What AI Can and Cannot Do in a Family Law Matter

It is becoming common for clients to arrive at their family law appointment having already asked AI various questions and having received various answers.

Prior to meeting your family lawyer, AI can help you:-

• understand common concepts such as consent orders, parental responsibility, parenting arrangements, and property settlement steps; and

• summarise a list of questions you want to ask your lawyer.

Potential risks of using AI can include treating AI as your family lawyer to give you advice and to draft Court documents. Without knowledge of the Family Law Act, the Rules and Case Law, a client may put themselves in a vulnerable position if they treat the AI as their family lawyer. A document that “sounds right” can still be incomplete, incorrect, unworkable, or expose you later.

Some family law agreements are legally binding only if each person has independent legal advice. No matter how well an AI document is written, it cannot meet that requirement.

Key risk areas of using AI in a family law matter are as follows:-

• parenting: proposing arrangements that don’t match the children’s needs or best interests, don’t address safety issues, or don’t translate into clear, workable orders;

• property settlement: missing categories of property/debt/superannuation, misunderstanding contributions and future circumstances, or producing outcomes that don’t reflect the actual evidence;

• financial disclosure: treating disclosure like a “document list” rather than a positive legal obligation which creates major long-term risks; and

• family violence and safety: using generic language that doesn’t capture risk properly, or suggesting steps that may not be safe for the victim or children; and

• Leaking confidential information to the public, which may be in breach of the Family Law Act.

AI is a useful tool to collate information but should not be used to replace legal advice. It is also important that any time AI is used, the information is verified.

Author: Sanaz Naimi, Director and Accredited Specialist in Family Law