A Saanich-born UVic-alumnus has helped create an AI software that could revolutionize legal research.

Alistair Vigier, a UK-trained lawyer who is also the CEO of counsel-rating software Clearway Law, came up with the idea for Caseway 91裸聊视频� an AI system designed to sort Canadian court decisions listed online. 

The goal: to help make legal information easier to find.

91裸聊视频淭here are millions of court decisions out there; I think we found 2.5 million of them across Canada," said Vigier. "They91裸聊视频檙e 100 pages each on average, and it takes paralegals and lawyers hours to find one case."

In contrast, Caseway, which Clearway91裸聊视频檚 chief technology officer Andrew Hodge coded, can find relevant court decisions in just three seconds.  

The way it works is simple. Users input questions such as, "Find me three cases involving medical malpractice in Victoria," and the software scans its database of court documents 91裸聊视频� most of which are from the Canadian Legal Information Institute 91裸聊视频� in search of wording that matches the user's request. It then lists matches. 

91裸聊视频淥ur AI can91裸聊视频檛 consider what some guy wrote on Reddit, what someone wrote on their Facebook page 91裸聊视频� it doesn91裸聊视频檛 know anything about that,91裸聊视频� said Vigier. 91裸聊视频淚f a judge didn91裸聊视频檛 write about it, we don91裸聊视频檛 know about it.91裸聊视频�   

That makes it more reliable than other chatbots, according to the software's founder.

91裸聊视频淐hatGPT is good if you want a really high-level understanding of something," said Vigier. "It91裸聊视频檚 not something you can ever reference in a court document. You91裸聊视频檙e never going to reference a blog, you91裸聊视频檙e never going to reference a social media post 91裸聊视频� you have to reference court decisions."  

Caseway also lists its sources, whereas ChatGPT doesn91裸聊视频檛. That makes it even more trustworthy because users can fact-check results the software has produced, Vigier says. 

Because the software is easy to use, Vigier said it could help self-representing people in addition to paralegals and lawyers.

91裸聊视频�70 per cent of people going through the justice system are self-represented,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淭his is something they can actually ask it 91裸聊视频� what kind of arguments should I be making, what kind of arguments have been successful, give me some cases.91裸聊视频�   

The founder added, however, that Caseway will benefit users only with a healthy understanding of the legal system and legal procedures.   

91裸聊视频淭he thing that we don91裸聊视频檛 want is some lawyer, paralegal or self-represented person to just copy and paste something into a court document and then file it,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淵ou91裸聊视频檙e going to have to have some knowledge at least that you91裸聊视频檙e supposed to be presenting case law and statutes as your legal basis, otherwise you91裸聊视频檙e doomed regardless of what you do." 

Caseway could also benefit people who find the cost of lawyers prohibitive.

"The problem for the public is that, if you91裸聊视频檙e paying a lawyer $300 an hour and it takes them two hours to find a case, that91裸聊视频檚 [already] $600," said Vigier.

If lawyers can reduce the time they spend finding court decisions, they could also reduce their costs, making council more affordable for the average person, Vigier says.

Despite all the software has to offer, Caseway still dons a beta label and can produce nonsensical answers. The company is working day-to-day to train it to reduce the chances of errors. Coders are also working to fix bugs, strengthen the software against cyber-attacks and improve speed.

In addition to these tweaks, Vigier wants to expand the database to include American court decisions to attract new customers.  

"The other thing I91裸聊视频檓 really excited about, and I guess this is more important for self-represented people, is there are many forms when you go through divorce court, bankruptcy court, whatever," said Vigier. "They91裸聊视频檙e really complicated and the court clerks don91裸聊视频檛 accept them unless they're perfect, so what I would like to do is get some samples of perfect court documents and then have the AI fill them out in a draft form for people."  

Caseway launched on Sept. 3. In the past seven days, 175 people have signed up for a free seven-day trial, said Vigier, who hopes even more lawyers will sign up.  

91裸聊视频淚 call lawyers herd animals,91裸聊视频� he joked. 91裸聊视频淓ither everything is bad if it91裸聊视频檚 outside of what91裸聊视频檚 being accepted or it91裸聊视频檚 really good if it is being accepted. Our job is to get ... credible lawyers using the platform.91裸聊视频�