Lawyers warn against unregulated AI usage

The rapid integration of Artificial Intelligence into the legal profession is a double-edged sword, prompting urgent calls for caution and regulation among Nigerian legal experts. At the recent Lex Ferenda Conference 2026, seasoned practitioners, including Senior Advocate of Nigeria Oyetola Atoyebi, voiced significant concerns about the potential misuse of AI tools. Issues such as the creation of deepfakes, the ease of plagiarism, and the risk of widespread misinformation pose serious ethical challenges that demand immediate attention.

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We have no choice, there is no way we won’t be using AI tools, but we have to be cautious.

While acknowledging that AI is an unavoidable and potentially transformative force in modern legal practice, speakers emphasized that its application must be carefully managed. AI offers unprecedented opportunities to enhance legal research efficiency and improve service delivery, breaking down geographical barriers that once limited legal scholarship. However, the consensus is clear: technology must serve as an enhancement, not a replacement, for the core principles and ethical standards of the legal profession.

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The impact that AI has had on legal practice and scholarship cannot be quantified. There are so many things that would have taken you a month to do that with the right AI tool will take you less than a day.

This discourse reflects a distinctly Nigerian perspective on technological adoption – one that embraces innovation while maintaining a vigilant stance on potential downsides. The call for robust regulation and adherence to existing legal safeguards is paramount. As legal practitioners navigate this evolving digital landscape, the focus remains on harnessing AI's benefits responsibly, ensuring it complements human expertise and upholds the integrity of justice, rather than undermining it.

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We have seen in the last two years that there has been more overlap between artificial