What I saw today from the Maryland state and federal courts …
The state and federal courts in Maryland were quiet today on the issue of artificial intelligence. I cannot say that I am surprised by this finding given that artificial intelligence appears to be in a third itineration of what the technology is meant to produce. The technology appears to rely less on a great number of people having mundane skills regarding the use of artificial intelligence versus a lower number of people expressing a use of skills with the technology.
I may change my mind later, but for now, the courts appear not yet to be approached by litigants who wish to see changes in how artificial intelligence is being applied. The markets are still in capital collection and allocation mode where individual and institutional investors still see artificial intelligence as the excuse used by companies for holding off on hiring individuals as well as the place where more money should be invested in order to provide more services.
Right now, my interests are in Maryland so I could not yet say what other courts in the country are doing. I may spend more time this weekend investigating how other U.S. courts are determining the legal policies of artificial intelligence.
What am I telling my clients today …
From the personal side, I am telling my clients to take a look at themselves, their spending, their needs and wants. I have never seen a press enamored with giving us too much information and most of it either not relevant to our immediate needs i.e. food, shelter, and comfort, etc., or designed to be divisive or at least not giving weight to multiple sides of major issues.
From the more technical side, I am telling my clients to determine if artificial intelligence helps them to determine their next step. For example, can you define artificial intelligence? How does artificial intelligence help you determine where your family should be ten or twenty years from now? Can you see an alternative path around artificial intelligence that gets you where you and your family need to be?
Alton Drew
4 February 2026
Lawyers Write the Bets. Bankers Sell the Bets. 