CUNEF Universidad hosts a conference on the challenges and advantages of AI in the legal industry

Last Thursday, 14 November, the Department of Law of CUNEF Universidad held the second session of “Thursday Law at CUNEF Universidad”. This time, the conference on current legal topics focused on “Artificial Intelligence and Law: challenges and advantages”. Leonardo Cervera, Secretary-General of the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS), Leticia López-Lapuente, partner at Uría Menéndez, and Ángel Melguizo, partner at Argia and visiting fellow of the European Council on Foreign Relations, participated in the round table, held in the Auditorium of the Almansa Campus and chaired by Andrés Betancor, director of the Department of Law. During the discussion, the speakers highlighted the following conclusions:

• Artificial Intelligence is both a challenge and an opportunity, as is true for all the great technological innovations that have changed the world.
• The threats posed by AI should not keep us from appreciating the significant advances it represents.
• The EU has stayed one step ahead in terms of AI regulation, hoping to inspire other regions worldwide to regulate AI using the same humanistic perspective as the European project.
• The main challenge faced by the EU Artificial Intelligence Act of June 2024 is providing legal certainty while maintaining a high level of innovation.
• Good governance of AI involves higher levels of innovation and investment.
• The implementation of the EU Artificial Intelligence Act in the 27 Member States should avoid the division of the common market, as has happened in other industries.
• Lawyers are not going to be replaced by AI tools such as legal tech, but they are going to have to provide greater added value to their clients based on their knowledge; this represents a challenge for Higher Education institutions such as CUNEF Universidad.
• AI is key to the protection, growth, and enhancement of democracy. The European Union must use AI tools to protect itself, for example, against malicious attacks against the integrity of its democratic elections.

The next session of “Thursday Law at CUNEF Universidad”, during which Ignacio Astarloa, Ignacio Díez-Picazo and Encarnación Roca will analyse the consequences of poor regulation on legal certainty, will be held on 12 December in the Auditorium of the Almansa Campus.