A recent article on Legal Week raised concerns that AI was damaging or somehow making junior attorneys less competent. While AI is just the latest boogeyman, the fear that technology somehow robs the people wielding it of knowledge and skills is not a new concern. Plato and Socrates famously lamented the written word could have the same effect centuries ago. 

The fear of advanced technology is as old as technology itself and is especially prevalent in the practice of law. The law partners quoted in Roberts’ article lamented about junior attorneys missing out on a “well-rounded” education or failing to develop key critical thinking skills as a result of replacing manual tasks with AI-powered technology.