The Provision of Legal Services to Consumers Using LawTech Tools: From “Service” to “Legal Product”

Abstract

We need legal services, but not always and, in any case, lawyers. There are other companies on the market, real business structures, which represent a highly recommended alternative to traditional law firms. These companies, mostly known by the English term "LegalTech" startups, offer their "products" to the final consumer. In this sense, they are able to facilitate access to, for example, writing of documents, the presentation of claims or the possibility to finding a suitable lawyer for the consumer's case for free or at a very low cost. "LawTech" tools are especially suitable for small claims that, otherwise, and despite the European process established for that purpose, would not be suited. On the other hand, the provision of a "legal product" entails the provision of a "digital service or digital content", so the issue should be linked to the recent and controversial Directive (EU) 2019/770, of Parliament European and of the Council of May 20, 2019 regarding certain aspects of the contracts for the provision of digital content and services. To distinguish between the provision of the legal service and the provision of the digital service or digital content is not always an easy task and, nevertheless, it is meaningful because it will affect the determination of the applicable norms; for example, regarding the lack of conformity or the mistakes or biases of the algorithm. Likewise, the explainability of the algorithm is a first-order issue in consumer's protection, in relation to the pre-contractual information that should be supplied to them.

Legaltech and Lawtech: Global Perspectives, Challenges, and Opportunities

“…In line with the above, there are those who propose the differentiation of how Legaltech implies the digital transformation of the legal profession, emphasizing the idea of Legaltech as tools for lawyers (Navas 2019). Lawtech, on the other hand, is the concept of tools that replace lawyers, and also feature a high component of artificial intelligence and other computer science techniques.…”

Law Without Lawyers: Examining the Limitations of Consumer-Centric Legal Tech Services

“…High legal costs have resulted in an untapped market with unmet legal needs (McGinnis & Pearce, 2014;LawTech UK, 2021). The prohibitively high cost of legal services has disproportionately impacted low to middle-income earners who either earn too much to qualify for pro-bono or find it difficult to justify hiring a lawyer for specific claims (Graham, 2020;Brescia et al, 2015;Navas, 2019). This predicament has created a justice gap, presenting a ripe ground for legal innovation (Brescia et al, 2015).…”

“…This predicament has created a justice gap, presenting a ripe ground for legal innovation (Brescia et al, 2015). This latent market is receptive to legal tech as a more affordable alternative to traditional legal services (LawTech UK, 2021;Navas, 2019).…”

“…It is a transformation that is pushing the law into uncharted territory, shifting how the world interacts with the law, and challenging the conventional role of lawyers. Susan Navas (2019) calls it a new world of law without lawyers, reflecting in her paper that 'legal services are required, but not always lawyers', like the common adage in the finance world that banking services are needed but not always banks.…”

“…Literature review shows that the continued growth of legal tech is expected to bring significant disruptions in the legal field (Webb, 2020;Susskind, 2003;Susskind, 2008;Susskind, 2023;Brascia, 2023a;Navas, 2019). These disruptions are expected to impact legal structures and institutions, presenting both opportunities and challenges across substantive law, legal practice, legal education, and even the very concept of law itself (Caserta & Madsen, 2019;Brescia, 2023a;Whalen, 2022;Giuffida et al, 2018).…”