Articles Posted in Legal Information Professionals

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An Overview and Analysis of Jim VandeHei’s Two-Part Axios Commentary

Introduction

In an October 25, 2026, commentary published by Axios, CEO and co-founder Jim VandeHei raises concerns about the convergence of technological, economic, geopolitical, and political risks that could produce unprecedented disruptions over the next several years. Writing in his weekly Axios C-Suite newsletter, VandeHei argues that the danger lies not simply in any one potential crisis, but in the possibility that multiple crises could occur in rapid succession, reinforcing one another before institutions and individuals have sufficient time to respond. His two-part discussion, addressing both the emergence of these risks and practical steps for preparing for them, offers a useful framework for considering the responsibilities of governments, businesses, information professionals, and individual citizens in an increasingly unpredictable world.

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Promising results suggest a potentially groundbreaking approach to predicting undesirable AI behavior, but limited experimental testing calls for further independent verification.

Introduction

As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly integrated into professional practice, education, government, healthcare, and everyday life, questions concerning the reliability and safety of AI-generated responses have taken on growing importance. A particularly troubling possibility is that an AI chatbot may initially provide appropriate, useful, and accurate information, only to begin producing potentially harmful responses as a conversation progresses.

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Introduction

Microsoft is pushing artificial intelligence beyond the familiar chatbot model toward something considerably more ambitious: AI systems that can not only answer questions and generate content but also perform, coordinate, and continue work on behalf of users. A recent video from AI Study Hub, Microsoft Has Revealed a Major New Wave of AI Technology, presents these developments as potentially reshaping computers, software, and business. Although the video provides a useful starting point, Microsoft’s own announcements and other recent reporting provide important context for understanding what has actually been announced, what remains in preview, and what the longer-term implications may be.  At the center of these developments is Microsoft’s major redesign of Copilot.

From AI Assistant to an “Operating System for Work”

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Introduction

Professional conferences have long occupied an important place in the continuing education and development of law librarians and legal information professionals. They provide opportunities to learn about emerging technologies, exchange ideas, establish professional relationships, and consider developments affecting the future of the profession. Yet these benefits raise a question that has become increasingly important in an era of constrained budgets and rapidly evolving technology: How can the value of conference participation be demonstrated not only to those who attend, but also to the institutions that employ them and pay the bills?

A September 29, 2026, article published on On Firmer Ground, titled “Why Attend? Reflections on the 2026 AALL Annual Conference and the PLLIP Summit”, provides a timely starting point for considering this question. The reflections in that article invite a broader examination of professional conferences as opportunities not merely for individual advancement but also for strengthening the institutions that employ legal information professionals. That distinction becomes especially important as artificial intelligence transforms legal research, information management, and organizational decision-making.

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Introduction

This proposed legislation  is more consequential for libraries and government-information professionals than its title might initially suggest. It is not simply an internal GPO housekeeping bill; it would substantially rewrite the statutory framework governing the Federal Depository Library Program, digital preservation, permanent public access, cataloging, and the National Collection. In this post the strongest emphasis is on permanent public access, preservation of born digital government information, the modernization of the FDLP, and the implications for law librarians and researchers. Those features distinguish this bill from what might otherwise appear to readers to be a largely administrative modernization of GPO.

H.R. 9342, the GPO Modernization Act of 2026, was introduced on June 18, 2026, by Representative Stephanie Bice of Oklahoma. Its stated purpose is “[t]o revise certain authorities of the Government Publishing Office, and for other purposes.” The bill was referred to the House Committee on House Administration and the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
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Introduction

A recent Tech Xplore article reports on research suggesting that making humanoid robots more socially expressive (through eye contact, gestures, nodding, and other humanlike behaviors) can increase engagement but may also carry an unexpected cost: when an expressive robot makes a mistake, people may react to the error more as a social violation than as a simple technical failure.

The article, “A Humanoid Robot’s Social Expressiveness May Backfire When It Makes Mistakes,” was written by Ingrid Fadelli and published by Tech Xplore/Phys.org on August 28, 2026, with editing by Robert Egan. It reports on research conducted principally by investigators at Drexel University and published in Science Robotics. The underlying study, by Yigit Topoglu and colleagues, is titled “Multilevel Dynamics of the Brain, Hormones, Mind, and Behavior in Social Human-Robot Interaction.” The following is an overview of the two articles:

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Overview

In his August 26, 2026 essay, “The Turbulent AI Era Is Here. The Choices We Make Now Are Critical,” Bill Gates presents artificial intelligence as a technological transition potentially different in important respects from earlier waves of automation. AI can increasingly perform cognitive work, can spread rapidly through technologies and infrastructure already in widespread use, and can be accessed through ordinary language without requiring users to master specialized computer skills. Gates is not arguing against AI. On the contrary, he remains strongly optimistic about its potential in medicine, education, agriculture, scientific research, government services, clean energy, and assistance for people who otherwise lack access to specialized expertise. His concern is that these benefits will not necessarily be distributed fairly and that significant social and economic disruption could accompany them.

Gates identifies three major categories of concern:

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Introduction

Two distinguished law professors recently offered incoming law students advice from different but unusually complementary perspectives. Vikram David Amar, writing broadly about the habits of mind and disciplined effort required to succeed in law school, is principally concerned with how students learn to think like lawyers. Michael C. Dorf, focusing more specifically on artificial intelligence, considers how that learning process can be preserved and adapted at a time when AI systems can produce seemingly authoritative answers almost instantly.

Considering their essays together reveals an important relationship that might be less apparent if each were read in isolation. The traditional methods through which law students develop legal reasoning, judgment, and intellectual independence are now encountering technologies capable of retrieving information, summarizing complex material, and generating plausible responses with remarkable speed. The question is therefore not simply whether students should use AI, but how they can take advantage of useful technological tools without allowing those tools to displace the intellectual work that legal education is intended to cultivate.

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On August 12, 2026, Austin Sarat, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science at Amherst College, published a commentary in Verdict, Justia’s legal analysis and commentary publication. Sarat’s commentary is titled “Trump’s Arresting State,” where he examines what he regards as an increasingly consequential feature of the Trump administration: the use or threatened use of arrest, prosecution, fines, and other criminal penalties not simply against political opponents, but as a means of pressuring state and local officials to cooperate with federal policy objectives.

Sarat’s article is strongly critical of the administration. His central concern is that the threat of criminal enforcement may be moving beyond conventional law-enforcement situations and into disputes involving government authority and public policy, particularly immigration enforcement and the administration of elections. Because Sarat’s article is commentary rather than a neutral news report, it is useful to examine his arguments alongside the administration’s own statements, relevant government documents, and other primary sources. Doing so provides a fuller context within which readers can evaluate both Sarat’s concerns and the federal government’s stated legal and policy justifications.

From Political Rhetoric to Governmental Power

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H.R. 3087, Civil Rights Cold Case Records Collection Reauthorization Act of 2026

Cost Estimate from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), August 6, 2026.

Overview of Document:

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