By Bennett Borden & Victoria Carrington
Artificial intelligence is no longer theoretical for the legal profession. It is already reshaping how attorneys research, draft, collaborate, and advise clients. In a recent Utah State Bar–hosted discussion, Bennett Borden, founder and CEO of Clarion AI Partners and chair of the Utah State Bar AI Standing Committee, joined Victoria Carrington, a patent attorney and member of the Bar’s Innovation in Law Practice Committee, to walk through practical AI tools lawyers can start using right now.
Their message was clear: AI can dramatically improve efficiency and quality, but only when used thoughtfully, securely, and with appropriate professional oversight.
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General-Purpose AI: Powerful Starting Point
ChatGPT by OpenAI
One of the most widely recognized tools discussed was OpenAI’s ChatGPT. At its core, ChatGPT allows users to input natural-language prompts and receive human-like responses in seconds. For lawyers, this makes it a strong ideation and drafting assistant.
Common use cases include:
- Brainstorming legal arguments or issues
- Drafting initial outlines or sample language
- Explaining complex legal concepts in plain English for clients
For attorneys concerned about confidentiality, the paid business version was emphasized as a better fit for legal practice, as it offers enhanced security controls and prevents user data from being used to train public models.
Importantly, the speakers stressed that ChatGPT works best when prompts are detailed and contextual—and that outputs should always be reviewed and refined by the attorney.
Turning Your Documents Into a Knowledge Base
Google NotebookLM
Another standout tool was Google’s NotebookLM, which allows users to upload documents, links, and materials and then ask targeted questions across that content.
For legal professionals, this opens the door to:
- Querying deposition transcripts for specific admissions
- Summarizing case law on targeted legal standards
- Generating timelines or issue breakdowns
- Even creating podcast-style audio summaries of dense material
NotebookLM effectively becomes a personalized, searchable knowledge repository—particularly useful in litigation-heavy or document-intensive practices.
AI Where Lawyers Already Work
Microsoft Copilot
For firms already embedded in Microsoft 365, Microsoft Copilot offers seamless AI integration across Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, and Teams.
Practical applications include:
- Revising document tone and structure directly in Word
- Summarizing long email threads before meetings
- Drafting client communications or internal memos
- Analyzing spreadsheets or preparing presentations
Because Copilot operates inside tools lawyers already use daily, adoption can be faster and less disruptive, especially when paired with the professional licensing version that includes enterprise-grade protections.
Smarter Meetings and Follow-Ups
Zoom AI Companion
Video conferencing is unavoidable in modern legal practice, and Zoom’s AI Companion helps reduce the administrative burden that follows.
Key benefits include:
- Automatic meeting summaries
- Action-item tracking
- Draft follow-up emails
- Organized notes from whiteboards and discussions
For transactional lawyers managing complex negotiations or multi-party deals, these features can save hours of post-meeting work and reduce the risk of missed details.
Building Advanced Legal Workflows
Notion AI
For attorneys ready to invest in more sophisticated systems, Notion AI offers powerful workflow and knowledge-management capabilities.
Notion AI allows lawyers to:
- Organize cases, deadlines, documents, and client communications in one system
- Build repeatable workflows for intake, drafting, and case management
- Instantly retrieve notes or materials across matters
While Notion has a steeper learning curve, it can deliver significant returns for practices that rely on structured, repeatable processes.
Legal-Specific AI: Purpose-Built for the Law
Beyond general-purpose tools, the speakers highlighted the importance of AI platforms trained specifically on legal content. These include products such as Westlaw’s AI tools and LexisNexis’s Lexis+ AI.
For Utah attorneys, Lexis+ AI is particularly notable because:
- It is trained on authoritative legal databases
- It reduces the risk of hallucinated citations
- It supports legal research and drafting with grounded sources
- Utah State Bar members have access to dedicated resources and discounts
Even with legally trained models, however, the presenters emphasized that AI is not infallible.
The Most Important Reminder: Lawyers Remain Responsible
A central theme of the discussion was professional responsibility. AI tools can produce work comparable to that of a junior associate, but just like associate work, everything must be reviewed, verified, and quality-controlled by a licensed attorney.
Under the Rules of Professional Conduct, lawyers remain responsible for every filing, communication, and representation made to clients, courts, and opposing counsel, regardless of whether AI assisted in the process.
AI is a powerful assistant, not a substitute for legal judgment.
Curious, Courageous, and Careful
The closing message to Utah lawyers was one of optimism and balance. AI can eliminate much of the repetitive “grunt work” that has traditionally consumed early legal careers, freeing attorneys to focus on strategy, counseling, and advocacy.
The recommendation was simple:
- Be curious—ask the tools how to use them
- Be courageous—experiment responsibly
- Put guardrails in place—and always review the work
More educational content is forthcoming, and attorneys are encouraged to monitor the Utah State Bar’s AI resources page and reach out to the AI Committee or the Innovation and Law Practice Committee with questions.
AI is already changing how law is practiced in Utah. With the right tools and mindset, lawyers can ensure it changes the profession for the better.
This blog was written with AI assistance from the transcript of the video discussion produced by Bennett Borden and Victoria Carrington.