Equalizing justice : harnessing AI for litigants without lawyers / L. Karl Branting ; with Mia Bonardi.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Branting, Karl, Author.

Bonardi, Mia, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Law--Technological innovations.

Law.

Justice, Administration of--Technological innovations.

Justice, Administration of.

Pro se representation--Technological innovations.

Pro se representation.

Artificial intelligence--Law and legislation.

Artificial intelligence.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xxix, 356 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2026.

Summary:

Millions of individuals worldwide struggle to understand and assert their legal rights without legal representation. Equalizing Justice examines how AI and other technologies can address this access to justice crisis by providing unrepresented litigants with knowledge and skills traditionally available only through lawyers. This volume takes a needs-first approach, identifying tasks that unrepresented litigants must complete and mapping specific technologies to each task, such as generative AI, computational logic, and document automation. The book highlights real-world applications, demonstrating proven impact, and presents case studies and interviews to explore both the potential positive outcomes and potential challenges of AI for access to justice. Equalizing Justice proves that AI technologies offer unprecedented opportunities to create equitable justice systems serving everyone, not just those who can afford representation, and that legal AI assistants should be treated as a public good accessible to all. In honor of Karl Branting, 100% of the royalties from this book will be donated to a nonprofit organization that uses artificial intelligence to expand access to justice.

Contents:

The Global Access to Justice Crisis

The Language Gap

The Needs of Civil Litigants

Introduction to Generative AI

The Origins of Legal AI

Computational Logic

Machine Learning

Document Automation

Interactive Legal Technologies

Putting It All Together

Online Dispute Resolution

Applications of Generative AI for Access to Justice

Today's Access to Justice Systems

The UPL Barrier

AI Assurance

Technical Methods for Evaluating AI Applications for Legal Tasks

Institutional Reforms for AI in Legal Services.

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 28 Jul 2026).

ISBN:

1-009-77948-6