As society alters, so do its needs, and a serviceable legal system must be able, in its development to take account of new social, political and economic requirements.[1] – Salmond
Ever since the dawn of history, man has been imbued with the proclivity to finding a better way of doing his tasks. It is, therefore, no exaggeration to say innovation has been a product of society. From time immemorial, technological advancement has been a vital tool to achieving efficiency in professional tasks, and of course, law practice cannot take exception. Technology and development are duo Siamese concepts that are inseparable. However, the role of law in every society that is driven by innovation and technology cannot be overemphasized.
In Nigeria, there is a barrage of problems bedeviling the Nigerian legal practice which serves as a palpable impediment to its sustainability. Ranging from slow delivery of judgment, access to justice, poor legal representation etc., It is becoming a staggering reality that the hitherto prestige that is inherent in the legal profession is fast evanescing. To say the least, the fate of the legal practice in Nigeria is further exacerbated by the unprecedented occurrence of the covid-19, which has egregiously affected the wave of operation in every business facet. Therefore, an urgent need for a radical shift towards thinking out of the box, to achieve effectiveness and efficiency of legal practice and make the same sustainable is necessary by embracing human imitating machine called Artificial Intelligence.
Right from its coinage in August 1955 and its subsequent publication in 1956, John Mc McCarthy and his fellow researchers have brought to global prominence, the term Artificial Intelligence (AI) which is simply a technological device that behaves intelligently using skills associated with human intelligence, including the ability to learn, reason and act automatically.[2] Going by the 3 functions highlighted above i.e the ability to learn, reason (classify, conceptualize and generate rules) and act automatically in synergy with the indispensability of law as an instrument to development, it can therefore be said, emphatically, that the role of Artificial Intelligence in creating a sustainable law practice, particularly, in developing country like Nigeria cannot be overemphasized. Without much ado, I would, at this juncture discuss, under 4 headings, the roles played by Artificial Intelligence in creating sustainable law practice in Nigeria… Click this link to continue reading in the #4 2021 Edition.
[1] Salmond on Jurisprudence 12th edition, a p. 65.
[2] Marsden, P., Artificial Intelligence Defined: Useful list of popular definitions from business and science. Retrieved from http://www.digitalwellbeing.org/artificial-intelligence-defined-useful-list-of-popular-definitions-from-business-and-science/
