From AI avatars to virtual reality crime scenes, courts are grappling with AI in the justice system — from whec.com by Rio Yamat
The family of a man who died in a road rage shooting incident played a video showing a likeness of him generated with AI.
Defense attorney Jason Lamm won’t be handling the appeal, but said a higher court will likely be asked to weigh in on whether the judge improperly relied on the AI-generated video when sentencing his client.
Courts across the country have been grappling with how to best handle the increasing presence of artificial intelligence in the courtroom. Even before Pelkey’s family used AI to give him a voice for the victim impact portion — believed to be a first in U.S. courts — the Arizona Supreme Court created a committee that researches best AI practices.
In Florida, a judge recently donned a virtual reality headset meant to show the point of view of a defendant who said he was acting in self-defense when he waved a loaded gun at wedding guests. The judge rejected his claim.
Experts say using AI in courtrooms raises legal and ethical concerns, especially if it’s used effectively to sway a judge or jury. And they argue it could have a disproportionate impact on marginalized communities facing prosecution.
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AI can be very persuasive, Harris said, and scholars are studying the intersection of the technology and manipulation tactics.
Poll: 1 in 3 would let an AI lawyer represent them — from robinai.com
April 29 2025: A major new survey, from legal intelligence platform Robin AI, has revealed a severe lack of trust in the legal industry. Just 1 in 10 people across the US and UK said they fully trust law firms, but while increasingly open to AI-powered legal services, few are ready to let technology take over without human oversight.
Perspectus Global polled a representative sample of 4,152 people across both markets. An overwhelming majority see Big Law as “expensive”, “elitist” or “intimidating” but only 30% of respondents would allow a robot lawyer — that is, an AI system acting alone — to represent them in a legal matter. On average, respondents said they would need a 57% discount to choose an AI lawyer over a human.
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Harvey Made Legal Tech Cool Enough for Silicon Valley to Care Again — from businessinsider.com by Melia Russell
In just three years, the company, which builds software for analyzing and drafting documents using legally tuned large language models, has drawn blue-chip law firms, Silicon Valley investors, and a stampede of rivals hoping to catch its momentum. Harvey has raised over half a billion dollars in capital, sending its valuation soaring to $3 billion.