Legalese - Can Computers Really Write Better Contracts?

Smart Contract Pioneer Legalese Wins Development Grant %u2013 artificial lawyer.One of the primary jobs of any lawyer is the drafting, review, and advice about contracts. Contracts are the underpinning of commercial society, and their drafting, review, negotiation and enforcement make up much of the typical lawyer's practice. This startup believes that computers can create "smart contracts" that draft themselves, and will replace much of the work now performed by lawyers. Unfortunately, contract drafting, while enhanced by computers and technology, requires many other disciplines, including client contact, emotional control, human interaction, and bargaining power, that will likely not be able to be replaced by a computer. In fact, computer based systems have been creating starting points for contract drafting for some years. Standard contracts are available that greatly reduce the time necessary to create many types of contracts and documents, and document assembly programs remove much of the basic drafting, leaving tweaking, and personalization to the lawyer, who ideally applies his experience, judgment and talent to the process. Computer enhanced contract drafting allows lawyers to create a better product; but, they will never be able to walk the fine line between parties in a negotiation of terms. And, no contract will ever be immune from the vagaries of real life, or future breaches of its terms. Those problems will be with us forever, and any software company needs to recognize that reality.