Mississippi College School of Law is requiring all first-year students to complete a mandatory artificial intelligence course, becoming the first law school in the Southeast to implement such a requirement. The school’s dean, John Anderson, said the goal is to train lawyers to use the technology “effectively, efficiently, and ethically” and to prevent mistakes that have already begun plaguing the profession.
The mandate reflects growing concern about artificial intelligence’s risks in legal practice. A federal judge in Mississippi admitted his staff used AI to draft a court order filled with errors, while another lawyer was fined $20,000 for improperly using AI in court filings.
The Two-Day Intensive Course
Last month, first-year students completed the school’s first mandatory AI class—a two-day intensive course that culminated in a hands-on project. Oliver Roberts, editor-in-chief of AI at The National Law Review and designer of the course, said students were “engaged and enthusiastic about the course and the technology’s possibilities.”
The curriculum covers widely used tools such as the Westlaw AI research program, the regulatory environment surrounding artificial intelligence, and ethical considerations in deploying the technology. As part of the course, Roberts brought in Sen. Bradford Blackmon, a Democrat from Canton, to discuss the emerging AI landscape in Mississippi.
For their final projects, students were tasked with using AI to create prototypes of legal applications. The assignments resulted in a range of tools: software to help with jury selection strategy and identify potential biases, systems to draft legal memos, and applications to automate billable time tracking.
What Sparked the Requirement
The requirement traces back to a 2023 judicial conference. Dean Anderson attended a presentation demonstrating how an AI model could analyze millions of documents and produce a draft legal brief within seconds—a task that would normally require a full team of lawyers.
“Of course you’re not going to submit this but you’ve got a first draft that is pretty darn good,” Anderson said.
Building Broader Policy Frameworks
The law school’s mandatory AI course is part of a broader institutional push. Last year, Mississippi College launched the Center for AI Policy and Technology Leadership, a collaboration between the business and law schools designed to produce academic research and training for students and working professionals.
At the state level, regulation remains incomplete. Blackmon authored several bills during the latest legislative session aimed at providing boundaries for AI usage. None of the bills became law, though he told Mississippi Today that he plans to introduce at least one bill again next year.