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DoNotPay 'robot lawyer' fined 193K by the FTC for not being a lawyer

Engadget

The Federal Trade Commission is taking action against DoNotPay, alleging that the AI-powered company billing itself as "the world's first robot lawyer" failed to back its claims that it could replace human legal representation. The agency's complaint argues that DoNotPay did not conduct tests to assess whether its AI chatbot was equivalent to a human lawyer, and that the company did not hire or retain any attorneys of its own. DoNotPay has agreed to a proposed settlement that would see it face fines of 193,000. In addition, the settlement will require DoNotPay to inform customers who subscribed to its service between 2021 and 2023 about the limitations of its offerings. This proposed settlement is part of an FTC program called Operation AI Comply, which is targeting businesses that leverage artificial intelligence to make deceptive claims.


DoNotPay says it's pivoting from plans to argue speeding tickets in court with AI

#artificialintelligence

DoNotPay says it is pivoting away from plans to bring AI to a courtroom. DoNotPay, which bills itself as "the world's first robot lawyer," said last month that it planned to take on two speeding ticket cases in court in February, with its AI instructing the defendants how to respond to their assigned judges. The startup said it would cover any fines and the defendants will be compensated for taking part in the experiment. But CEO and founder Joshua Browder announced late last month that it would be "postponing" those plans, citing "threats from State Bar prosecutors." "Ultimately, it seemed like a distraction from using chatGPT technology to help with consumer rights issues," Browder said in an emailed statement. "We have decided to focus on consumer rights products, where we are very successful.


World's first robot LAWYER is being sued by a law firm - because it 'does not have a law degree'

Daily Mail - Science & tech

A'robot' that was set to make history for advising the first defendant in court with artificial intelligence (AI) has now been accused of operating without a law degree. The AI-powered app DoNotPay faces allegations that it is'masquerading as a licensed practitioner' in a class action case filed by US law firm Edelson. The chatbot-style tool is centred around making legal information and'self-help' accessible to support consumers fighting against large corporations. But Chicago-based law firm Edelson has claimed the service is'unlawful' and the company itself has'substandard' legal documents. In a file published by the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of San Francisco, the complainant said: 'Unfortunately for its customers, DoNotPay is not actually a robot, a lawyer, nor a law firm.


'Robot lawyer' DoNotPay is being sued by a law firm because it 'does not have a law degree'

#artificialintelligence

DoNotPay, which describes itself as "the world's first robot lawyer," has been accused of practicing law without a license. It's facing a proposed class action lawsuit filed by Chicago-based law firm Edelson on March 3 and published Thursday on the website of the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of San Francisco. The complaint argues: "Unfortunately for its customers, DoNotPay is not actually a robot, a lawyer, nor a law firm. DoNotPay does not have a law degree, is not barred in any jurisdiction, and is not supervised by any lawyer." The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Jonathan Faridian, who said he'd used DoNotPay to draft various legal documents including demand letters, a small claims court filing, and a job discrimination complaint.


Artificial Intelligence is about to defend a human in court 'for the first time ever'

#artificialintelligence

Artificial Intelligence is breaking a new frontier, with a company teasing that their robot will be playing an important part in a trial in court. The AI robot will be the first to advise a defendant in a court of law. The news was shared by the publication New Scientist, which explained that the AI would be in the defendant's phone. The robot would listen in on court proceedings and would then advise the defendant through an earpiece. The AI was developed by a company called DoNotPay, which describes itself as "The World's First Robot Lawyer." The company was founded by Joshua Browder and is described as a chatbot.


AI lawyer stunt off after CEO threatened with jail • The Register

#artificialintelligence

In brief Joshua Browder, CEO of DoNotPay, made headlines for claiming an AI chatbot was due to defend a man in an upcoming court hearing, but has pulled out of the stunt. Browder runs a consumer rights startup that was originally built to help people appeal parking tickets more easily, and has since grown with the aim of building "the world's first robot lawyer." He wanted to show AI could replace expensive human lawyers, using language models to form legal arguments. Earlier this month he claimed to have convinced a man to wear headphones during a court case and recite the output of an AI chatbot in a court hearing scheduled to take place over Zoom. But his behavior caught the attention of prosecutors irked by his reckless antics.


Robot Lawyer Stunt Cancelled After Human Lawyers Objected

#artificialintelligence

DoNotPay has cancelled plans to have its AI-powered "robot lawyer" represent a defendant in a U.S. court after several human lawyer organizations objected to the experiment, according to company founder and CEO Joshua Browder. Browder hoped to make history by becoming the first lawyer to use artificial intelligence (AI) to argue a case in a court of law. As MetaNews previously reported, the plan was to use the company's AI chatbot in a traffic case scheduled for Feb. 22. "After receiving threats from State Bar prosecutors, it seems likely they will put me in jail for 6 months if I follow through with bringing a robot lawyer into a physical courtroom," he tweeted on Jan. 25. "DoNotPay is postponing our court case and sticking to consumer rights." Bad news: after receiving threats from State Bar prosecutors, it seems likely they will put me in jail for 6 months if I follow through with bringing a robot lawyer into a physical courtroom.


AI Lawyer Has A Sad: Bans People From Testing Its Lawyering After Being Mocked

#artificialintelligence

Well, a lot has happened since I first started looking into the "World's First Robot Lawyer," from DoNotPay. First, Joshua Browder, DoNotPay's CEO, reached out to me via direct message (DM) and told me he would get me access to my documents by 2 PM the next day – Tuesday, January 24th – saying that the delay was caused by my account being locked for "inauthentic activity," a term he did not explain or define. Then, Josh claimed he was going to pull out of the industry entirely, canceling his courtroom stunt and saying he would disable all the legal tools on DoNotPay.com. He said he was doing it because it was a distraction, but the fact that he cited exactly the same two documents that I was waiting to receive seemed like a hell of a coincidence. But plus ça change, plus c'est la même fucking chose, as the poet says.


The Morning After: Will AI be your next lawyer?

Engadget

In a new study, University of Minnesota law professors used ChatGPT AI chatbot to answer graduate exams at four courses in their school. The AI passed all four, but with an average grade of C . The University of Minnesota group noted ChatGPT was good at addressing "basic legal rules" and summaries, but it floundered when trying to pinpoint issues relevant in a case. When faced with business management questions in a different study, the generator was "amazing" with simple operations management and process analysis questions, but it couldn't handle advanced process questions. It even made mistakes with sixth-grade-level math – something other AI authors have struggled with.


AI-powered "robot" lawyer won't argue in court after jail threats - CBS News

#artificialintelligence

A "robot" lawyer powered by artificial intelligence was set to be the first of its kind to help a defendant fight a traffic ticket in court next month. But the experiment has been scrapped after "State Bar prosecutors" threatened the man behind the company that created the chatbot with prison time. Joshua Browder, CEO of DoNotPay, on Wednesday tweeted that his company "is postponing our court case and sticking to consumer rights." Bad news: after receiving threats from State Bar prosecutors, it seems likely they will put me in jail for 6 months if I follow through with bringing a robot lawyer into a physical courtroom. Browder also said he will not be sending the company's robot lawyer to court.