AI’s Impact on Legal Evidence and Personal Injury Law
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is everywhere in our modern world. Everyday things like opening your phone with facial recognition, asking a chatbot a question on a website, or telling Alexa to play your favorite song are all examples. It was only a matter of time before the technology worked its way into the legal system.
Many attorneys have begun to use AI to help with administrative work and legal research. The technology’s ability to comb through an enormous pool of data, find and organize what’s relevant, and condense and summarize the information can increase efficiency and avoid human error.
At Hipskind & McAninch, we realize what a powerful and effective tool AI can be—provided it’s used properly and ethically. We understand implementing AI to handle some of the routine work of busy lawyers and paralegals. But, as we learned in a recent case, some may try to manipulate personal injury evidence using AI enhancement.
If you are hurt in an accident, it’s important to have a lawyer who understands AI’s impact on legal evidence and how it could potentially help or hurt your case.
Artificial Intelligence for Administrative Tasks
There are many valid and ethical ways to use AI in a personal injury law firm. Automating these processes takes a fraction of the time and manpower it would take a legal team.
Discovery. Artificial intelligence can gather all aspects of a case (police reports, witness statements, depositions, etc.), organize it, and summarize it.
Legal Research. Say a client has an accident at a specific intersection well-known for being dangerous. AI can search various platforms for relevant crash data and legal precedents in the blink of an eye.
Case Strategy. AI can identify patterns based on the details of a personal injury case. Analysis can determine a case’s chances of success, how similar cases were argued and won, how long they took to settle, and the amount of damages awarded. These details can help lawyers decide how to proceed and whether to settle or file a lawsuit.
Negotiating. AI can help attorneys negotiate with insurance companies as it can compile data about similar cases, injuries, and compensation.
Document Management. Personal injury cases require the drafting and analysis of a lot of paperwork such as demand letters and settlement offers. Using AI can ensure documents are handled quickly and accurately.
Artificial intelligence for these purposes will help attorneys work faster and more accurately. This can mean that cases will be resolved faster too, and that no stone is left unturned for the highest possible settlement.
AI’s Role in Personal Injury Evidence
In addition to gathering and summarizing personal injury evidence, artificial intelligence can play another role. AI’s impact on legal evidence can extend to accident reconstruction and what is called predictive analytics.
Imagine an accident with no eyewitnesses and little physical evidence. AI software can analyze data such as a car’s speed, braking distance, road conditions, weather, and skid patterns, as well as any photo or video evidence. Then using predictive analytics and probabilities, it can recreate what likely happened.
There are pros and cons to this method of reconstructing events. The results could be considered more objective than a witness statement or even expert testimony. After all, humans may be influenced by faulty memories, perceptions, or biases.
On the other hand, the accuracy of an AI reconstruction depends on the validity of the data being used. If incorrect assumptions are made or if the information is flawed, the results may be skewed.
Uncovering AI Enhancement While Defending Our Client
Hipskind & McAninch recently represented a client in a slip-and-fall case where the defendant’s attorneys tried to use manipulated video footage to blame the victim rather than the business for the incident.
Surveillance video capturing the fall was of extremely poor quality, making it hard to see exactly what happened. Opposing counsel presented a video reconstruction of the incident that was created using “AI enhancement.” In essence, this reconstruction filled in the gaps and glitches of the video with additional pixels, presenting what they claimed was the most likely scenario. A scenario the client and his wife said was inaccurate.
The use of the phrase “AI enhancement” and its implications were a red flag to Hipskind & McAninch. Upon researching the AI photo and video editing company that provided the recreation, it was discovered that their software is not forensic-based. In fact, it explicitly says its software is not recommended for legal or litigation purposes.
Hipskind & McAninch insisted on looking into AI’s impact on the legal evidence of this case, allowing them to have this AI-enhanced video dismissed—helping their client win the compensation he deserved.
The Future of AI and Personal Injury Law
Law firms everywhere are learning about the useful applications of artificial intelligence. The technology can make a lot of tasks more efficient, saving lawyers—and their clients—time and money. But like any innovation, AI can have both positive and negative implications.
When lawyers introduce personal injury evidence created by AI, it’s important to have a firm like Hipskind & McAninch that has experience in examining its validity. Just as other expert witnesses may be called in to help a case, forensic video experts might be needed to confirm the reliability of an AI enhancement. Artificial intelligence is here to stay and AI’s impact on legal evidence will undoubtedly grow. As it becomes more common, it will likely become more accurate and reliable. Until it can be trusted completely, trust Hipskind & McAninch to protect your interests and get you the compensation you deserve.
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AI Enhancement, AI’s impact on legal evidence, personal injury evidence