​As part of its responsibility to build and share knowledge, and stemming from its keenness to enhance awareness of the accelerating changes in legal work, the Government of Dubai Legal Affairs Department held its fourth law conference titled (Legal Challenges Associated with the Use of Artificial Intelligence) to discuss the impact of the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence on the practice of law.

The conference, which was held virtually and attended by more than (1,100) participants from local and federal government entities, legal practitioners from advocacy and legal consultancy firms, academics and university students from law colleges, discussed the impact of technical changes and their challenges on the legal sector, and showcased best practices of the use of artificial intelligence in the legal profession.

Future Readiness

 In his opening speech, His Excellency Dr. Lowai Mohamed Belhoul, Director General of the Government of Dubai Legal Affairs Department, stated that dealing with modern technology is no longer merely employing technical tools to develop a service or improve the experience of its users, and is no longer a choice that we can do without in all walks of life. Instead, technology has become inevitable and a basic requirement for interacting with reality and preparing for the future, especially as we face daily new challenges thanks to the limitless creative aspirations of the human mind and its tremendous technological achievements, which require institutions to harness future-ready skills and capabilities, and at the same time impose ambitious policies that can be inclusive of the promising opportunities offered by this modern technology.

His Excellency Dr. Belhoul explained that the conference comes in line with the strategies and legislation related to artificial intelligence in the UAE in general and the Government Dubai in particular, to create a safe environment for the use of AI, in accordance with legislative frameworks that accommodate its risks that come with this technological revolution, particularly in the legal sector which is interconnected with various sectors.

Directives of the Leadership

His Excellency Dr. Belhoul stated that when the Department included its mission in the updated strategic plan, which stipulates “to provide an innovative service which enhances the competitiveness of the government and professional legal sectors in Dubai, and their contribution to sustainable development in the Emirate through proactiveness and digitalization", it realizes its responsibility in playing a key role in shaping the future of legal work, as adopted by a pioneering system in government work, whose visions are shaped by the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, and the implementation of its plans and strategies as followed by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai, and His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, First Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance.

The Director General of the Department concluded his speech by emphasizing the importance of these forums in enriching legal knowledge, and praised the questions raised in the forums which pave the path for other scientific forums in the future.

Conference Sessions

The law conference, whose sessions were moderated by Dr. Juma Obaid Al Falasi, Director of Advocates and Legal Consultants Affairs Directorate, included thirteen presentations. Several speakers were from the Government of Dubai Legal Affairs Department. Dr. Bashar Malkawi, who addressed the intersection of AI generative works and copyright law and raised questions on the requirement of human authorship and the need for disclosure when it comes to machine-generated work. Dr. Bashar highlighted, in his presentation, some lawsuits related to copyright involving artificial intelligence in the U.S. and referred to the general principles of copyright law in the United Arab Emirates, and the challenge that may arise as a result of the use of advanced technologies.

Legal Counsel Reda Al-Sayed discussed the practice of legal professions in the era of artificial intelligence and the challenges related to the protection and privacy of data, and the compliance with laws and legislation. He explained that the use of this technology will make a radical change in the practice of law and will improve the efficiency of legal work before courts. However, the use of artificial intelligence will face many challenges requiring enacting of new legislation to keep pace with future challenges.

Regarding the efforts to keep up with Legislation regulating artificial intelligence applications, Legal Counsel Ahmed Maher and Legal Counsel Ahmed Al-Rihani discussed Law No. (9) of 2023 regarding the operation of autonomous vehicles in the Emirate of Dubai. The two speakers touched on the key changes witnessed in the UAE to create an integrated, supportive legislative environment for autonomous vehicles which depend on artificial intelligence, in addition to the future of this unique legislation.

Dr. Amal AlBareshi discussed the legal and ethical responsibility for work generated by artificial intelligence within a legislative framework regulating the use of applications of this technology, and the necessity of reconsidering the legal nature of smart machines by granting them a legal status and legal personality as companies, and considering the legal principles regulating artificial intelligence and its ethics to achieve more effective regulation of artificial intelligence.

In the same context, Legal Consultant Ossama Zayed discussed, in his session, responsibility arising from illegal acts generated by artificial intelligence, and pointed out the threats, risks, damages and errors associated with the use of advanced digital technologies, and the importance of identifying a person to be responsible for the damages as a result of such use.

In turn, Hilda Wehbi tackled in her presentation the risks and challenges of contractual practices with artificial intelligence suppliers and referred to the questionnaires and statistics related to the use of artificial intelligence by legal practitioners and judicial authorities, which show that there is great concern due to the presence of violations regarding literary and intellectual works.

The law conference also saw the participation of legal consultants from registered advocacy legal consultancy firms. Andrew Fawcett spoke about the increasing importance of artificial intelligence systems and their constant evolving nature in providing service. Andrew explained the position of legal practitioners on the integration of artificial intelligence in legal work, and the importance of establishing the necessary rules to ensure that artificial intelligence is used effectively in a manner that enhances the rule of law.

Hamad Abdullah spoke about the guarantees for intellectual property protection in the use of artificial intelligence, which play a vital role in encouraging innovation. Hamad also talked about the impact of artificial intelligence on intellectual property processes, and the challenges related to reproducing protected works without the consent of the original owner of the work. Hamad Abdullah concluded his presentation by calling for creating an effective legal framework that keeps pace with technological developments and protects intellectual property rights,

Sergejs Dilevka touched on the role of artificial intelligence in settling disputes, due to its ability to predict decisions and outcomes with high accuracy in some legal cases, which contributes effectively to improving dispute settlement processes and reducing lawsuits brought before courts.

In turn, Ben Gibson discussed global legislative practices in regulating the use of artificial intelligence, and using it to combat many major crimes, and pointed to the increasing risks associated with it.

In his session, Munir Suboh discussed the legal responsibility in cybercrimes through the use of artificial intelligence systems, stressing the readiness of the UAE's legislation to confront privacy violations and data protection policies, and to combat cybercrime, and pointed out the responsibilities associated with the use of artificial intelligence when used to spread misleading and false data.

Nasser Khasawneh tackled in his session the challenges associated with artificial intelligence from a legislative perspective, and cited some of the legal principles regulating artificial intelligence in the European Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, China, and United Arab Emirates.

Charles Dersahakian addressed the challenges of practicing legal professions in the era of artificial intelligence, in light of the latest advancement of this technology in legal practice, and pointed out the importance of verifying the validity and accuracy of the data provided by this smart software, as many clients do not prefer to deal with machines in sensitive matters, due to the lack of responsibility for potential errors caused by AI-based software.