Professor Joseph Regalia’s Scholarship Centers on AI’s Role in Law

Artificial intelligence is reshaping every profession, and law is no exception. For Associate Professor Joseph Regalia, the rapid evolution of generative AI presents both unprecedented opportunities and urgent responsibilities. His scholarship focuses on two core questions: how can lawyers harness AI to expand access to justice, and how can they ensure it is used ethically? As he notes, AI can read, analyze, and synthesize vast amounts of information—making it a powerful tool to empower more people to navigate the legal system. But with its exponential pace of change, mastering AI is not a one-time task; lawyers must continually adapt, learning and re-learning how to use these tools wisely.

Professor Regalia’s widely read article, From Briefs to Bytes: How Generative AI is Transforming Legal Writing and Practice, provides a framework for using AI effectively in legal writing. Another published piece, Lex Ex Machina: Forging a New Ethical Framework for AI and Technology in the Law, tackles how the profession should regulate AI in practice. He is also the author of Level Up Your Legal Writing and is preparing a second edition that integrates AI into traditional writing instruction, exploring how technology can be a powerful tool for attorneys without replacing critical thinking.

In his forthcoming Brains, Bots, and Briefs: Rethinking Legal Practice in the Age of AI, Professor Regalia underscores the need for deliberate, principled use of AI in judicial contexts. He warns against allowing lawyers to become passive “passengers” of technology rather than active “pilots” guiding its course. Through his research and writing, he challenges the profession to ensure that AI enhances—not erodes—the human judgment and advocacy at the heart of the legal system.