Machine Learning in Law

All industries are regulated by the law. Whether it’s sales, partnerships, purchases, or merges, company actions are all under the provisions of our legal system.

With the global legal services market growing close to $1 trillion, there is no doubt that it is a universal system almost all businesses share. Thus, with the advancement and application of technologies such as machine learning, the practice of law may be changed in drastic ways.

Uses of Machine Learning in Law

Contract Review:

Contracts are the backbone of our economic systems as many business decisions revolve around them. However, in spite of their importance, negotiating and finalizing contracts are extremely tedious. Typically, the legal teams of both sides must edit, review, and exchange documents throughout the lengthy process, causing delays in deals and roadblocks in a company’s goals. However, with new machine learning systems, this process can be sped up significantly as algorithms may be utilized to determine what areas of the contracts are acceptable or unacceptable under the supervision of a lawyer. Presently, companies like eBay and Home Depot have already adopted these machine-learning services in their operations.

Litigation Prediction:

New machine learning models are being developed with the capabilities to accurately predict the outcomes of pending cases. This is done by analyzing the case’s fact pattern and utilizing past trial data as inputs. With this new technology, companies and law firms will be able to better plan their litigation strategies more efficiently. For instance, if the machine learning models predict the failure of litigation in a court case given specific circumstances, a company or law firm woul not need to pursue a case and go to court.

Legal Research:

Traditionally, legal research is a tedious manual process with many law students or firm associates resorting to physically searching through caselaw volumes to find relevant information. However, with the introduction of new computer programs utilizing machine learning, this process has become automated with lawyers and law firms being able to conduct research much faster and more efficiently through algorithms. Examples of such programs include LexisNexis and Westlaw.

Conclusion

No matter the size of a business, the legal aspect of business is unavoidable. Thus, businesses must tackle their legal issues head-on by utilizing technologies such as machine learning. After all, such technologies will only continue to evolve and grow, leaving those who choose not to effectively utilize them behind.