ONP Group and Xperate have announced their partnership to develop a Microsoft add-in for Outlook and Word, specifically designed for the legal profession.
The add-in, called Legal PAI (Personal Artificial Intelligence), leverages the capabilities of ChatGPT, an AI-powered language model, to assist law firms in drafting and responding to documents and emails.
Andrew Taylor, chief technology officer at ONP Group, said: “Through partnership-based co-creation, we aim to develop a deeper understanding of customers’ needs, leading to clearer communication and increased client satisfaction.”
The collaboration project follows Microsoft’s announcement of its own project, Copilot, a general-purpose tool for document, email, and presentation assistance.
Legal PAI focuses on the legal sector, addressing privacy concerns by allowing sensitive data to be included in draft responses without submitting the data to ChatGPT.
The add-in can access information in law firms’ Practice and Case Management Systems (PCMS) without disclosing any actual data. Additional safeguards ensure a full audit trail of all requests and responses to ChatGPT.
Mark Garnish, chief operating officer of Xperate, added: “This development will revolutionise the way that lawyers interact with email and word in the future.”
Xperate plans to launch an early adopter program for a limited number of firms in the UK and the USA to balance the power of ChatGPT with privacy concerns.
ONP Group includes O’Neill Patient Solicitors, Grindeys, and Cavendish Legal Group.
