Embracing the Future: The Law Society of Alberta’s Generative AI Playbook

By Laura J. McPhee and Doug Schweitzer

The legal world is about to change—whether lawyers are ready for it or not. Artificial intelligence (AI) has already started making waves across industries, from tech to healthcare, and now it’s knocking at the door of the legal profession. As AI technologies evolve, the question isn’t whether they will be integrated into legal practices, but how and when. Enter the Law Society of Alberta’s Generative AI Playbook, a guide that provides Alberta’s legal professionals with the tools and the wisdom to navigate this brave new world of AI-driven legal services.

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While some lawyers might find themselves nervously glancing at the AI revolution from the sidelines, the Law Society is making it clear: embracing AI responsibly can enhance your practice—but it comes with a solid dose of responsibility.

What Is Generative AI and Why Should Lawyers Care?

Let’s start with the basics. Generative AI refers to artificial intelligence that can create content. Think ChatGPT, Gemini, or other similar tools—these systems can analyze vast amounts of data and generate human-like text in response to prompts. For lawyers, this means a tool that could, theoretically, draft documents, summarize case law, write letters to clients, and even assist with legal research—all tasks that have traditionally taken hours or even days.

The allure is obvious: AI tools could significantly cut down on routine work, allowing lawyers to focus on more strategic, value-added activities. But here’s the catch—AI, for all its potential, isn’t perfect. And when it comes to law, where precision is everything, that could be a big problem. This is where the Generative AI Playbook steps in, aiming to help lawyers harness the power of AI without sacrificing ethics, client confidentiality, or the integrity of the legal process.

The Playbook: A Roadmap for Responsible AI Use

The Playbook released by the Law Society of Alberta is a direct response to the growing use of AI in the legal profession. It’s designed to guide Alberta’s legal professionals through the challenges and opportunities of integrating AI while keeping them on the straight and narrow. Here are some of the key takeaways:

1. Competence: You Can’t Use What You Don’t Understand

Let’s be honest: AI might seem like magic at first. You type in a prompt, and out comes a document or a legal brief—perfectly formatted and looking pretty professional. But just because AI can do something doesn’t mean it’s always doing it right.

The Playbook stresses the importance of competence. Lawyers are expected to stay informed about technologies that impact their practice, and that includes AI. If you’re going to use these tools, you need to understand what they can (and can’t) do. AI isn’t a replacement for human expertise; it’s a tool to augment it.

This means taking the time to learn how AI works in the context of legal practice—what the output looks like, how reliable it is, and when it might need a professional’s polish. For instance, while AI can draft basic contracts, it still requires the nuanced understanding of a legal professional to ensure that the document is compliant with applicable laws, aligns with a client’s specific needs and protects their interests.

Competence isn’t just about using the tool. It’s about using it wisely.

2. Confidentiality: Protecting What Matters Most

In the legal field, confidentiality isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s a fundamental part of the profession. The Generative AI Playbook makes it clear: AI and confidentiality don’t mix unless carefully managed.

AI tools need data to learn and perform tasks. However, feeding sensitive client information into an AI tool can be a double-edged sword. What happens to that data once it’s in the system? Where is it stored? Does the AI provider use that data for further training purposes? These are all questions lawyers need to consider before integrating AI into their practice.

For example, if a lawyer uses an AI platform to assist with drafting a legal document for a client, the confidentiality of that client’s information needs to be protected. The Playbook recommends that lawyers only use AI tools from providers that can guarantee robust security measures and data protection protocols. Additionally, it’s a good idea to inform clients when AI is being used to handle their matters, ensuring transparency and compliance with ethical obligations.

3. Accuracy: Don’t Trust the AI Blindly

AI is a tool, not an oracle. Trust but verify the outputs.

The Playbook warns that AI-generated content should never be trusted without review. While AI can produce impressive output, it’s not immune to error. In fact, one of the biggest risks of using AI in legal practice is misleading or inaccurate information.

One of the most significant risks associated with lawyers' use of generative AI is the risk of "hallucinations" — when AI produces plausible-sounding but completely fictional information, including fake legal authorities. A cautionary example comes from the United States, where lawyers have already faced disciplinary action for submitting AI-generated case law that did not actually exist. Lawyers must verify the accuracy of AI-generated content before using it in any formal capacity. Just because an AI tool gives you a response doesn’t mean it’s the right answer for your specific situation. As the Playbook says, AI is best used as a starting point, not a final product.

Best Practices for Lawyers Using AI Tools

Recognizing these risks, the Law Society of Alberta’s AI Playbook emphasizes that while AI can be a powerful tool for efficiency, it does not replace the lawyer’s professional judgment. Based on the Playbook and emerging practices, here are some best practices to adopt:

• Always Independently Verify: Treat AI outputs as a starting point only. Carefully verify all legal authorities, citations, and factual content against reliable primary sources. Would you blindly submit a legal brief drafted by a law student? Treat AI outputs with a degree of skepticism.

• Disclose When Appropriate: If you use AI-generated drafts, especially in court submissions or client communications, consider disclosing that AI was used in the drafting process where appropriate or required by court rules.

• Understand the Tool's Limits: Know the capabilities and limitations of the AI tool you are using. Many models are trained on data that may be outdated, jurisdictionally irrelevant, or incomplete.

• Maintain Professional Standards: Remember that duty of competence, diligence, confidentiality, and candour to the court and clients remains unchanged, even when using new technologies.

• Implement Firm Policies: Consider adopting firm-wide policies about when and how AI can be used in legal practice, to ensure consistent and compliant use across your teams.

• Stay Informed: AI technology is evolving rapidly. Ongoing education and review of regulatory guidance (like the Alberta Law Society’s Playbook) is essential to use AI responsibly.

Conclusion: A Tool, Not a Replacement

The Generative AI Playbook from the Law Society of Alberta isn’t just a guide on how to use AI in your practice—it’s a call to embrace the future responsibly. AI has the potential to transform the legal profession, making practices more efficient, effective, and client-friendly. But as the Playbook makes clear, it’s not without its challenges.

By using AI tools ethically and responsibly, lawyers can harness their potential while maintaining the high standards of the legal profession. AI is a tool, not a replacement. It’s here to enhance, not undermine, the value lawyers bring to their clients. So, while the world changes around us, Alberta lawyers have the opportunity to lead the way in integrating new technologies—on their terms and with their professional judgment firmly in hand.

In the end, it’s not about whether AI will be part of the future of law—it’s about how we use it to make that future better.