Dean William McGeveran Interviewed by InForum About AI Reshaping Legal Practice

Dean William McGeveran, William S. Pattee Professor of Law, was interviewed by InForum about how law schools are dealing with artificial intelligence, now that it is already reshaping the legal practice, particularly in research-heavy and high-volume areas of work. According to Dean McGeveran, AI is increasingly being used for tasks such as document review, legal research, and generating preliminary drafts of briefs and contracts, with some firms already integrating platforms such as Westlaw Advantage with AI-assisted legal research tools into daily practice. But, he emphasized, many core elements of legal work remain deeply human. He said, “AI will never deliver an oral argument, execute a negotiation, counsel a client, or deliver bad news to a litigant. Those interpersonal and analytical skills are still going to require lawyers.”