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Law Firm Leaders Believe “Watson-like” AI Will Replace Some Associates
November 7, 2015
Somewhat related to the recent news that Thomson Reuters is teaming up with IBM's Watson to deliver "cognitive computing services" to clients (which presumably includes law firms), a recent survey by legal consultant Altman Weil found that 35% of law firm leaders believe it may be feasible to replace some associates with Artificial Intelligence within 5 to 10 years. The survey also found that nearly half of those queried believe AI super-computers may be able to replace paralegals within the same...
November 7, 2015
Somewhat related to the recent news that Thomson Reuters is teaming up with IBM's Watson to deliver "cognitive computing services" to clients (which presumably includes law firms), a recent survey by legal consultant Altman Weil found that 35% of law firm leaders believe it may be feasible to replace some associates with Artificial Intelligence within 5 to 10 years. The survey also found that nearly half of those queried believe AI super-computers may be able to replace paralegals within the same...
Neuroscience: The Aesthetic Brain
November 6, 2015
Neuroscience: The Aesthetic Brain. NATURE. While the amygdala is central to our evaluation of threat, it also contributes to judgments of trustworthiness. This overlap might be efficient for the brain, but as a side effect it could play a part in what psychologists call the attractiveness halo effect—a reflexive presumption that external beauty indicates overall goodness. Such a neural short cut can lead to all sorts of social benefits for attractive people, from better grades to more lenient punishments....
November 6, 2015
Neuroscience: The Aesthetic Brain. NATURE. While the amygdala is central to our evaluation of threat, it also contributes to judgments of trustworthiness. This overlap might be efficient for the brain, but as a side effect it could play a part in what psychologists call the attractiveness halo effect—a reflexive presumption that external beauty indicates overall goodness. Such a neural short cut can lead to all sorts of social benefits for attractive people, from better grades to more lenient punishments....
Women Who Show Anger Are Taken Less Seriously
November 5, 2015
Women Who Show Anger Are Taken Less Seriously. NEW YORK MAGAZINE. When women expressed anger during group deliberation, it undermined their argument, and people were less likely to be influenced by their opinion. For men, on the other hand, the opposite was true. “These diverging consequences might result in women potentially having less influence on societally important decisions than men, such as jury verdicts,” wrote the study authors, Jessica Salerno of Arizona State University and Liana...
November 5, 2015
Women Who Show Anger Are Taken Less Seriously. NEW YORK MAGAZINE. When women expressed anger during group deliberation, it undermined their argument, and people were less likely to be influenced by their opinion. For men, on the other hand, the opposite was true. “These diverging consequences might result in women potentially having less influence on societally important decisions than men, such as jury verdicts,” wrote the study authors, Jessica Salerno of Arizona State University and Liana...
Creating Client Value by Getting the Earliest Possible Settlements
November 5, 2015
Most commercial disputes will be settled and not tried. Expert expense and internal distraction increase in direct proportion to the time spent litigating prior to settlement. Clients are asking “Why can’t the dispute be resolved earlier to reduce the process expense and business disruption?” But one party’s counsel has a limited ability to make it happen sooner. Early dispute resolution can be best obtained by using a multi-phase mediation process called “Guided Choice.” It relies...
November 5, 2015
Most commercial disputes will be settled and not tried. Expert expense and internal distraction increase in direct proportion to the time spent litigating prior to settlement. Clients are asking “Why can’t the dispute be resolved earlier to reduce the process expense and business disruption?” But one party’s counsel has a limited ability to make it happen sooner. Early dispute resolution can be best obtained by using a multi-phase mediation process called “Guided Choice.” It relies...
Anger Works, But Not In Competitive Negotiations
November 3, 2015
The Rationality of Rage. NEW YORK TIMES. Expressing anger is known to be a useful tool in negotiations. Indeed, in the past few years, researchers have been learning more about when and how to deploy anger productively. Consider a forthcoming paper in the November issue of the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. Researchers tested the effectiveness of expressing anger in three types of negotiations: those that are chiefly cooperative (starting a business with a partner), chiefly competitive...
November 3, 2015
The Rationality of Rage. NEW YORK TIMES. Expressing anger is known to be a useful tool in negotiations. Indeed, in the past few years, researchers have been learning more about when and how to deploy anger productively. Consider a forthcoming paper in the November issue of the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. Researchers tested the effectiveness of expressing anger in three types of negotiations: those that are chiefly cooperative (starting a business with a partner), chiefly competitive...
Getting What You Need
November 3, 2015
Mediators often think about how we can get parties into a different frame of mind. When the current mindset is not allowing for settlement, and we can’t sufficiently address parties’ emotion through empathic and active listening or other methods to satisfy emotional needs, what can be done? It is the nature of some people to merely focus on the here and now; thinking long term is hard for them. But sometimes they need to focus on the long term. How do we help them do that when it is not in their...
November 3, 2015
Mediators often think about how we can get parties into a different frame of mind. When the current mindset is not allowing for settlement, and we can’t sufficiently address parties’ emotion through empathic and active listening or other methods to satisfy emotional needs, what can be done? It is the nature of some people to merely focus on the here and now; thinking long term is hard for them. But sometimes they need to focus on the long term. How do we help them do that when it is not in their...
We’re So Predictable: Algorithm Can Predict Human Behavior Better Than Humans
November 2, 2015
You might presume, or at least hope, that humans are better at understanding fellow humans than machines are. But a new MIT study...
November 2, 2015
You might presume, or at least hope, that humans are better at understanding fellow humans than machines are. But a new MIT study...
Wrestling with the Endowment Effect, or How to Do Law and Economics Without the Coase Theorem
November 2, 2015
This chapter, written for the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Behavioral Economics and the Law, describes the endowment effect,...
November 2, 2015
This chapter, written for the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Behavioral Economics and the Law, describes the endowment effect,...
Microsoft Co-Founder Launches $500 Million Quest to Build an Artificial Brain
November 1, 2015
Paul Allen has been waiting for the emergence of intelligent machines for a very long time. As a young boy, Allen spent much of his time in the library reading science-fiction novels in which robots manage our homes, perform surgery and fly around saving lives like superheroes. In his imagination, these beings would live among us, serving as our advisers, companions and friends. Now 62 and worth an estimated $17.7 billion, the Microsoft co-founder is using his wealth to back two separate philanthropic...
November 1, 2015
Paul Allen has been waiting for the emergence of intelligent machines for a very long time. As a young boy, Allen spent much of his time in the library reading science-fiction novels in which robots manage our homes, perform surgery and fly around saving lives like superheroes. In his imagination, these beings would live among us, serving as our advisers, companions and friends. Now 62 and worth an estimated $17.7 billion, the Microsoft co-founder is using his wealth to back two separate philanthropic...
Why You Should Hold It
October 29, 2015
When Prime Minister David Cameron is giving an important speech, or in the midst of difficult negotiations, he relies on a simple mental trick known as the full bladder technique. The name is not a metaphor. Cameron drinks lots of liquid and then deliberately refrains from urinating, so that he is “desperate for a pee.” The Prime Minister believes that such desperation comes with benefits, including enhanced clarity and improved focus. * * * That’s exactly what happened. When people had to pee,...
October 29, 2015
When Prime Minister David Cameron is giving an important speech, or in the midst of difficult negotiations, he relies on a simple mental trick known as the full bladder technique. The name is not a metaphor. Cameron drinks lots of liquid and then deliberately refrains from urinating, so that he is “desperate for a pee.” The Prime Minister believes that such desperation comes with benefits, including enhanced clarity and improved focus. * * * That’s exactly what happened. When people had to pee,...
