For lawyers, defensible AI means more than simply providing an answer when asked about AI. It means being able to demonstrate that the process behind the use of AI was reliable, transparent, and compliant. A defensible decision is one that can withstand an audit and maintain clients’ trust.
This way of working has required lawyers to be thorough for ages—even long before AI entered the picture. Legal practice has always depended on maintaining clear evidence structures, citing sources meticulously, and being prepared to verbally defend one’s reasoning and conclusions. AI has not changed these expectations; it has simply introduced new tools that must fit within this longstanding culture of rigor.
For lawyers, this requires explainability, documented audit trails, secure handling of confidential data, and human oversight.
AI defensibility first
The promise of AI is undeniable and the legal industry has taken note. In recent research from Ari Kaplan Advisors, 81% of partners and senior lawyers say that AI will be essential to stay ahead in the coming year. And, with faster reviews, lower costs, and shorter turnaround times, it’s easy to see why. But focusing only on speed means missing the bigger picture. In legal practice, a tool that produces unreliable or opaque results is not a productivity gain—it’s a risk.
Task-focused AI agents
A path forward lies in purpose-built, agentic AI—systems designed for clearly defined legal functions. This “path” refers to an approach that prioritizes narrow, well-scoped tasks over broad, opaque general-purpose AI. Rather than attempting to automate everything, these agents focus on specific, repeatable legal workflows where transparency and traceability can be preserved.
These agents can classify documents, detect sensitive information, or flag potentially relevant materials, always providing clear references and citations so lawyers can make their own judgments. The key is transparency.
Defensible AI in practice
One of the clearest examples of AI defensibility by design is how Opus 2 Cases handles citations. Lawyers rely on solid evidence to support their arguments, and Opus 2 ensures that every AI output is grounded in linked, verifiable sources. It delivers precise source references with every output, so lawyers always have the documentation that supports their work at hand.
This means no more guessing where a statement came from, no blind trust in black-box outputs, and no risk of fabricated references. By linking citations to every answer, Opus 2 provides the transparency and reliability that clients and judges demand.
What it means for lawyers
So, what should you do as a lawyer? Communicate with clients how you use AI in their matters. Understand and explain how AI operates within the tools you use and role in case strategy and preparation. You should also be prepared to explain where I your workflow AI came into play and how you applied your legal expertise when overseeing and assuring correctness.
In addition, it goes without saying that defensible AI and security are two sides of the same coin. No matter how good one is, if the other one is missing, the tool is still useless because trust collapses. Therefore, always be ready to answer basic questions about security. The questions most often asked include: Where is the data stored? How do I know it is secure?
Conclusion
Adding AI-powered technology to your toolkit isn’t about saving as much time as possible at any cost. It’s about building systems that accelerate and enhance your work without undermining trust. AI should elevate your work, not compromise it. Defensible, secure systems like Opus 2 help you work faster and maintain the standards of transparency and oversight your clients rely on. That balance, not speed alone, is what makes AI for lawyers truly valuable.
