OMAHA, Neb. (CN) — Artificial intelligence is changing the legal profession, but American Bar Association president Mary Smith said it can never replace key traits required to be a good lawyer.
“At its heart, law is about humanity and AI removes that from the practice of law,” Smith, in Omaha for an ABA conference, said in an interview with Courthouse News Service. “Having empathy relating to your client, and using your imagination are all part of being a lawyer.”
Smith, a member of the Cherokee Nation and the first Native American president of the ABA, also highlighted how lawyers may have a role in protecting democracy, along with her artificial intelligence concerns.
“I believe the threat to democracy is the most important issue right now,” she said.
Smith created a Task Force for American Democracy, chaired by former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson and former federal judge J. Michael Luttig.
“Lawyers have a special duty to protect and defend democracy because, each of us … we take an oath to uphold the constitution and the rule of law. And we’re essentially the keepers of democracy and the ABA is uniquely positioned to address it,” she said.
The working group consists of a who’s who of the right and left — including former Democratic U.S. representative Dick Gephardt, businesswoman and one-time Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina, conservative commentator Bill Kristol and journalist Judy Woodruff.
“The threat is the growing lack of trust in our election systems and in our institutions like our courts. So, you see people do not believe elections are conducted fairly,” she said. “You see that people think that prosecutors are motivated by political motives rather than following the law.”
Social media fuels this distrust, she said, without pointing the finger at a particular political ideology or figure.
“It’s bigger than one person, unfortunately,” Smith said.
Smith also said individual lawyers should not be afraid to speak up and defend institutions, particularly the courts.
“We see our judges being attacked every day and no judge should be attacked for simply doing their job,” she said. “And often judges are not able to speak up for themselves, so lawyers, and in particular bar associations, should speak up to protect judges and for court administrators’ safety and security.”
A solution might be to boost civics education in the United States — in high schools, but also in law school.
“You see (civics) disappearing from high schools, but it really hasn’t been at the forefront of a lot of law school curriculum either,” she said.
Smith also identified AI as a key concern — evidenced by her creation of a Task Force on Law and Artificial Intelligence that has six working groups: AI and the legal profession, AI and access to justice, AI governance, generative AI, AI risk management and AI and the courts.
“We are, I think, one of the only organizations taking a comprehensive look at it in the field of law,” she said. “There actually have been few, if any, laws and regulations passed on it in the United States.”
It’s still too early to tell how AI will change how the law is practiced, she said.
“I hope that it’s used as a tool, that will supplement, and be another tool that lawyers can use in their practice,” she said. “I am also cautiously optimistic that it will enhance the practice of law. It may evolve certain areas of the law or the way we practice law, but I see a future for lawyers.”
Smith also said she hoped that, as the first Native American president of the ABA, she could be an example to others.
“There are still too few Native Americans in the legal profession,” she said. Only one-half of one percent of lawyers are Native American.
Under her leadership, the ABA has sought increased funding for tribal courts, increased funding for the Indian Health Service and worked to make the Amber Alert system more effective in tribal communities.
“I am really heartened,” she said. “I know in the early years, maybe 20 years ago, there would be me and one other person. And now there is a very strong group, a committed group, of Native American lawyers who are very active in the American Bar Association.”