“What skills do you consider most important for your firm?” This question was asked a few months ago to 460 lawyers from some of the largest law firms in Spain, as part of a survey included in the Innovation Beyond Technology report . The top response was that negotiation and decision-making were the most important, with 57%.

Lawyers are aware that a large part of their work involves negotiating and making decisions with different stakeholders: colleagues, partners, clients, the opposing party, etc. But when asked, “What skills do you think have been most affected by technology in your work?”, the answer is communication, at 64%.

The introduction of new technologies and artificial intelligence can have advantages in the practice of law, but it is also important to be aware of the disadvantages they can cause.

The survey yields obvious results: the more artificial intelligence is used, the more communication, which is essential for negotiation and decision-making, can be affected. And inefficient communication leads to inefficient negotiations and decision-making.

Lawyers assisted by AI

We understand communication as a process of exchanging information through the use of verbal and nonverbal elements: assertiveness, empathy, and emotional control. These are the dimensions that can be altered and are key to negotiation and decision-making.

Communication becomes information-based if humans become blurred and disappear as valid interlocutors. If an algorithm transmits information, control over the message is lost. Hence, a legal practice is needed where the algorithm assists, but does not replace, anything. It’s about humans, aided by artificial intelligence, negotiating and making decisions.

Headlines like “ Lawyers find their new partner in artificial intelligence ” are truly revealing.

This scenario requires lawyers to master their interpersonal skills, since, to the extent that they enforce respect and boundaries in their relationships with others, they ensure ethical decision-making.

Among the interpersonal skills to be developed, negotiation stands out. To date, there is no algorithm capable of negotiating, although it can adjudicate reason based on given parameters.

Negotiating is something else: it’s about influencing, creating impact, and strengthening relationships between parties, taking into account the corporate brand being represented and the personal brand of the negotiating lawyer.

Boosting work with AI

Another headline: “ Fake sentences, foreign laws, and data leaks: The risks of using ChatGPT creep into law firms .” News like this draws attention to two points:

1. The importance of ethics when practicing a profession supported by artificial intelligence.
2. The value of human judgment in validating what artificial intelligence asserts emphatically.

The 21st-century lawyer must have legal knowledge, of course, but also technological and interpersonal skills, and a solid ethical foundation to practice the profession with the support of new technologies.

Back to school

The role of law schools is key in this process and must take into account the combination of knowledge and skills necessary for lawyers to perform their jobs. Among these skills, communication stands out, essential for the development of more advanced skills, such as negotiation and decision-making.

The lawyers in the survey found that technology affects their communication skills (and, therefore, their negotiation and decision-making skills). This will only increase as artificial intelligence continues to develop. The way to leverage the benefits of working with artificial intelligence without compromising ethics is through ongoing training for lawyers, either through mentoring from more senior colleagues or through law schools.

Author Bio: María del Pilar Galeote Muñoz is Director of the Cervelló Chair, Professor of Negotiation, Corporate Law and M&A at IE University