We became more curious about artificial intelligence (AI) when our founder, Nance L. Schick, first tested the “Nance Bot” her personal partner created with Bert, a precursor to Bard and now known as Gemini. AI has come a long way since then, but it comes with risks that must always be balanced with measurable benefit.
This policy outlines our commitment to using AI tools responsibly and ethically, ensuring they align with our mission, vision, and core values. It applies to all staff, contractors, and partners who use AI on behalf of Third Ear Conflict Resolution.
Our Guiding Principles for AI Use
Our approach to AI is rooted in our core values and mission to help leaders to build sustainable workplaces. We believe that AI, when used correctly, can enhance human capabilities but should never replace human judgment or compassion.
- Mutuality. We use AI to improve our processes, keeping our time, money, and energy costs lower than larger firms. These savings get passed on to clients, increasing Access to Justice.
- Fairness. We study the potential biases in AI-generated outputs, so we can recognize them when they arise in our workplace and the ones we serve.
- Creativity. We leverage AI as a brainstorming tool to explore a “full range of possibilities for resolution,” but the final solutions will always be the result of human creativity and collaborative problem-solving.
- Compassion. Our “third ears” are our hearts, which machines cannot sufficiently mimic, We will never delegate our fundamental duty to listen for the “hurts we can heal” to AI. It will be used to enhance our ability to serve, not to distance us from the human element of our work.
- Integrity. The accuracy of our work is paramount. We will critically review, validate, and correct all AI-generated content to ensure it is truthful and meets our professional standards. We will not use AI to generate “hallucinations” or knowingly spread misinformation.
Acceptable Use and Limitations
Here are our “dos and don’ts” for using AI in our firm.
Authorized Uses
We permit the use of AI tools for the following purposes, provided there is always a final human review:
- Workflow Automation. To streamline tasks such as creating templates, filling in forms, and scheduling appointments.
- Content Generation. For editing weekly videos and monthly webinar recordings, as well as outlining blog posts, social media content, and new workshops or courses.
- Initial Research. For preliminary research to propose ideas or to understand a topic, so long as the results are independently verified.
Prohibited Uses
The following uses of AI are strictly prohibited in the firm:
- Confidentiality Breaches. Under no circumstances should anyone performing services for Third Ear Conflict Resolution input confidential client information, proprietary data, or any personally identifiable information into a public-facing AI tool that does not have explicit, secure, and encrypted data protocols in place.
- Legal Judgment and Delegation. We will never delegate professional judgment, legal analysis, or key decisions to AI.
- Impersonation or Deceptive Content. AI must not be used to create deceptive content, impersonate others, or mislead clients or the public.
Human Oversight and Validation
The use of AI within Third Ear Conflict Resolution is a tool to enhance our work, not replace human competence and compassion.
- To ensure they meet our quality standards and ethical obligations, a “third ear listener” will review, edit, and approve AI-generated outputs.
- We will use AI to assist in tasks like process improvement and content creation, but analysis and strategy will always be delivered by an attorney.