Opinion: The DoNotPay app is the new robot lawyer

The fourth industrial revolution, characterized by the advent of artificial intelligence, has undoubtedly brought a significant change in people’s perspective of technology. Despite the remaining skepticism, Artificial Intelligence has permeated every aspect of our society — from waitresses in restaurants to nurses in hospitals — and have just begun extending its impact on mobile apps. 

DoNotPay, the so-called “robot lawyer,” presents a great example of such expansion. It is a mobile app that uses artificial intelligence as a virtual lawyer to enable the users to sue or report any legal issues with a single touch on a button, from consumer protection to immigration rights.

What this robot lawyer can do is astonishingly similar — if not more — to what human lawyers do. According to Audrey Conklin, the app enables the user to “sue anyone in a U.S small court case for $10,000 or less.” What’s more, this innovative app only requires a flat rate of $3 per month. 

There have been a number of cases where this robot lawyer has played a significant role in resolving legal disputes. For instance, accord to The Guardian, the app contested 160,000 parking tickets out of 250,000 reported cases across London and New York for free, giving it a success rate of 64%.

In addition, Joshua Browder, the founder of DoNotPay, has insisted that the app is also useful in defending against robocalls, getting compensation for delayed plane flights and canceling unwanted fees from organizations such as Sierra Club and Statefarm.

Although the app brought huge success in many aspects of our community, public criticism was unavoidable. Critics have warned of the possibility of ethical violation of the app, as it enables anyone regardless of their intention to make a lawsuit against organizations, which may create a confounding circumstance if abused, according to the ABA Journal. Moreover, numerous users have reported errors in the subscription plan and delayed responses for their reported cases, according to the TrustPilot website. 

Despite the criticism, however, it is undeniable that DoNotPay has taken a great leap forward in utilizing artificial intelligence to enhance our quality of life. In addition, the app not only bridged the gap between the public and artificial intelligence but also made lawsuits and laws, in general, more accessible to the public.

Over time, the robolawyer will certainly support the public to have their own voice in the community.