Roger Plawker Discusses New Jersey’s Recent Legal AI Guidelines with Law360
Roger Plawker, Chair of the Attorney Ethics & Professional Misconduct practice at Pashman Stein Walder Hayden P.C., was recently quoted in a Law360 article titled, “Judiciary-Issued Guidelines on AI Use Serve as Framework to Evolving Issues, Attorneys Say.” The article discusses how on March 30, New Jersey judiciary officials issued formal guidance to attorneys and firms on the responsible use of artificial intelligence.
Roger Plawker of Pashman Stein Walder Hayden in Hackensack, New Jersey, said he appreciated the notice's reminder that, “AI may assist with drafting or summarizing, but it does not replace lawyer judgment.”
“The legal industry as a whole is going to need to distinguish itself in this regard, demonstrating that its experience-based judgment provides clients with value that AI cannot replicate,” Plawker said.
A “more complex and evolving issue” around AI tools is how to ensure clients “fully appreciate the potential that their communications and searches with AI could be discoverable in litigation," Plawker said.
“Just as emails and texts, and perhaps Internet searches, became a primary discovery hunting ground for potentially damning communications, AI searches open a new source of discovery,” Plawker said. “One might expect that reliance on AI will be greater than that traditionally seen from ordinary browser searches and that businesses will be judged for the prudence of their reliance.”
Plawker mentioned another concerning area being the use of AI transcription tools for Zoom and other online platforms, necessitating lawyers to be “more disciplined than usual” about who is present on a call and what is disclosed.
“Discovery of such transcript may support a claim of privilege waiver or an argument that the communication is not privileged to begin with,” Plawker said.
To read the full article in Law360, click here.
