Aarani Stoneham: AI Legal Profession Keynote Drafted by AI

• Aarani Stoneham, general counsel at ModiFace Inc., disclosed using AI to help draft her keynote speech at the third annual Canadian Legal Summit.
• Stoneham emphasized that while AI can assist with research and challenge thinking, human judgment and accountability remain paramount in legal work.
• She argued that lawyers must develop AI literacy to responsibly evaluate, use, and communicate with AI tools, ensuring professional competence.
• Stoneham warned against both fear and "blind optimism" regarding AI, stressing the legal profession's role in ensuring its responsible adoption.
• The summit, attended by over 600 legal professionals, highlighted AI as a major theme alongside other critical issues facing the Canadian legal sector.

Her rationale was clear: it is impossible to effectively supervise, challenge, or provide informed advice to clients on matters one does not comprehend.

The third annual Canadian Legal Summit, held recently in downtown Toronto, convened over 600 attendees and more than 60 speakers to discuss the evolving landscape of the legal profession. A central theme throughout the event was the transformative impact of artificial intelligence on legal practice. Kicking off the conference, Aarani Stoneham, who serves as general counsel and head of legal, data privacy, AI governance, and ethics at ModiFace Inc., delivered a keynote address that immediately highlighted the practical integration of AI.

Stoneham candidly revealed that she utilized an AI tool, which she referred to as "Ben," to assist in drafting her very own keynote speech. She noted that this AI provided support with research and served as a sounding board, challenging her thought processes. However, Stoneham emphasized that the critical elements of judgment, her personal lived experience, and ultimate accountability for the content remained entirely her own. She humorously added that the exact extent of "Ben's" drafting contribution was still subject to negotiation regarding an attribution clause.

Stoneham acknowledged the complex emotions AI evokes within the legal community, describing the current era as potentially exhilarating, overwhelming, and even unsettling. She articulated common anxieties, including predictions that AI could lead to job displacement, disrupt traditional law firm structures, and empower clients to undertake more legal tasks independently. Further concerns she cited extended to societal impacts, such as children forming emotional attachments to chatbots with tragic outcomes, individuals relying on AI for mental health support, and professionals potentially diminishing their own skills.

Despite these varied predictions, Stoneham underscored the undeniable trajectory of technological advancement. She asserted that the legal profession cannot afford either fear or "blind optimism" as a guiding strategy, stating that the core mission of lawyers is to protect rights, challenge power structures, and ensure equitable treatment for all. This foundational purpose, she argued, necessitates that legal professionals actively contribute to the responsible adoption of AI technologies.

A cornerstone of Stoneham's address was her assertion that AI literacy has become fundamental to maintaining professional competence for lawyers in the modern era. She defined AI literacy as the capacity to responsibly evaluate, utilize, and communicate with artificial intelligence tools. Her rationale was clear: it is impossible to effectively supervise, challenge, or provide informed advice to clients on matters one does not comprehend.

Stoneham clarified that this does not mandate every lawyer to become an expert in every new AI tool. Instead, it requires a sufficient understanding of the tools relevant to one's practice to recognize their inherent limitations and to discern when specialized technical expertise is required. This nuanced approach to lawyer AI literacy is crucial for responsible AI legal adoption, ensuring that the profession can adapt without surrendering its core values.

The Canadian Legal Summit, organized by Canadian Lawyer and Lexpert, served as an annual gathering for private practice lawyers, in-house counsel, and legal innovators. While AI was a dominant theme, the conference agenda was comprehensive, featuring over 60 speakers across various panels. The event was structured into three simultaneous streams, catering to specific segments of the legal community.

These streams focused on small and mid-sized firms, AI and innovation, and general counsel and law firm partnerships. Panel discussions delved into a wide array of topics beyond AI, including hiring strategies, succession planning, addressing burnout, the impact of AI on litigation and the billable hour, and complex decision-making challenges faced by general counsel operating under global pressures.

This keynote underscores the growing imperative for legal professionals to proactively engage with AI, not out of fear or blind optimism, but to ensure ethical governance and maintain professional competence in an evolving technological landscape. Lawyers must develop AI literacy to effectively supervise, challenge, and advise clients on AI-related matters, recognizing the need for responsible adoption and understanding its limitations in legal practice.

Source: Original reporting from the Canadian Legal Summit