As Artificial Intelligence (AI) increasingly enters professional practices across various sectors, a new frontier of legal challenges is emerging.
This article explores the evolving landscape of professional negligence claims arising from the use of and reliance on AI technologies. As professionals add AI tools into their daily work, questions of liability, the standard of care, and the boundaries of reasonable reliance on AI systems come to the forefront of legal discourse.
The intersection of AI and professional negligence
Professional negligence, traditionally labelled as the failure of a professional to meet the standard of care expected in their field, is being reshaped by the arrival of AI. As AI systems become more sophisticated and widely used, professionals must navigate a complex ground where the lines between human judgment and machine-driven decisions are ever more blurred.
Key areas of concern:
1. Failure to meet evolving standards of care: As AI becomes more prevalent, the expected standard of care in many professions is likely to include expert use and interpretation of AI tools.
2. Inadequate understanding or vetting of AI systems: Professionals could be held liable for utilising AI systems without sufficient understanding of their capabilities, limitations, and potential biases.
3. Overreliance on AI: Too much dependence on AI outputs without human oversight could lead to negligence claims.
4. Failure to detect or correct AI errors: Professionals may be expected to identify and rectify mistakes or biases in AI-generated results.
Sir Georffrey Vos, Judge in Auckland and Auckland has said:
“The time will surely come in every professional field, where those widely recognised practices and procedures will include the use of AI.
At the same time, they will undoubtedly be faced with claims by those who suffer loss when a human, rather than a machine, advises them as to an investment or a financial decision, a medical diagnosis or taking a medication, building a bridge or wiring a power station, or so many other possible things.
Indeed, lawyers will always, I think, be needed to explain the legal position to clients, even if the advice and decision-making is undertaken or assisted by machines.
But subject to those caveats, I cannot see individuals and businesses accepting lawyers charging, for example, for armies of paralegals and assistant solicitors to check IPO documentation that a machine can check for nothing.
I cannot see clients paying large sums for manual legal research to be undertaken when specialist AI-driven research tools exist, as some do already.”
Sector-specific implications
Legal practice
Law firms and solicitors using AI for legal research, document review, and case prediction face potential risks such as:
– Absent crucial case law or statutory provisions due to restrictions in AI research tools
– Incorrect assessment of case outcomes based on AI predictive models
– Breach of client confidentiality through insecure AI data processing
Financial services
The finance sector’s adoption of AI for investment strategies, risk assessment, and fraud detection can bring potential liabilities:
– Investment losses due to imperfect AI-driven market analyses
– Incorrect credit decisions based on biased AI algorithms
– Failure to detect financial fraud missed by AI systems
Engineering and architecture
The use of AI in design and modelling proposes new elements of professional responsibility:
– Structural failures resulting from overreliance on AI-generated designs
– Inadequate safety measures in AI-optimised systems
– Errors in AI-assisted urban planning and development
Legal considerations and potential defenses
Establishing the standard of care
Courts will likely grapple with defining the appropriate standard of care for AI use within various professions. Factors may well include:
– Industry norms and best practices for AI integration
– The level of AI understanding reasonably expected of professionals
– The sense of balance via human overseeing and AI independence
Causation and foreseeability
Claimants in AI-related negligence cases may face challenges in establishing causation, particularly when AI decision-making processes are opaque. Courts may need to consider:
– The extent to which AI outputs were determinative in professional decisions
– Whether adverse outcomes were reasonably foreseeable given the known limitations of AI systems
Potential defenses
Professionals facing negligence claims related to AI use may consider issues, professionals must ensure that when they are demonstrating AI they are using it in line with the professional practices.
It’s also worth ensuring a human can verify and oversee the procedures taking place as well as using AI and most importantly that clients are informed about the use and limitations of AI in professional services.
Regulatory and policy implications
The growth of AI-related professional negligence claims is likely to trigger regulatory responses and policy changes:
– Professional bodies may need to update codes of conduct and ethical guidelines to address AI use.
– Officials may consider new laws or amendments to current statutes to clarify liability in AI-assisted professional services.
– Regulatory agencies might apply certification or testing requirements for AI systems used in professional contexts.
Comment
As professional practices continue to be transformed by AI, the legal framework surrounding professional negligence must evolve to address new encounters.
Professionals must stay up to date about AI developments, maintain a careful balance between innovation and caution, and implement robust oversight mechanisms. The Courts, meanwhile, face the difficulty of adapting traditional negligence principles to this new technological paradigm. As this area of law develops, it will be vital for professionals, policymakers, and legal experts to collaborate in shaping a framework that promotes innovation while safeguarding professional standards and client interests.
This article is for information only and does not constitute legal/financial advice. Please contact us for advice tailored to your specific position. Some of the content presented on our website has been generated with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). We ensure that all AI-generated content meets our high standards for accuracy and relevance.
