The legal landscape is evolving faster than ever, and nowhere is that more evident than in the world of personal injury law. Between the rise of artificial intelligence, the growing influence of social media, and the increasing use of automation in everything from insurance claims to vehicle technology, attorneys must adapt, or be left behind. At our firm, we’ve seen how embracing these shifts has strengthened our advocacy for clients and reshaped the way we approach every case.

Technology is not just changing how cases are filed or tracked. It is transforming how lawyers think. For example, this article from Mark David Shirian PC Attorneys at Law, discusses how AI is enabling personal-injury firms to complete tasks more efficiently by analyzing medical records, predicting case outcomes, and identifying patterns in evidence. It does not make the same mistakes humans might, and it is an incredible resource for developing and refining arguments. You can sit down with AI and provide it with your arguments and ask it to find weaknesses. Engaging in a debate with AI can refine your arguments and uncover potential counter-arguments from the opposing side, similar to the strategies an insurance defense attorney might employ.

We’ve found AI consultants to be incredibly valuable. They help us understand what’s out there, what’s possible for our firm, and they help us understand how we may be able to implement AI to help streamline our workflow.

Social Media: A Double-Edged Sword

Social media also plays a major role in the personal injury space, but not always in a good way. While we leverage social platforms to educate our audience about personal injury law and client rights, we also caution our clients to stay off social media entirely during an active case. Studies show that social media posts are increasingly being used as evidence in personal injury cases.

For example, we had a client in Wilmington, North Carolina, who was a passenger in a crash. A car T-boned her and hit the passenger side where she was sitting. It caused a horrible gash down her leg and broke her fibula. A few weeks later, she was still in a cast, using crutches to get around.

Every step caused her pain, but she didn’t want to put her life on hold because of an injury. She had a trip planned with her family to go to the aquarium at Fort Fisher. She was so excited to show them the aquarium because she loved it and had told them about it for a year or more. While they were at the aquarium, she used a wheelchair to get around and showed her family all her favorite exhibits. Before they left the aquarium, she wanted to get some pictures with her family. So, they went to a popular photo spot. She stood next to her family for the photograph and had a big smile on her face.

During discussions with the insurance company about the value of the case, they sent over the photograph. They said there’s no way she’s in as much pain as she says she is because she’s visiting aquariums and smiling after walking around all day.

They essentially were trying to say that, if she was hurt as bad as she said she was, she wouldn’t have gone to the aquarium. This argument obviously didn’t help them, and they ultimately had to pay the insurance policy. But, it goes to show the lengths they’re willing to go to in order to pay someone less than what they’re entitled to.

Liability was clear, and the injuries were severe. And yet, they still resisted paying the policy and essentially tried to claim our client was faking her injuries, despite having a broken leg and a massive gash in her calf.

So anything you post online could harm your case, as the defense attorneys and insurance adjusters will scrutinize your social media for reasons to deny or reduce your claim for damages. Overall, the rule is simple: Do not post about your case, and ideally, do not post at all until it is resolved.

Understanding Insurance Company Tactics in the Age of AI

One of the biggest misconceptions about insurance companies is that your insurance company is there to help you. It’s no surprise that people feel this way. After all, the insurance companies advertise that they’re your friend, that you’re in good hands with their people, and that they’re great neighbors. But, the reality is, they don’t want to pay you a dime, and they’ll do anything they can to make sure you get nothing, even when you’ve been faithfully paying your insurance premiums. Insurers have been increasingly relying on AI-driven systems to evaluate claims and assign settlement values, and we’ve seen firsthand how that affects clients.

Recently, we’ve seen a lot more lazy work from insurance companies, where they are obviously using AI chat bots to help them value a claim. They went from offering a clean number before AI to nonsensical numbers after AI. For example, we’re seeing offers like $17,483.28 for a case that would have normally offered $25,000 prior to AI. We’re seeing offers like this that have no connection to reality or proper value.

Preparing for the Next Frontier: Automation and Liability

As technology continues to reshape the way we drive, the legal landscape surrounding vehicle safety is evolving just as rapidly. Recent reports confirm that  2025 has been seeing more injury cases tied to semi-autonomous vehicles and product defects.

A great example would be the recent cases against Tesla for accidents allegedly caused by the automated driving system, rather than the driver behind the wheel. The operation of the vehicle is at issue, which is a newer concept. There have always been cases against auto manufacturers in the past, but those cases were often related to design issues and product decisions that resulted in things like gas tanks being punctured and car fires after an accident. The lawsuits were focused on the design of the vehicle itself. In the new era of product liability cases against auto manufacturers, the cases will allege defects in the driving systems, which is an area of negligence that has always been focused on the humans behind the wheel.

Now that machines are starting to drive vehicles, we will see more product liability lawsuits focused on defects in the way the machines drive the vehicles, rather than design defect cases that focus on how the vehicle responds to impact. For instance, in August of 2020, a Tesla on autopilot crashed into a North Carolina highway patrol car that was stopped on the side of the road because the driver was watching a movie on his phone. Fortunately, no one was hurt. The driver was then charged with violating North Carolina’s “move over” law and a rule against watching television while driving. Although Tesla states their autopilot does not make their vehicles autonomous, accidents that involve autopilot failure where the driver needs to intervene are typically due to a combination of system limitations, software glitches, and user error.

While drivers are still required to stay alert and intervene when necessary, the growing reliance on autonomous technology is shifting how fault is assessed. As these systems become more integrated into modern vehicles, product liability claims are likely to rise, centered on allegations that accidents result not solely from driver error, but from failures or defects within the vehicle’s autopilot system.

When it comes to AI-driven claims decisions and ensuring victims receive the full compensation they deserve, AI will ultimately help by reducing the number of adjusters while increasing each adjuster’s caseload. This could theoretically cause overworked adjusters to pay a number rather than haggle over a small amount and drag the case out. Hopefully, AI makes the process simpler, more efficient, and faster. Also, with AI, the adjusters are likely going to have less subjective input about what they think is a good case and what isn’t. So, we may see less personal feelings injected into cases with the rise of AI and an overall more objective approach to claims evaluation.

Looking ahead, it’s clear that technology will continue to reshape the landscape of personal injury law in different aspects. Because social media and AI are the leading technology across all industries today, we will see an increase in cases involving this evolving technology. With this shift, it’s crucial to stay up to date with the latest technology in this industry. At Spetsas Buist, we’re doing our best to leverage new technology within our firm to stay ahead of these changes, ensuring our clients are protected and well-represented as the legal landscape continues to evolve.