ChatGPT Review: Artificial Intelligence for Lawyers

Free vs Paid (ChatGPT Plus)

ChatGPT was the first AI to breakthrough into public awareness in late 2022. It was trained on publicly available information on the internet. The free version’s “learning” stopped in 2021. The paid version includes newer material in its database. For many questions this distinction doesn’t matter, but for others it will. As a family law attorney, for example, you could safely ask the free version for article ideas for newly-single parents. The information’s age is less relevant than, for example, asking for smartphone recommendations.
Other improvements in the paid version include a newer, faster response generator (GPT 4.0 versus 3.5) and priority access during busy times.

Found in Other Programs

While ChatGPT is best known for the chatbot, available the web and mobile apps for iOS and Android, many vendors are building ChatGPT into their own products. These third-party tools could be as simple as a different front-end to ChatGPT to a full-scale incorporation into their product. Rocket Matter, for example, integrates ChatGPT directly into their LPMS.
ChatGPT may exist in or be “coming soon to” something that you already pay for.

A Good Place to Start

In addition to carrying on a “conversation” based on your questions, ChatGPT can summarize documents and spreadsheets you upload and even do creative writing like drafting scripts for commercials. For firms that are true “one man bands” this could be an enormous timesaver. But please remember to think of AI’s answers as a draft from an intern or summer associate, not something that is automatically ready for primetime.”

For general use, people seeking a quick answer on a non-critical question or who’d like to get basic background information on a topic should consider ChatGPT. This tool can also help with creating draft language for websites, blog posts, letters, and marketing materials.