring clarity to the rhetoric surrounding AI, which often errs by either minimizing or exaggerating the place and role of AI, a creation of the human mind.