From Innovation to Infraction: Legal Liability in the Age of AI Citations

By Drew Viguet National Agricultural Law Center U of A System Division of Agriculture July 8, 2025 Fast facts: Water markets...

Here is my recent Daily Record column. My past Daily Record articles can be accessed here. **** Puerto Rico Reboots Ethics Rules: Tech Innovation Required The times they are a-changin’ and State Bars are struggling to keep up. Technology is advancing more rapidly than ever, with software powered by artificial intelligence (AI) impacting the way that work gets done. Some lawyers are increasingly experimenting with these tools, while others are reticent to adapt, fearing the risk of implementation missteps or inaccurate results. Bar association ethics guidance has helped to pave the way for more informed technology adoption, but with the exponential rates of innovation occurring, more drastic measures are needed to bridge the gap for tech-averse lawyers.  Enter the Puerto Rico Supreme Court, which updated its Rules of Conduct in mid-June to include forward-thinking amendments that usher in a technology-first era of law practice. You can find…

The second Trump administration has made clear its intention to prioritize an “America First,” “peace through strength” foreign policy that reasserts its idea of a “safer, stronger, and more prosperous America,” ostensibly controls spending, and turns U.S. taxpayer dollars to serve its perception of American interests abroad. Yet, the administration’s abrupt approach and tactical inconsistency raises serious questions about the prospects of fulfilling the goals they have set for themselves and the nation. Plans to cut programs that prevent or secure accountability for mass atrocities — genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity — are among the multiplicity of moves that seem to run counter to the administration’s own objectives. Most recently, for example, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), run by Russell Vought, the architect of Project 2025, has proposed gutting funding for a range of war crimes…

Wise Law's Employment #LawFact of the Day: Accommodating Pregnancy Leave in the Workplace #law #legal #wrongfuldismissal #terminationCan an employer fire an employee whose pregnancy is causing medical complications that affect her ability to perform her usual workplace duties?Employers have a duty to accommodate in those circumstances unless it would cause undue hardship.This accommodation may include changing job duties temporarily or providing time off work.It is unlawful and discriminatory if an employer improperly fired, demotes, or lays off an employee due to a pregnancy. - Garry J. Wise, Toronto Visit our Toronto Law Office website: www.wiselaw.net Visit our website: www.wiselaw.net

Noting that In the Matter of Robert Bentkowski, et al [Respondents], Supreme Court ruled in favor of Respondents on their promissory estoppel cause of action and their cause of action under Administrative Code of the City of New York §12-126 (b) (1), and the Appellate Division affirmed, the Court of Appeals [1] vacated those rulings, [2] reversed the order of the Appellate Division and [3] remitted the matter to Supreme Court for a determination on Respondents' remaining causes of action.In the words of the Court of Appeals:"The Appellate Division has not, however, expressly decided whether a promissory estoppel cause of action can be based on promises made while the relevant question was a mandatory subject of collective bargaining. Here, we need not decide whether to recognize a promissory estoppel cause of action, either generally or in this particular context, because petitioners have failed to establish the existence of a clear and unambiguous…

The Spanish government has approved BBVA’s hostile takeover bid for Banco Sabadell but as I anticipated in an earlier Truth on the Market post, it did so while imposing stringent conditions. Both banks will be required to maintain separate legal identities, management, and operations for at least three years, potentially extendable to five. These conditions effectively delay the merger’s synergies (cost reduction, unified governance, scale efficiencies) and raise questions about the government’s legal authority to impose such constraints. I noted in my previous post that the government could execute a form of indirect intervention through conditions so demanding that the operation would become unfeasible. What was then a hypothesis has now materialized in all its starkness. The decision, contained in a lengthy 25-page document, is light on technical or legal findings and heavy on unsupported assertions, circular justifications, and conditions that are…

If you’ve experienced sexual harassment at work and signed an arbitration agreement, you may be wondering whether you’ve waived your right to take your case to court. The Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021 (EFAA) changed this landscape significantly. This federal law now gives employees who have experienced workplace sexual harassment the power to choose whether to pursue their claims through arbitration or in court, even if they previously signed arbitration agreements. Understanding how this law protects your rights is crucial for ensuring you can seek justice for sexual harassment in the workplace.Employer Use of Arbitration AgreementsEmployers are increasingly using arbitration agreements. These arbitration agreements can be found in various types of employment contracts, including offer letters, employment agreements, and non-disclosure agreements.Aspects of Arbitration Favor EmployersWhat is arbitration? Arbitration…

On February 15, 2025, scholars, practitioners, students and policymakers convened at the New Directions in Environmental Law 2025 conference at Yale Law School to analyze changes and emerging issues in environmental law. Student reporter Sharaza Shalita prepared this edited summary of the panel entitled Is Traditional Environmental Law Really a Barrier to Achieving U.S. Climate Goals? New Directions in the Permitting Debate featuring panelists Howard Crystal, Alexandra B. Klass, Zachary Liscow, and Joshua Macey, and moderated by student and NDEL committee member Thomas Peterson. The Central Debate: Are Environmental Laws an Obstacle to Renewable Energy? The energy transition and environmental protection are often seen as two sides of the same coin, yet tensions arise when regulations designed to protect the environment are perceived as obstacles to the rapid deployment of renewable energy infrastructure. This panel, featuring experts in law, economics, and environmental policy,…

California has enacted a major reform for CEQA, creating a substantial exemption for infill urban housing.  I’ve written why this is, on balance, beneficial for housing and the environment.  But I also want to highlight a pitfall as the state continues looking at future reforms for CEQA.  California has long relied on CEQA as a gap-filler for its other environmental laws.  As the state pares back CEQA, it should look at where it needs to update other state environmental laws to fill in gaps, where appropriate. State Senator Scott Wiener and Assemblymember Buffy Wicks have been the main leaders in the state legislature in pushing for updating CEQA to facilitate housing and building a clean energy infrastructure.  In this interview, Senator Wiener emphasizes that he thinks the environmental downsides of CEQA reform are relatively minimal because: First of all, outside of CEQA, California has very strong environmental laws, like it’s protecting…

Global law firm Dentons advised NEPI Rockcastle N.V. and its subsidiary NE Property B.V. on obtaining two major revolving sustainability-linked credit facilities totaling €290 million. Finance, Banking, Securities and Corporate Finance, Real Estate, ESG in real estate

Dentons is pleased to have advised Ninja, the quick delivery firm based in Saudi Arabia, on its recent US$254 million investment round led by Riyad Capital. This significant fundraise, valuing the company at around US$1.5 billion, marks the company's emergence as the kingdom's newest tech unicorn and underscores Saudi Arabia's growing prominence as a regional venture capital hub. Corporate, Corporate in the Middle East, Investment Advisors, Technology, Middle East, Saudi Arabia, Jeddah, Riyadh

Global law firm Dentons is expanding its corporate and transactional advice in Germany with the recruitment of Sebastian Klingen, who has joined the firm as a partner in the Düsseldorf office. Corporate, Corporate in Germany, Europe, Germany, Düsseldorf

On July 2, 2025, Westcoast Energy Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Enbridge Inc., closed the previously announced transaction with an alliance of 38 British Columbia First Nations, pursuant to which the First Nations agreed to make an equity investment of approximately CA$736 million to acquire a 12.5% ownership interest in the Westcoast natural gas pipeline system through Stonlasec8 Indigenous Investments. Corporate, Corporate in Canada, Securities and Corporate Finance, Securities and Corporate Finance in Canada, Mergers and Acquisitions, Energy, Energy in Canada, Canada

Caribbean: Dentons has announced the elevation of Shervon Pierre to the Firm’s partnership on the eve of its 7th anniversary in the Caribbean as the region’s only true pan-Caribbean law firm covering 14 jurisdictions with the formal addition of its 15th later this year with Turks and Caicos extending the reach of the world’s largest law firm. Banking and Finance, Corporate, Employment and Labor, Hospitality and Leisure, Litigation and Dispute Resolution, Real Estate, Energy, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and The Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago

Dentons Lee participated in the Korea-Germany Medical Industry Cooperation Forum, held on Monday, June 30, 2025, at the Best Western Premier Gangnam Hotel in Seoul, delivering a presentation on key considerations for German medical companies entering the Korean market. Labor and Employment, Life Science and Health Care, Seoul

Jeannie Marie Paterson (University of Melbourne - Law School), Vivi Tan (RMIT; University of Melbourne - Melbourne Law School) & Julian Webb (University of Melbourne - Melbourne Law School) have posted Generative AI in Small Value Consumer Disputes: Reviving Not Resolving Challenges of Design and Governance in Online Dispute Resolution ((2025) 48(4) University of New South Wales Law Journal (Forthcoming)) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: This article examines the benefits and risks of generative AI use in an important domain that is currently under-serviced by the civil justice system: small value consumer claims, where generative AI has been proposed as a means of closing the access to justice gap. In the field of online dispute resolution ('ODR'), use has already been raised, and in some instances actioned, of digital tools such as expert systems and rules-based chatbots to assist potential litigants. Generative AI has considerable attractions in…

People take medicine to get better, not to end up in the ER, worse off than before. It happens more than you’d think. Drugs that were supposed to help end up hurting people because someone cut corners, didn’t speak up, or flat-out ignored warnings. When big pharma or a careless provider is at fault, regular people are left to clean up the mess. What Goes Wrong and How It Happens Not every bad reaction to a drug means someone’s liable. However, there’s a difference between an unlucky side effect and a drug that should’ve never been on the market, or one that wasn’t properly made, labeled, or prescribed. Some drugs are dangerous by design. They were never safe, and the company pushed them out anyway. Others are fine in theory, but something went wrong in the manufacturing process. Maybe a batch got contaminated, or the formula wasn’t mixed right. Either way, the result is a drug that shouldn’t be in your body. Then there’s…

The National Taxpayer Advocate has released her Fiscal Year 2026 Objectives Report to Congress, a statutorily-required annual report outlining the objectives of the Office of the Taxpayer Advocate for the upcoming fiscal year. While covering many topics, the report helpfully provides updated data regarding the status of the dwindling IRS workforce. Most critically, the Taxpayer Advocate reports that between Inauguration Day in January, and June 4, 2025, the number of IRS employees has been reduced from 102,113 to 75,702, a reduction of more than 25 percent. The bulk of this reduction was achieved through what the Taxpayer Advocate refers to as “employee departure incentives,” rather than layoffs. As we have previously covered, these incentive programs encourage IRS employees to voluntarily resign but continue receiving pay and benefits for a limited period of time. The Taxpayer Advocate’s report contains the following chart showing IRS personnel losses…