Plan for AI legal assistants in England and Wales ‘cannot replace funding and staff’, lawyers say

David Lammy to announce trial of AI assistants in crown courts in effort to cut backlog of cases

A plan to roll out virtual legal assistants powered by artificial intelligence to crown courts has prompted warnings that the technology should not be used to “replace vital funding and additional court staff”.

David Lammy, the deputy prime minister, will announce on Tuesday that AI assistants will be trialled in an effort to cut the backlog of court cases in England and Wales.