ChatGPT Should be Admitted to Practice Law in Colorado. Talk Amongst Yourselves.

Tags: Artificial Intelligence

Event Video

Presented by the Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative Collegiate Program at Colorado Law, the Colorado Access to Justice Commission, and Silicon Flatirons.

Featuring Presentations, Panel Discussions, and Q&A

Nationwide, individuals who lack access to resources necessary to navigate the legal system are systematically disadvantaged. Colorado is no stranger to this difficulty. As a 2021 report from the Colorado Access to Justice Commission found, “Coloradans increasingly face civil justice issues that impact vital human needs, like housing, safety, family, physical and mental health, and economic security.  Most people must try to resolve these issues without legal help, despite being ill-equipped to navigate an unfamiliar and complex civil justice system alone.”

Technology is seen by some as a scalable solution to help address widespread access to justice shortcomings. The past year has seen a remarkable surge in the ability of generative artificial intelligence (“Generative AI”) to produce sophisticated content. Generative AI products, such as OpenAI’s GPT-4, creates content that is inexpensive and – with some notable caveats – often highly valuable. Legal practitioners, scholars, and technologists now use – and refine – Generative AI’s ability to create legal content.

This event explores whether Generative AI tools should be embraced as part of the solution to access to justice woes. It examines specific access to justice shortcomings, the state of Generative AI tools, and weighs the pros and cons of more widespread use of Generative AI in connection with legal counseling. This event also takes a close look at the Colorado Rules of Professional Conduct, with a view towards what is currently permissible under the rules, and whether some rules might need to be reconsidered. Finally, this event considers – most fundamentally – what it is to be an attorney and how to serve a client’s best interests. 


AI Ethics Series

The AI Ethics lecture series returns for a second year with new topics and featured speakers at Colorado Law, with a livestream registration option for those who are unable to attend in-person. September 26, 2023 | October 24, 2023 | Spring 2024 dates to be announced.

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Sessions

10/24/23 5:00pm - 5:30pm
Networking Reception

Light dinner and refreshments provided.
10/24/23 5:30pm - 5:40pm
Welcome and Introduction
  • Brad Bernthal
    Executive Director | Entrepreneurship Initiative Director, Silicon Flatirons
  • Elisa Overall
    Executive Director, Colorado Access to Justice Commission
10/24/23 5:40pm - 6:10pm
Opportunities and Peril at the Intersection of Technology and Access to Justice

This discussion highlights specific access to justice shortcomings, the state of Generative AI tools, and weighs the pros and cons of more widespread use of Generative AI in connection with legal counseling.
10/24/23 6:10pm - 6:40pm
ChatGPT Should be Admitted to Practice Law in Colorado

This discussion poses a thought experiment: what if GPT-4 were to be admitted to the Colorado Bar? Mr. Lynch will argue that the technology is ready to replace, or compute with, human lawyers. This thought experiment leads us to consider – most fundamentally – what it is to be an attorney, how much of the attorney’s work need be done by a human, and what it is to serve a client’s best interests.
10/24/23 6:40pm - 6:50pm
Break

10/24/23 6:50pm - 7:20pm
Technology, Access to Justice, and the Rules of Professional Conduct

This discussion takes a close look at the Colorado Rules of Professional Conduct. It considers what uses of Generative AI currently comport with the Rules. And it examines whether some rules might need to be reconsidered in the not too distant future.
10/24/23 7:20pm - 7:40pm
Audience Q&A and Closing Remarks

Know What’s Next