Chief Justice Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh has urged members of the legal profession to exercise caution in their use of artificial intelligence (AI), warning that excessive reliance on the technology could erode core legal thinking and reduce lawyers to “machines”.
Delivering a special address at the Commonwealth Legal Education Association Conference 2026 held at Universiti Malaya, he said while AI has improved efficiency in legal work, it should not come at the expense of human judgement and intellectual effort.
He expressed particular concern for younger lawyers, noting the growing temptation to depend heavily on AI tools in their daily practice.
“To be human is to learn, to err, to struggle, and to remember. There is no doubt that it has made us use less of our mental faculties,” he said.
The Chief Justice cautioned that outsourcing thought processes to technology may save time, but risks diminishing essential cognitive skills.
“When we outsource our thinking, we are not just saving time. We are losing a part of ourselves. Efficiency is for machines,” he said.
The conference was also attended by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, former Chief Justice Tengku Maimum Tuan Mat, Attorney-General Dusuki Mokhtar, Law and Institutional Reform Minister Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said, and Chief Justice of India Surya Kant.
Wan Ahmad Farid encouraged legal practitioners to adopt AI as a supportive tool rather than a replacement for human reasoning, stressing that critical thinking and clear articulation remain fundamental to the profession.
“These are not old-fashioned skills. They are the very foundation of advocacy, judgment, and justice,” he said.
He further emphasised that technology cannot replicate human compassion or conscience, nor can it fully grasp the human circumstances behind legal disputes.
“Judicial discretion, fairness, and independence must always remain at the centre of what we do,” he added.
He also highlighted the importance of embedding ethical reasoning in legal education from the outset, noting that the role of legal training goes beyond advocacy skills to shaping individuals who uphold justice and public trust.
In November last year, Wan Ahmad Farid previously likened AI to a chainsaw—useful when handled correctly, but potentially dangerous in the wrong hands.
He noted that AI is already being used in areas such as legal research, contract analysis, predictive analytics and even judicial decision-making, but stressed that it cannot replace the essence of legal judgement.
