Jacqueline Ma Publishes Article in The Legal Intelligencer on Traditional Lawyering in the New Age of AI

Olshan litigation counsel Jacqueline Ma authored an article in The Legal Intelligencer’s “Young Lawyers” column (subscription required)  entitled “Traditional Lawyering in the New Age of AI.” In the article, Jacqueline discusses how up-and-coming attorneys must balance mastering tech and AI tools with also cultivating basic math, programming and quantitative skills along with traditional lawyering competencies in story-crafting as well as rhetorical and interpersonal intelligence. Although AI can save time on several rudimentary legal research tasks, human oversight of AI-assisted research is crucial to determine accuracy, trustworthiness and persuasiveness. “In addition to learning how to master new technologies, they must learn how to accurately arrive at the content needed to secure the ‘win’ for their clients,” Jacqueline writes. “Legal technologies can only create or widen efficiencies; it can never replace the interpersonal acts of oral argument, jury presentation, and client communication.” She notes that young lawyers will benefit greatly from learning from their experienced colleagues with thoughtful study of their direct and indirect lessons from litigating cases to jury trials, contract negotiations and more. Learning how to apply professional judgment and personal experiences will help young lawyers add value quickly while they continue to hone their soft skills. “These easy prophecies of AI-dominance forget that, at its core, lawyering requires the application of human judgment,” Jacqueline explains. “Whether to a client, at a hearing, or to a jury, a meaningful presentation often makes the difference between a win and a loss.”