Tabe of contents

1. Introduction:
1.1. Research area
1.2. Problem statement
1.3. Research questions
1.4. Research objective
2. Literature review
2.1. Introduction
2.2. Key concepts
2.3. Conclusion
3. Conclusion
4. List of references
1. Introduction

1.1. Research area

What: The overarching problem areas of our research about the integration
and adoption of artificial intelligence in the legal profession are:
 Ethical and Societal Implications: adoption AI into the legal
profession formally will raise ethical concerns regarding data privacy,
job displacement, and its impact on society. Thus, understanding and
mitigating these implications are crucial for responsible AI integration.
 Regulatory and Legal Frameworks: Aa the evolution of AI and legal
tech persists, regulations around data protection, accountability, and
safety are still in development. Therefore, navigating the legal
complexities and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements is
crucial.

Why: What we have identified is that there are obvious challenges to

integrating AI into the legal profession, but there may be more significant
benefits form integrating AI into the legal profession.

When: The time frame we’ve studied is the past 5 years.

How: Our plan is broken down into 3 aspects – the sequence of steps & tasks
that we will be taking & performing throughout the research; the methods and
tools that we will be using to execute the research plan; and the roles &
responsibilities of each researcher. The 3-aspected plan is as follows:

1. Sequential research steps:

i. Determine our research Objectives
ii. Collect and Analyze data
iii. Conduct a Literature review
iv. Synthesize findings and draw conclusions
v. recommendations

2. Methods and tools used:

i. Content analysis
ii. Interviews
 iii. ProQuest
iv. Google scholar
v. Google forms
vi. Zotero

3. Roles and responsibilities:

Neo Otlotleng Seretse

1. Collect relevant data. 1. Collect relevant data. 1. Collect relevant data.
2. Analyze data. 2. Analyze data. 2. Analyze data.
3. Compile research 3. Compile the problem 3. Compile research
questions. statement. objectives.
4. Conduct Literature 4. Conduct Literature 4. Compile Project
review. review. introduction.
5. Draw Conclusions. 5. Draw conclusions. 5. Synthesize findings.
6. Make 6. Make 6. Make
recommendations. recommendations. recommendations.

Where: The locations of the phenomena we are studying are places in the
world that have a legal system and professionals compared to South Africa.

Who: Those in South Africa who are affected by and will be part of this
research are all legal professionals and their subsequent clients.

1.2. Problem statement

WHO: This problem could potentially affect the following set of people:
 Legal professionals: the various types of individuals who are trained in
the application of law (lawyers, scholars, etc.); they will vary in terms of
high & low expertise, specialization & general practice, age (usually
around 25 years or so to 60 or 65 years old).
 Technological experts: the AI and software experts who will create,
provide and maintain the various functions that will go into AI
integration into the legal profession; depending on the function these
 experts will have different backgrounds (IT, computer science, etc.)
and different levels of skill, experience, educational background, and AI
expertise; with varying ages that can go as low as 16 year olds who
are highly skilled but have not attained formal qualifications.
 Regulatory authorities: the government organs and their regulatory
bodies who oversee the making/augmenting of policies pertaining to AI
integration in the legal profession; the more essential population being
state legal experts; all who have varying degrees of experience & skill
in policymaking, legal technology, and age.
 Clients: the different types of persons (natural & juristic) that acquire or
are at least affected by a legal service; this is everyone and every
business that is affected by a legal service being provided, whether to
them or someone else.
 Educational institutions: the students, scholars, and faculty members of
Law schools and institutions that provide legal training and education;
they may vary in age, field, occupation, pursued profession, and
knowledge of AI and legal tech.

WHAT: there are varying levels of AI integration into the legal profession and
Artificial Intelligence is increasingly being integrated into various Legal
systems around the world; and although it promises enhanced efficiencies,
ethical dilemmas, adoption barriers, regulations, and job displacement still
pose a problem; our variable will focus on the extent that AI is being used
across varying global regions looking at the following components:
 The type of AI application
 The impact on the delivery of legal services
 The ethical and regulatory considerations
 Required training and education
 Regional and international variances

WHERE: The locations of the phenomena we are studying are places in the
world that have made use of AI in their legal systems and by their
professionals compared to South Africa. All these locations will be analyzed
based on the following factors:
 Legal and regulatory environment
 Technological infrastructure
 Cultural norms
 Professional practices

WHEN: the period of the research study will be conducted throughout the
whole of 2024 into the beginning of 2025; and we will be historically looking
as far as the first instance of Artificial technology (or even adjacent) being
used in the legal profession or by legal professionals in order to determine
 how the quality of legal service was before said use, during the use, and all
the uses thereafter.

WHY: theoretically, in comparing AI integration into the legal profession

across different places, we may address the potential to advance our
knowledge and acquire interdisciplinary insights; practically, this research
may pave the way for the enhancement of the South African legal profession,
the creation of a new field (something that encapsulates legal technology),
and furthering scholarly understanding; what we have also identified,
pertaining to the social implications, is that there are obvious ethical
dilemmas, job displacement issues, as well adoption barriers to integrating AI
into the legal profession; but there may be more significant benefits form
integrating AI into the legal profession if we look at international variances and
their standards & regulation.

1.3. Research questions

i. Legal standards and regulations:

 What are the regulations that address the challenges posed by the
integration of AI in the legal profession?
 How well do the regulations address the challenges posed by the
integration of AI in the legal profession?
ii. Job displacement:
 What measures could be employed to mitigate the adverse effects of AI-
integration such as job displacement?
iii. Ethical dilemmas:
 What are ethical dilemmas arising from adopting AI into the legal
profession?
 How could legal professionals handle these dilemmas.
iv. Adoption barriers:
 What are the barriers preventing the adoption of AI in the legal profession?
 How can these barriers be beaten?
v. International variances:
 How have other countries/communities regulated the use of AI in their
legal environment?
 What are the differences and similarities of the adoption/regulation?
vi. Long-term impact and the quality of legal services:
 What are the long-term implications of integrating AI into the legal
environment of South Africa?
  How does the integration of AI in the legal profession impact the overall
quality of legal services provided?

1.4. Research objectives

i. Legal standards and regulations:

 Research Question: What are the regulations that address the
challenges posed by the integration of AI in the legal profession?
 Research Objective: To identify and compile existing regulations
pertaining to the integration of AI in the legal profession.
 Research Question: How well do the regulations address the challenges
posed by the integration of AI in the legal profession?
 Research Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness and adequacy of
existing regulations in addressing challenges associated with the
integration of AI in the legal profession.
ii. Job displacement:
 Research Question: What measures could be employed to mitigate the
adverse effects of AI-integration such as job displacement?
 Research Objective: To explore and propose potential measures for
mitigating job displacement resulting from the integration of AI in various
legal sectors.
iii. Ethical dilemmas:
 Research Question: What are ethical dilemmas arising from adopting AI
into the legal profession?
 Research Objective: To identify and categorize ethical dilemmas that
arise from the adoption of AI technologies in the legal profession.
 Research Question: How could legal professionals handle these
dilemmas?
 Research Objective: To investigate strategies and best practices for legal
professionals to effectively address and navigate ethical dilemmas arising
from AI adoption in the legal profession.
iv. Adoption barriers:
 Research Question: What are the barriers preventing the adoption of AI
in the legal profession?
 Research Objective: To identify and classify the various barriers
hindering the widespread adoption of AI technologies in the legal
profession.
 Research Question: How can these barriers be beaten?
  Research Objective: To propose strategies and recommendations for
overcoming the identified barriers to the adoption of AI in the legal
profession.
v. International variances:
 Research Question: How have other countries/communities regulated
the use of AI in their legal environment?
 Research Objective: To analyze and compare regulatory approaches to
AI integration in the legal profession across different
countries/communities.
 Research Question: What are the differences and similarities of the
adoption/regulation?
 Research Objective: To identify key differences and similarities in the
adoption and regulation of AI technologies in the legal profession across
different jurisdictions.
vi. Long-term impact and the quality of legal services:
 Research Question: What are the long-term implications of integrating AI
into the legal environment of South Africa?
 Research Objective: To forecast and assess the long-term impacts of AI
integration on the legal environment in South Africa.
 Research Question: How does the integration of AI in the legal
profession impact the overall quality of legal services provided?
 Research Objective: To evaluate the effects of AI integration on the
quality, efficiency, and accessibility of legal services in South Africa.