Abstract
The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in legal research in India has the power to transform the practice of law. There is an opportunity for the use of legal AI to close the access to justice gap, as litigants in rural areas, those without the means to procure legal representation and legal aid organisations of limited means, will be able to conduct sophisticated legal research at a fraction of the cost. This article explores the ability of AI-assisted legal research to democratize legal research and the legal profession in India, within the context of the legal framework provided by Article 39A of the Constitution of India, the corresponding case law and the developing legal infrastructures. Based on evidence from case law and the existing body of academic research, this article justifies the assertion that the use of legal AI research, if implemented fairly and ethically, will support the advancement of the right to legal redress and work towards the goal of closing the existing digital inequalities and the disparities in legal education and legal knowledge.
Keywords: Legal Research, Access to Justice, Article 39A, Legal Technology, Legal Aid, Digital Inclusion, Legal Education, Democratization of Legal Services.
I. Introduction
India’s judiciary system is overwhelmed. In 2024, there were over 50 million pending cases in all levels of the Indian judiciary system. The Supreme Court of India itself faces a staggering backlog, with its pending caseload having crossed an all- time high of more than 92,000 cases. The District Courts see the largest number of backlogs. To add to the existing burdens, there is a lawyer shortage as well. The Bar Council of India (BCI) reports fewer than 1.5 million enrolled lawyers in India with a population of over 1.4 billion. Legal service costs make access to the formal justice system even more unachievable for large portions of the population who desperately need legal services the most.
The emergence of many AI-assisted research tools is a potential game-changer. Legal researchers can now comb through thousands of case laws, statutes, and legal reviews. AI tools, such as SCC’s Online AI Assistant, Manupatra’s search intelligence, and ROSS Intelligence, have proven that legal research can now be made accessible to a wider audience at a fraction of the legal costs incurred by well-funded law firms. This article argues that the proper use and regulation of AI-assisted research in India can create a new means to legalise and democratise justice.
II. Constitutional Foundations: Access to Justice as a Fundamental Right
Access to justice is a constitutional right in India. Article 39A is part of the Indian Constitution due to the 42nd Amendment in 1976. Article 39A makes it the duty of the state to ensure that no Indian citizen or person is denied justice due to financial or other disabilities. To this end, Article 39A of the Indian Constitution provides for the establishment of a legal system that is fair and just, and that provides legal aid to citizens of India at no cost.
The Supreme Court of India has always maintained that access to justice is incorporated in Articles 14 and 21 of the Indian Constitution. In Hussainara Khatoon v. State of Bihar (1980) 1 SCC 98, held that Article 21 of the Indian Constitution guarantees the Right to Speedy Justice, as Justice delayed is Justice denied. In Suk Das v. Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh (1986) 2 SCC 401, held that the Right to Free Legal Aid stems from the Right to Fair and Just Trial guaranteed by Article 21. These cases have shown that it is the duty of the State to ensure that the citizens of India are able to access justice. Modern technology, and in particular artificial intelligence, is able to fulfil this task with unprecedented legal research capabilities.
III. The Access-to-Justice Gap and the Promise of AI
The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) has pointed to the increasing imbalance between the demand and provision of legal services. The Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987, provides for legal aid to persons belonging to scheduled castes and tribes, women and children, persons with disabilities, persons who are industrial workmen, and persons falling below a certain income level. The NALSA Annual Report (2022-23) mentions that even after these provisions, a large proportion of individuals who are eligible to get legal aid either do not know that they are entitled to such assistance or are unable to access legal aid in view of barriers of geography and language.
AI tools for legal research can help close this gap in a number of ways. They help in speeding up the provision of legal case law, legal research and legal provisions for a specific issue. A lawyer or a legal assistant can use AI tools to provide a comprehensive list of legal case law pertaining to a specific issue in a matter of minutes, which could take a number of hours or even days to complete a manual legal search. Because research is often conducted in English, the 22 scheduled languages of India and the other numerous dialects of India pose a significant barrier in this regard. AI tools that are trained to handle judgments in regional languages (for example, judgments in Tamil, Kannada, or Marathi) will be able to provide legal information to a significant portion of the population that does not speak English.
Third, and possibly most importantly, the use of AI in the legal sector reduces the cost of legal research. Senior lawyers in major cities charge more than ₹50,000 just for one court appearance, and a basic legal consultation may cost more than what a daily labourer earns in a month. Offering self-represented litigants and under-resourced legal aid lawyers the ability to conduct advanced legal research, AI tools may help address the cost barrier caused by the lack of senior legal counsel.
IV. Judicial Recognition and Institutional Adoption
The judiciary of India has started utilising AI to help with the administration of the judiciary, as well as the accessibility of justice. One of the tools the Supreme Court of India created is called SUPACE (Supreme Court Portal for Assistance in Court’s Efficiency). It helps judges in processing case files by using AI in understanding and retrieving pertinent legal documents. Former Chief Justice of India, N. V. Ramana, clarified that the aim of SUPACE is that it does not replace judicial reasoning but instead helps in processing and managing judicial cases, and helps in reducing the work of clerical staff.
The e-Courts Mission Mode Project (MMP) is also being implemented for strengthening the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the judicial system. By 2026, the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG) will help researchers, lawyers, and litigants monitor the status of judicial proceedings. It will also provide real-time data on case processing and backlog. These projects signal that the judiciary is becoming increasingly more comfortable with infusing technology within the judicial system. This is especially the case for AI and legal research technologies.
Integration of AI technologies into the everyday practice of law is being accepted as a new normal. This is evidenced by the Bar Council of India (BCI) and several State Bar Councils that have begun developing frameworks for the responsible practice of AI technologies within the legal field, balancing advocates’ duties to ensure that the output of AI legal research is checked.
V. Addressing the Divide: Structural Prerequisites for Democratisation
Recognizing AI’s democratizing potential does not mean putting down its structural limitations. Scholars like Pratiksha Baxi have said technology-led legal reforms may unintentionally replicate existing power structures if socioeconomic conditions of marginalized communities are not considered. This worry is valid as AI-assisted legal research will have limited advantage without the essential elements of reliable digital infrastructure, internet access, and digital literacy.
The digital inequality in India is at large. In 2023, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said that while urban broadband availability is more than 70%, rural broadband availability is about 35% and has serious gaps in the Northeastern and remote tribal areas. In order for AI-assisted legal research to realise its democratizing potential, the gaps in digital infrastructure must be closed.
Though this concern is about digital legal research, it also justifies the need for legal technology. Rural connectivity is a focus of the National Broadband Mission (2019) and Bharat Net, and their expansion will allow access to legal AI tools. In addition, NALSA has regulated offline digital legal aid kiosks in select district legal services authorities, which will enable access to AI legal research tools where reliable connectivity is not available.
VI. Regulatory Framework and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023
Considered responsibly, the integration of AI into legal research must be viewed against India’s data governance context. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDPA) will control AI platforms that process judicial data of a personally identifiable nature via the requirements of legally processing personal data, along with notice and consent. With the DPDP Act, legal AI tools that scrape and assess court documents will meet the requirements to ensure that the democratizing role of the tool does not violate the privacy of the litigants.
Privacy-by-design principles must be incorporated into legal AI tools. The Supreme Court’s nine-judge bench decision in Justice K.S. Puttaswamy (Retd) v. Union of India (2017) recognized the right to privacy under Article 21, and mandates that legal AI tools incorporate privacy-by-design. While legal AI tools may democratize access to legal information, they must not leave the sensitive personal information of respondents in judicial records unprotected and implement measures to safeguard that data.
VII. Comparative Perspectives and India’s Unique Opportunity
Comparative studies advocate for the democratizing effect of AI-based legal research. In the U.S., instead of being told to fend for themselves in Family, Housing and Immigration court, as litigants do, some legal aid organizations, such as the Legal Services Corporation, are using AI technology to ease the process for unrepresented litigants. According to the 2022 study published in the Harvard Journal of Law and Technology, the combination of AI-driven document analysis and research tools, and even minimal attorney oversight and/or assistance, brought about a positive change in the outcome of the cases for low-income litigants.
India, unlike many developed economies, offers a unique opportunity. In developed economies, the Legal AI market is commercial and, therefore, expensive. In contrast, India has both a digitized, open-source technology legal ecosystem and digitized legal records via the e-Courts project. These offer the possibility of creating low-cost or free AI legal research tools for NALSA lawyers, clinical law students, and self-represented litigants. Initiatives, such as the Legal Informatics lab at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), are already working on building more accessible AI tools for legal aid lawyers and the Indian case law.
VIII. Conclusion
AI-assisted legal research in India is an essential service. State obligations under Article 39A of the Indian Constitution and the judgments in Hussainara Khatoon and Suk Das require AI tools. Various regulatory frameworks on the implementation of privacy measures in the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, along with the provisions of privacy-based Puttaswamy, would make AI tools one of the most effective and efficient means for fulfilling the commitment of the Indian Constitution to provide access to justice.
A great deal of work needs to be done for the AI systems to really help democratize justice. For example, the expansion of digital infrastructure, implementation of the BharatNet and the National Broadband Mission, construction of AI systems based on Indian languages, and the embedding of AI systems into the structure of the National Legal Services Authority’s legal aid system. Only after the implementation of all these tasks will the AI systems for legal research really become an equaliser and help provide justice to all citizens in India.
THIS ARTICLE IS WRITTEN BY KHUSHI CHOUDHARY FROM KIIT SCHOOL OF LAW
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