AI’s Legal Work Impact Likely on Speed, Not Quality, Study Says

Employing ChatGPT boosts the speed of legal work more than the quality, according to new research—a finding the study’s authors say has implications for the future of the billable hour.

AI led to “consistent and significant improvements in the speed,” of law students’ work on common legal tasks, said Daniel Schwarcz, a University of Minnesota Law School professor and one of the authors of the study.

Using AI enhanced students’ speed by as much as 32%, according to the draft paper, posted Wednesday. While AI use didn’t harm the quality of the work, its benefits varied.

The legal profession ...