Objectives

By the end of this session, trainees will be able to:

  • explain why trainees sit at a higher AI risk point than senior lawyers
  • identify red flags governing trainee AI use
  • use AI without undermining supervision, learning, or competence
  • disclose and document AI use in a defensible way
  • apply a practical checklist to real trainee work

Content

Welcome, framing & ground rules

  • Why this session exists (risk, judgment, learning — not tools)
  • What this session will and won’t do
  • Housekeeping & interaction format
  1. Why AI matters for trainees
  • What generative AI is (plain English)
  • Why trainees sit at a high-risk point in AI adoption
  • Opportunities vs threats:
  • The five non-negotiables governing trainee AI use:
  • Confidentiality
  • Accuracy
  • Supervision
  • Audit trail
  • Competence
  • Snapshot of AI tools law firms use (high level)
  • Quick stories/concerns
  • Can anyone share when AI has let them down or concerned them?
  1. Red Flag #1: Confidentiality

"Never put identifying info in public AI - ever"

  • Why confidentiality risk is amplified by AI
  • What counts as “identifying” (often broader than trainees expect)
  • Public vs enterprise tools
  • Consequences: regulatory, contractual, reputational
  • Exercise
  • Classify anonymised prompts as Red / Amber / Green
  • Discuss why borderline cases matter

                                                                      

  1. Red Flag #2: Accuracy

"AI hallucinates case law, statutes, deadlines - always verify"

  • Hallucinations: law, citations, dates, procedural steps
  • Real-world examples
  • When AI is useful vs dangerous
  • Output review exercise

Triangulation of tools: review an AI written file for accuracy. Attendees can use AI to check it but must also non-AI tools to fact check (e.g. in-house research tools, Google search (not Gemini)

  1. Red Flag #3: Supervision

"Your supervisor must know when AI touched the work"

  • Why undisclosed AI use breaks trust
  • Supervision as protection, not punishment
  • What good disclosure looks like (principles, not scripts)
  • How to frame AI use when handing up work
  • The “could I defend this later?” test
  1. 5. Red Flag #4: Audit Trail

"If you can't retrace your steps, it's useless"

  • Why AI output without process is a risk
  • What counts as an audit trail in practice
  • Exercise

Build an audit trail for sample research task (prompt design task)

  1. Red Flag #5: Competence

"AI accelerates learning; it never replaces judgment"

  • How over-reliance erodes judgment
  • Difference between assistance and substitution
  • Using AI to learn faster, not think less
  • Reflection

"One competence rule for my future self”

  1. The Trainee AI Checklist
  • One-page PDF
  • Firm-brandable
  • Explicitly framed as: “What we expect trainees to do if they use AI”
  1. Q&A, feedback & close

How To Book

Please contact your Learning & Development Manager if you are interested in this course.