AI SPARKS CONFLICT IN LEGAL SERVICE SECTOR

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Artificial intelligence is used widely these days, including legal services, such as introducing clients to lawyers and even predicting verdicts. However, they have also sparked a conflict between lawyers and service providers.

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A railway station near the Busan District Court. Banners with ads can be seen all over the place. They all advertise an AI service that can introduce lawyers and predict verdicts. When criminal charges are entered in a special app, it churns out a verdict analyzed by artificial intelligence. Because of the popularity of such services, a new term has been coined "legal tech." However, as AI legal services keep expanding, so do, lawyers' complaints. They say such services only cause confusion in the legal market and is vulnerable to spreading misinformation.

[Soundbite] Jeon Kyung-min(Lawyer) : "Instead of verifying and recommending more competent lawyers, the current system is designed for AI legal service providers to recommend lawyers who pay them more. This ultimately is more harmful to the public."

The providers of AI legal services say hasty regulations will only undermine this promising sector.

[Soundbite] Chung Yong-kwon(Startup owner) : "The advantage of AI legal services is automation and high quality service. But regulations are hampering the efforts."

The Korea Bar Association has vowed punitive measures against lawyers who use AI legal services, as they might be in violation of the Attorneys-at-Law Act. Providers of AI legal services, for their part, are threatening to file a suit with the Constitutional Court.