Learned Hand’s Shlomo Klapper on Why Courts Are the Next Frontier for Legal AI

Why It Matters

Deploying AI as a neutral research assistant could relieve overloaded courts and broaden access to justice, yet its adoption depends on overcoming judicial skepticism and ensuring unbiased, transparent outputs.

Key Takeaways

• Learned Hand partners with LA Superior Court to pilot AI
• AI reasoning engine acts as judicial “sous‑chef,” not decision‑maker
• Jevons paradox predicts cheaper legal services will increase case volume
• Judges skeptical; only 24% support AI for adjudication
• Learned Hand’s tool flags gaps, doubts its own outputs for neutrality

Summary

On Law Next, Shlomo Klapper, CEO of Learned Hand, explains his startup’s mission to build a reasoning engine for courts. The company just announced a pilot partnership with the Los Angeles County Superior Court, the nation’s largest trial court, to test AI assistance across the full case lifecycle.

Klapper describes the platform as a “judicial sous‑chef,” a neutral AI clerk that aggregates and structures case law, filings, and evidence so judges can focus on decision‑making rather than drudgery. He links the need for such tools to Jevons paradox: as AI drives down legal costs, the volume of filings will surge, overwhelming courts that lack dedicated clerks.

The interview highlights stark attitudes: while 90 % of attorneys are comfortable using generative AI, only about 24 % of judges endorse it. Klapper stresses that the system is designed to “doubt its own output,” flagging gaps and refusing to make substantive rulings, thereby preserving judicial legitimacy.

If courts adopt this technology, it could dramatically increase throughput and expand access to justice, but success hinges on earning judges’ trust, addressing bias, and navigating emerging regulatory frameworks.

Original Description

Are courts the next frontier for legal AI? Shlomo Klapper, founder and CEO of the AI-driven judicial case-preparation platofrm Learned Hand, believes they are. A former litigator at Quinn Emanuel and law clerk for the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Klapper is building what he calls a "reasoning engine" for judges — AI tools designed to help them manage crushing caseloads by organizing case materials, flagging when lawyers bend the truth, and drafting bench memos and orders.

LawNext host Bob Ambrogi interviews Klapper on the heels of significant news: Learned Hand just announced a partnership with the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, the largest trial court in the nation, to explore how AI can support judicial officers across the full arc of a case — from filing through drafting. The company's technology — the only AI built exclusively for the judiciary — is also used by the Michigan Supreme Court and trial courts in 10 states.

In today’s conversation, Klapper discusses why courts are the next frontier for legal AI, what it takes to earn the trust of judges, and how Jevons Paradox — the idea that as legal services get cheaper, demand will explode — is reshaping the justice system. They also dig into the difficult questions around how Learned Hand addresses concerns about bias and hallucinations, and how it can overcome judges’ skepticism about AI and achieve broad judicial adoption.

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Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Shlomo Klapper and Learned Hand

00:25 Shlomo's journey from law to legal tech

02:37 What does Learned Hand do?

05:45 The challenge of volume in courts and AI solutions

08:13 Jevons Paradox and the future of legal cases

11:26 Partnership with LA Superior Court

12:26 Addressing concerns about AI replacing judges

14:43 Bias, fairness, and AI in the judiciary

17:13 Ensuring AI neutrality and auditability

21:50 Background: Palantir and respect for the system

24:30 Challenges in adopting AI for judges

26:30 Features of the Learn at Hand platform

30:08 How AI assists in case analysis and drafting

42:18 Details of the LA Court pilot program

46:40 Handling complex motions like summary judgment

50:10 Expanding into criminal cases and sensitive decisions

55:55 The business model and market opportunity

01:00:25 Why learn from Judge Learned Hand

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