Leading Czech law firms are founding a new association for AI. They want to become leaders in new technologies in their field.

Leading Czech law firms are establishing a new association for AI. They aim to become leaders of new technologies in their field.

The founding documents of the association were signed today at the Municipal House in Prague by Filip Drnec on behalf of the law firm Portos (formerly Císař, Češka, Smutný), Jakub Dohnal from AK Arrows, Adam Filip from AK Felix and partners, and Jiří Novák from AK Sokol, Novák Trojan, Doleček and partners.

“To meet current demands not only from clients, our industry must undergo a fundamental transformation towards Industry 5.0. We see the phenomenon of artificial intelligence as another piece of the mosaic of already existing technologies that have become a regular part of our daily practice, but most lawyers have not yet sufficiently reflected this,” explains Filip Drnec from the law firm Portos, chairman of the executive board of the Legal Association for AI.

All four founding law firms share a common goal: to co-create suitable conditions for innovation and modernization of law and the legal profession. Not only in the Czech Republic but also in the European context. Their aim is to define the responsible use of these technologies in law practice, for example through proper interpretation and implementation of current European AI regulations and related legislation.

“The adoption of new technologies into law firms’ operations is a step we see as beneficial but also necessary. Approaching this without respect for the rules of legal practice would be shortsighted. Ethical use of technologies is therefore at the forefront of our interest,” says Jiří Novák from AK Sokol, Novák Trojan, Doleček and partners, a member of the association’s executive board.

Martin Vlasta from the law firm Portos, who has specialized in technological innovations and AI in recent years, will lead the Legal Association for AI as its director. “Prague is establishing itself as one of the key AI hubs in Europe. Our effort is a logical outcome of the local tradition of innovation, which we want to apply within the legal profession as well. Our goal is to build the necessary know-how that we can also export to neighboring countries. Its principles are applicable within the legal systems of other EU member states as well.”