Last month the Lewis & Llewellyn team got together for some friendly competition over a few rounds of ping pong at SPIN in San Francisco. It was a great event, and we are already looking forward to the next one!
Author: Caroline Recupero
The march of Artificial Intelligence appears to be inevitable and speculation is rife as to whether AI language models like ChatGPT will replace lawyers. While AI models have the potential to assist lawyers and enhance efficiency in legal research and fact discovery, it is unlikely that they will be able to replace lawyers entirely:
- Dispute resolution involves a high degree of interpersonal communication and negotiation, which requires emotional intelligence and social skills that AI models do not possess. Lawyers must be able to communicate effectively with clients, judges, and opposing counsel, and to negotiate complex legal settlements that take into account the needs and interests of all parties involved.
- Dispute resolution requires more than an understanding of legal concepts and principles; the key skill is analysis and application of legal principles to specific cases and situations. AI models can provide suggestions and recommendations based on patterns in data, but they do not have the ability to identify or understand legal nuances and subtleties, to make intuitive judgments, or to draw on their own experience and expertise to craft persuasive legal arguments.
- Caution is warranted even in the realm of legal research because, at least at this time, AI model’s responses are not always reliable. According to OpenAI, ChatGPT “sometimes writes plausible-sounding but incorrect or nonsensical answers . . . because there’s currently no source of truth.” Indeed, the quality of data on which AI models are trained is just as important as the quantity of data on which it is trained. If the data is incomplete or biased in some way, ChatGPT may provide incomplete or biased results.
That said, the potential for AI to process vast amounts of data and generate intelligible insights promises to enhance the efficiency of human lawyers, allowing firms that adopt these innovations to deliver better, cost-effective outcomes to its clients.
Paul Llewellyn’s bestselling book Unshackled: Reimagining the Practice of Law is now available on audiobook! 
A must-listen for every lawyer, aspiring lawyer, or those simply interested in the legal profession, Unshackled is a call to action for establishing a more service-oriented and satisfying profession. From how we train lawyers and bill hours to how we service clients and market ourselves, the legal system is outdated and long overdue for a wake-up call. In Unshackled, Paul reimagines the practice of law as a more humane and human-centered career, presenting a practical plan for improving the lives of lawyers and their clients.
Purchase the audiobook on Amazon, Audible, Apple, and Audiobooks.com.
As a part of our continued expansion, Lewis & Llewellyn is very pleased to welcome Peter Squeri to the firm.
Before joining Lewis & Llewellyn, Peter practiced for more than 10 years at the San Francisco office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP. At Gibson Dunn, he represented leading companies and individuals in complex civil litigation and investigations. As an experienced trial lawyer, Peter has helped numerous clients achieve trial victories in state and federal courts, as well as in private arbitrations. The addition of Peter to the firm’s deep bench of experienced attorneys further strengthens our ability to handle litigation of any size or complexity.
Lewis & Llewellyn attorney Olivia Bona was recently featured in an ABA Journal article entitled “How young attorneys are shaking up law firm culture.” The article, available here, focused on how firms such as Lewis & Llewellyn are fostering the next generation of legal talent, allowing them to have better work-life balance that is so often lacking at many firms.
Last week Paul sat down with Michael Mogill in Atlanta to discuss his best-selling book, Unshackled: Reimagining the Practice of Law, for an upcoming episode of Michael’s podcast, The Game Changing Attorney. Every episode focuses on law firm entrepreneurs and market leaders who challenge the status quo and define what it means to be a game changer.
At Lewis & Llewellyn, we are dedicated to providing a space for high-achieving young adults to explore their interest in the law. We are particularly committed to enabling individuals from groups under-represented in the legal profession to gain access to mentorship, professional development, exposure and hands-on training to fast track their future legal careers.
In furtherance of this mission, Lewis & Llewellyn created our Annual Equity Fellowship geared towards undergraduate students who want to see behind the scenes and gain valuable experience in the practice of law. Applications for 2023 are now open!
This individual will work as a critical member of our team, assisting attorneys and staff with investigations, legal briefing, analyzing evidence, and much more across a wide variety of substantive legal areas in commercial litigation. The program will also offer opportunities to see the life cycle of a litigation, observe hearings and depositions, and receive one-on-one mentorship with our attorneys.
This fellowship is a paid opportunity.
Interested candidates may apply by sending a resume and a short personal statement (250 words maximum) to careers@lewisllewellyn.com.
As a part of our continued expansion, Lewis & Llewellyn is very pleased to welcome Nitesh Daryanani to the firm.
After earning his law degree in India, Nitesh received an LLM from UC Berkeley and transferred his practice to the Bay Area. Prior to joining Lewis & Llewellyn, Nitesh practiced at the San Francisco offices of Morrison Foerster LLP and Latham & Watkins LLP. With more than ten years of experience in both the United States and India, including significant trial and arbitration experience, Nitesh brings to the table a unique blend of legal aptitude and cultural awareness.
As California’s premier litigation boutique, Lewis & Llewellyn looks forward to continuing to welcome the best and the brightest attorneys from the world’s leading law firms who are looking to practice at the cutting edge of litigation.
Last month a divided Ninth Circuit panel ruled that California employers can require workers to sign an arbitration agreement as a condition of employment. This is a reversal of the panel’s September 2021 ruling which allowed partial enforcement of A.B. 51, which California enacted to protect employees from “forced arbitration.”
The panel decided to revisit the case following the United States Supreme Court’s ruling in Viking River Cruises v. Morian, which the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the California Chamber of Commerce argued invalidated the law. In this ruling, the Supreme Court upheld that the Federal Arbitration Act preempts state laws, such as A.B. 51, that aim to limit arbitration agreements. “Because the FAA’s purpose is to further Congress’s policy of encouraging arbitration, and A.B. 51 stands as an obstacle to that purpose, A.B. 51 is therefore preempted,” the majority Ninth Circuit panel stated in its opinion.
This win for California employers allows them to continue to mandate arbitration agreements with employees without the potential of civil or criminal liability. However, this may not be the end of the story. California employers would be well-advised to continue to track developments on this issue as the State of California evaluates its next steps and response to this ruling.
Earlier this month, we celebrated the launch of Unshackled surrounded by clients and friends in San Francisco! It was a wonderful event, and we look forward to many more to come.
