For a law firm, the question concerns intellectual property, confidentiality and professional secrecy.
The point is to benefit from AI without losing control of files, internal analyses and the firm’s know-how. Before using a tool, it is necessary to understand how data is collected, stored and possibly used to improve the models.
Why legal data must remain under control
A law firm constantly produces content that has value: analyses, contracts, internal notes, strategies and arguments developed for its clients.
When an AI tool processes this information, it is essential to know exactly what it does with it. The risk appears in particular when content is collected automatically or reused to train a model without a sufficiently clear framework.
This question goes directly to professional secrecy. A legal strategy or a confidential analysis must not leave the framework agreed by the firm and its client.
The choice of a solution must allow the professional to keep control of their documents and of how they are used.
Text mining and the use of legal content
Text mining consists of automatically analysing large volumes of text in order to extract information or to feed machine-learning systems.
In a legal context, public content must be distinguished from the confidential documents of a firm or a client.
A tool that uses the files submitted to it to improve a model can create a confidentiality risk. Before uploading sensitive documents, the firm must check the provider’s contractual rules and the intended uses of the data.
The aim is simple: the files entrusted to the tool must serve the work requested, without being reused for other, unforeseen purposes.
Knowing where an analysis comes from
When AI produces an answer, the lawyer must be able to understand which sources it is based on.
An answer with no clear origin is difficult to verify. It then becomes hard to distinguish reliable information from an interpretation produced by the model.
Traceability allows the professional to retrieve the texts used, check their relevance and complete the analysis with their own reasoning.
AI thus remains an assistance tool. Validation and responsibility for the final result remain human.
Preserving the value of legal expertise
The analyses produced by lawyers represent years of training, research and experience.
The question of their use to develop AI systems is also an economic one. Firms and authors need to know whether their content is reused, under what conditions and with what rights.
A clear contractual framework makes it possible to specify who retains the rights to the documents, the analyses and the data used by the platform.
This transparency helps protect the firm’s know-how while still allowing new tools to be used.
Why data hosting matters
Where data is stored and processed is one of the important criteria for legal work.
Infrastructure located in Switzerland can make it easier to control data flows and limit transfers to other jurisdictions.
The hosting location is not enough on its own, however. Access rights, encryption, processors and the rules on using files to train the models must also be checked.
These precautions are particularly important for files that contain sensitive personal or commercial information.
Family files are one example, as explained in our article AI and family law. The measures stated by Silex are presented on the security and professional secrecy page.
Complying with the Swiss framework
Using AI does not remove existing obligations on data protection and confidentiality.
Before adopting a tool, the firm must understand where the information circulates, who can access it and under what conditions it is retained or deleted.
The requirements depend in particular on the type of data processed and on the professional context.
Our article AI and data protection sets out in more detail the rules to take into account.
Informing clients about the use of AI
Transparency with the client is important when AI tools are involved in the handling of their file.
Depending on the context and the data concerned, the firm must determine what information should be communicated and whether a specific agreement is needed.
The client must above all be able to understand the role of the tool, the precautions taken to protect their information and the fact that a professional remains responsible for the final analysis.
For the perspective of a person who uses legal AI themselves, see our guide to legal AI for individuals.
Checking the results produced by AI
AI can produce factual errors, incorrect citations or an interpretation that is too general for the context.
Important results must therefore be checked before they are used in a file, a contract or a communication to the client.
The professional must check the sources, place the answer back in the context of the file and decide whether the reasoning proposed is actually relevant.
The speed of the tool must not replace this verification step.
The main criteria for how to choose a legal AI assistant are set out in a dedicated article.
Training lawyers to use AI
The arrival of AI also requires new skills.
Lawyers must learn to ask precise questions, check sources, recognise a fragile answer and understand how the data is processed.
Training should cover both the practical use of the tools, data protection and the limits of automated analysis.
The aim is to allow the professional to use AI without delegating their judgment to it.
In short
Before using AI on legal files, check what it does with the data, where the data is processed and whether it may be used to train models.
Also make sure that the sources remain verifiable and that important results are subject to human review.
AI can speed up research and analysis, but know-how, strategy and responsibility must remain under the lawyer’s control.
To see examples of integration into everyday work, read the announcements about Silex in WinLex and SkyLex, Silex and MCR Solutions and Bordier & Cie adopts Silex.
The product, solutions and pricing pages present Silex’s offering. To test the tool on a real question from the firm, you can book a demo.
