The American Lawyer Highlights Ropes & Gray’s AI-Driven Summer Associate Training

Ropes & Gray’s innovative approach to summer associate training was highlighted in The American Lawyer, which reported on the firm’s commitment to equipping future lawyers with practical artificial intelligence skills. The article details how Ropes & Gray’s summer associates participated in GenAI workshops—dubbed Tech Jams—and engaged directly with the firm’s legal AI platforms on real client matters.

Edward Black, senior counsel and technology strategy leader, shared that the integration of AI into training represents a cultural shift in the legal profession. “The big change isn’t so much a technology change as it is a cultural change,” he explained, emphasizing that AI proficiency is now “part of the skill set that every lawyer needs to master.”

The story also features summer associate Kanika Chitnis, who described her work on a project to train AI to extract key provisions from contracts for the firm’s real estate practice. She expressed appreciation for Ropes & Gray’s proactive stance on AI, noting, “I was so grateful to be at Ropes, [which is] not just reacting to AI, but embracing it.”

Black further discussed the evolving expectations of clients, highlighting how the firm’s AI training initiatives respond to market demands for greater efficiency and value. “This is where the market is moving,” he said, pointing to a significant shift in client attitudes toward AI adoption.

Read the full story in The American Lawyer.