The U.S. Supreme Court has warned against “dehumanizing the law” with AI.
In its 2023 Year-End Report on the Federal Judiciary, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. honed in on the pros and cons of using artificial intelligence in the legal system.
Roberts stated that AI will be beneficial to those who cannot afford an actual lawyer and can tackle “basic questions.”
“For those who cannot afford a lawyer, AI can help. It drives new, highly accessible tools that provide answers to basic questions, including where to find templates and court forms, how to fill them out, and where to bring them for presentation to the judge — all without leaving home,” he wrote.
However, he noted that humans are “fairer” than machines, which he dubbed “just, speedy, and inexpensive.”
“In criminal cases, the use of AI in assessing flight risk, recidivism and other largely discretionary decisions that involve predictions has generated concerns about due process, reliability and potential bias,” Roberts explained.
“At least at present, studies show a persistent public perception of a ‘human-AI fairness gap,’ reflecting the view that human adjudications, for all of their flaws, are fairer than whatever the machine spits out,” he added.
Although he doesn’t see AI suddenly taking over the entire legal system, Roberts said lawyers will have to learn how to work with AI.
“I predict that human judges will be around for a while. But with equal confidence, I predict that judicial work — particularly at the trial level — will be significantly affected by AI. Those changes will involve not only how judges go about doing their job, but also how they understand the role that AI plays in the cases that come before them,” he stated.
