As artificial intelligence continues to reshape the legal profession, the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, is making AI literacy an essential part of legal education. Starting in fall 2026, all first-year law students will take a new course, Introduction to the Responsible Use of AI, designed to teach future lawyers how to use AI tools effectively and ethically, while understanding the limitations of technology and the continued importance of human judgment.
Throughout the semester, students will explore how AI can enhance legal operations, improve efficiency, and support innovation, and learn at what stages human judgment remains essential.
Co-taught by Professors Nancy Rapoport and Joe Regalia, this course focuses on the concept of “keeping humans in the loop” and teaches students how to critically evaluate AI-generated content rather than relying on AI as a replacement for legal analysis.
“Lawyers still need to think critically, use judgment, and protect the interests of their clients,” Regalia said. “This course will help students understand how AI can enhance the work of great lawyers, rather than replace them.”
Students will gain foundational knowledge in several key areas, including ethical considerations for the use of AI in legal practice, the pros and cons of various AI platforms, rapid engineering and effective AI workflows, AI bias and the challenges of predictive inference, process improvement and innovation thinking, and real-world legal applications of AI tools.
What makes this course unique is that it teaches students the skills needed to use AI as a learning tool, as a drafting tool, and in the context of learning a little more about contracts, civil litigation, and torts.
“Artificial intelligence is already changing the way law is done,” Rapoport said. “Our goal is to help students understand both the opportunities and risks of these tools so that they can use them responsibly and effectively.”
