START HERE
Find your starting point with AI.
Choose a short reading path to understand the technology, consider it in your work, or examine what it means for your law firm.
Guides and perspectives by Jonathan Nessler.
Exploring multi-step AI? Start the Agents field guide ↗
Every citation is real. Would you file it?
Inspect a fictional brief inspired by Rhyu v. Frost and decide what needs checking.
01 / learn4 steps
Understand AI
For anyone building a foundation in AI.
Start with the basic terms, then learn what prompts and context windows mean for the answers you receive.
WHAT YOU’LL TAKE AWAY
A clearer understanding of what to give an AI system—and what still needs checking.
“The more clearly you define the task, the less room for the AI to wander off track.”
Guide
What Is Artificial Intelligence? A Plain-English Guide
Establish what AI means, and why capability on one task does not establish reliability on another.
Start at this stepGuide
AI Terms Explained: Models, Algorithms, and Training
Get familiar with the vocabulary: models, training, and tokens.
Start at this stepGuide
What Is an AI Prompt? Examples and Better Instructions
Learn what to include when you give an AI a task.
Start at this stepGuide
What Is an AI Context Window? Tokens and Limits
Understand the limits of the documents and conversation a model can use.
Start at this step
A QUESTION TO TAKE WITH YOU
What would you include in the next assignment you give an AI?
Continue with Apply02 / apply5 steps
Use AI in your work
For lawyers and business owners ready to consider a first task.
Explore professional tasks through legal examples, then practice checking a sample answer against its source.
WHAT YOU’LL TAKE AWAY
A starting point for choosing a bounded task and reviewing its result.
“When you type text into ChatGPT or a similar model, where is that data going? Who might see it?”
Guide
What Is an AI Assistant? Legal Uses, Agent Tools, and Limits
Identify a task an assistant could help with and the review it would need.
Start at this stepPerspective
AI in Legal Workflows: A Research-to-Drafting Playbook
Consider how individual tasks connect to a workflow and where professional judgment belongs.
Start at this stepPerspective
Using AI to Brief Geller v. Uber: A Verified Walkthrough
Follow a real appellate opinion from a structured AI prompt to a source-checked case brief.
Start at this stepGuide
Responsible AI: Fairness, Privacy, and Accountability
Consider the information you provide, who checks the result, and the consequences of an error.
Start at this stepExercise
Would you trust this answer?
Try three fictional scenarios and compare each answer with its source.
Start at this step
A QUESTION TO TAKE WITH YOU
Which task would you try, and how would you check the result?
Explore the AI models03 / lead4 steps
Lead a law firm through AI
For law-firm owners and leaders.
Consider what AI could mean for pricing, staffing, and client expectations, alongside questions of trust and accountability.
WHAT YOU’LL TAKE AWAY
Questions to bring to your firm’s next discussion about AI.
“What unique value will human lawyers add in a world of AI-augmented or AI-driven legal services?”
Perspective
The Billable Hour: History, AI, and Legal Fees
Explore why time became a unit of value in legal work, and what efficiency could change.
Start at this stepPerspective
AI and the Legal Profession: Beyond the Billable Hour
Examine Jonathan’s perspective on staffing, training, and changing client expectations.
Start at this stepGuide
The AI Black Box Problem: Explainability and Trust
Understand the limits of explanations and the importance of testing and accountability.
Start at this stepGuide
Responsible AI: Fairness, Privacy, and Accountability
Identify questions about oversight before changing how your firm works.
Start at this step
A QUESTION TO TAKE WITH YOU
What would your firm need to know before changing this workflow?
Read the book introduction