Prompt engineering might just be the skill every lawyer needs to master.
The post The Future Of Legal: Will Prompting Be A Core Skill? Insights From Laura Jeffords Greenberg. appeared first on Above the Law.
Laura Jeffords Greenberg isn’t just an innovative legal mind; she’s a champion of transforming how legal teams operate in the age of AI. As a senior legal director at Copenhagen-based WorkSum, Laura focuses on helping startups and scale-ups leverage AI and streamline their processes. In a recent conversation, she shared her expertise on asynchronous communication, AI adoption, and why prompt engineering might just be the skill every lawyer needs to master.
Watch the full conversation here: The Future of Legal: Will Prompting Be Required?
Asynchronous Communication: The Foundation Of Efficiency
Laura’s journey into asynchronous communication began with a need to bridge a 9-hour time difference between her legal team in California and her location in Europe. “I couldn’t just walk up to someone’s desk or wait a couple of hours for a response,” she explained. This forced her to adopt a new way of working — documenting processes, creating knowledge banks, and setting clear expectations.
Asynchronous communication isn’t just about sending emails or Slack messages; it’s about structuring information so recipients can respond meaningfully on their own time. Laura sees this as foundational for high-performing legal teams, as it minimizes delays and builds transparency. “Your communication should anticipate questions and provide context,” she said. “The goal is to get useful answers the first time.”
The AI Connection: Why Documentation Is Key
For Laura, the meticulous documentation required for asynchronous communication also lays the groundwork for successful AI adoption. Generative AI thrives on context, and teams that document their processes and create knowledge repositories are better positioned to leverage their capabilities.
“Without context, AI can only give you generic outputs,” Laura noted. “But if you provide it with detailed, company-specific information — within compliance boundaries — it can deliver tailored results.” This includes everything from generating NDAs to creating polished communications that align with a company’s tone of voice.
Prompt Engineering: A Skill Every Lawyer Needs?
Prompt engineering — the art of crafting effective queries for AI — has sparked a lively debate. Is it a fleeting skill or a long-term necessity? While the jury’s still out, Laura argues that mastering prompting is essential for lawyers today.
Her advice? Use the WRAPS frameworkto structure your prompts:
- What: Define the expected output (e.g., email, contract, policy).
- Role: Specify your perspective or the role of the AI (e.g., in-house counsel at a SaaS company).
- Audience: Identify the target audience for the output (e.g., a client, CEO, or counterparty).
- Purpose: Clarify the overarching goal (e.g., to persuade, educate, or negotiate).
- Scope: Provide any additional details or context to refine the result.
Laura also highlighted the importance of iterative refinement, what she calls “wrapping with a side of DIP”:
- Discussion: Engage in a conversation with the AI to refine outputs.
- Interrogate: Question the AI’s suggestions to validate their accuracy.
- Pace: Take your time and restart when necessary to avoid getting stuck in unproductive loops.
Practical Applications For In-House Legal Teams
When it comes to in-house legal teams, Laura sees AI as a game-changer for improving efficiency and reducing workload. From drafting contracts to creating internal policies and even helping with Excel formulas, AI can save significant time. “For tasks like structuring a brain dump into polished communication, AI is invaluable,” she said.
Laura’s favorite use case? Training AI to adopt a company’s specific tone of voice for consistent messaging. “It’s a huge time-saver and ensures alignment across all communications,” she explained.
Creating A Culture Of Experimentation
One of Laura’s key insights is the importance of fostering a culture of experimentation. “Using AI isn’t just about efficiency; it’s about creativity,” she said. Leaders must give their teams the time and psychological safety to explore AI’s potential, make mistakes, and innovate.
She emphasized that this mindset shift requires moving away from traditional legal perfectionism. “It’s okay to fail as you experiment with AI,” Laura said. “What matters is learning from those failures and adapting.”
Key Takeaway: Start Playing And Keep Learning
Laura’s message is clear: don’t wait to start experimenting with AI. Whether you’re exploring basic tools like ChatGPT or diving into more-advanced use cases, the time to learn is now. Use frameworks to guide your prompts and approach AI with a mindset of curiosity and continuous improvement.
“AI isn’t going anywhere,” Laura concluded. “The sooner you start experimenting, the more prepared you’ll be to leverage its full potential.”
Watch the full conversation here: The Future of Legal: Will Prompting Be Required?
Olga V. Mack is a Fellow at CodeX, The Stanford Center for Legal Informatics, and a Generative AI Editor at law.MIT. Olga embraces legal innovation and had dedicated her career to improving and shaping the future of law. She is convinced that the legal profession will emerge even stronger, more resilient, and more inclusive than before by embracing technology. Olga is also an award-winning general counsel, operations professional, startup advisor, public speaker, adjunct professor, and entrepreneur. She authored Get on Board: Earning Your Ticket to a Corporate Board Seat, Fundamentals of Smart Contract Security, and Blockchain Value: Transforming Business Models, Society, and Communities. She is working on three books: Visual IQ for Lawyers (ABA 2024), The Rise of Product Lawyers: An Analytical Framework to Systematically Advise Your Clients Throughout the Product Lifecycle (Globe Law and Business 2024), and Legal Operations in the Age of AI and Data (Globe Law and Business 2024). You can follow Olga on LinkedIn and Twitter @olgavmack.
