Legal prompting
Working smarter with the help of language models
If you want to use language models effectively, you need to understand how they work, where their limitations lie, and how to instruct them correctly. Legal prompting is therefore not a technical gimmick, but a new legal skill—comparable to legal writing, analysis, and structuring.
LONG
6 hours
LEVEL
Starter
LOCATION
The Hague
€525 excluding VAT
Small group (max. 15)
Hands-on, practical
PO/PE points: 6
(not legal / not tax-related)
About this course
AI tools such as ChatGPT have become indispensable. At the same time, many lawyers find that using them does not automatically lead to better or faster results. The output is variable, sometimes unreliable, and often difficult to apply in a legal context. This is rarely due to the technology itself, but almost always to the way in which it is used.
In this one-day Legal Prompting course from The Innovative Lawyer, you will learn how to use language models safely, critically, and practically in your daily legal work. The course combines basic understanding, practical application, and in-depth skills, with legal prompting as the common thread.
We take you step-by-step through how to make language models work for you. Whether you are a complete beginner or already experienced, our course is suitable for all levels. Besides a bit of theory, this course is very practical with lots of tips, concrete applications and exercises.
What to expect.
Thorough understanding of how language models work
Concrete applications of language models in your daily practice
Practical skills for writing effective prompts
Learn to create your own AI assistants with custom GPTs
Technology is constantly evolving. For that reason, we update our course weekly based on the latest developments. So the information in our course is always up-to-date, so you are too.
Our instructors are lawyers with a special interest in technology. They will guide you through the ever-expanding landscape of language models. So you'll take full advantage of ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude, for example.
This course is not general in nature: the content is specifically tailored to the daily practice of legal professionals, from lawyers to judges and employees of various investigative agencies. You will learn how to use language models in your work, but also how to critically assess the output and avoid pitfalls.
Learn how to make AI work for you so you can focus on what really matters. Enroll in this course now and take an important first step toward a smarter, more efficient and future-proof practice.
Extras
Course participants will receive a prompt guide worth EUR 25. This is an overview of the most useful prompts, which can be used by lawyers in their daily practice.
In addition, participants will also receive prompts to set their custom GPTs.
Program
Security, privacy, and confidentiality: what you can and cannot do with language models
You will start with an understanding of security, privacy, and confidentiality. We will discuss what you, as a lawyer, can and cannot do with language models, which settings are essential (such as model training), how to work securely with sensitive information, and how this relates to the guidelines of organizations such as the NOvA and De Rechtspraak.
How to use language models in practice
Next, we will discuss how language models can be used in legal practice. You will receive an overview of possible applications in legal work, learn when language models add value and when they do not, and be given a tour of various language models. We will also focus on choosing the right model for specific tasks and on techniques for minimizing the risk of hallucinations.
Getting started with Legal prompting
Legal prompting involves instructing a language model in a careful and targeted manner. A good, clear prompt is essential for obtaining legally correct, relevant, and usable output. Without clear instructions, the output often remains general, inaccurate, or insufficiently tailored to the legal context.
In this section, participants learn how to control language models in a targeted manner by being explicit about the role, context, purpose, and desired form of the output. Attention is paid to avoiding common mistakes, limiting hallucinations, and critically assessing the generated results. Participants practice formulating and refining prompts that are relevant to various legal activities, enabling them to use language models more effectively and with greater control in their daily practice.
Legal research using language models
Legal research using language models is also covered extensively. We discuss the possibilities of deep research, demonstrate how this functionality works, and how you can specifically prompt it for legal research. This section helps participants to use language models not only for individual questions or summaries, but as a supporting tool in conducting legal research.
Advanced functionalities of language models
Language models have various useful features built in, but not everyone is using them yet. During this section, we will ensure that participants acquire the right knowledge and techniques to use the more advanced features of language models. This will teach you how to get the most out of language models.
Build your own AI assistant
Custom GPTs are a powerful feature within ChatGPT that allows users to tailor the AI assistant to their specific needs and preferences. Instead of relying solely on ChatGPT's default settings, custom GPTs allow you to create your own personalized AI assistants that specialize in specific topics, writing styles, and/or tasks from your daily work. This opens up a world of possibilities for improving your productivity. Based on the participants' backgrounds, we will build a custom GPT during the course day. Participants will also receive the steps and text afterwards, so they can continue working on this at home and possibly build several of their own GPTs.
For who
This course is designed for legal professionals, including lawyers, corporate lawyers, judges, public prosecutors, employees of various ministries, employees of enforcement and investigative authorities, and compliance officers who are interested in improving their understanding and skills in applying language models within their field.
This course is also great for those who support legal professionals, such as:
Legal staff
Office directors
Secretaries
Personal assistants
Participants who want to take advantage of advanced technologies to increase their efficiency, improve their services, and implement innovative solutions in their daily operations will benefit from this course.
The program is also suitable for IT professionals within the legal sector who work with legal teams and are involved in implementing and managing AI technologies.
Your teacher
Joyce Boonstra
Voormalig advocaat, Legal Tech Expert & Trainer
Joyce combines two things that rarely go together: a legal background with in-depth technical knowledge of AI. She was one of the first lawyers in the Netherlands to structurally integrate language models into her daily practice. Not as an experiment, but as a working method.
While others were still waiting, Joyce was testing. She knows the possibilities and pitfalls of various tools firsthand. Not from theory, but from hours of practical experience.
That combination makes her training sessions different. No slides full of promises, but concrete applications. No hype, but nuance. And always the question: does this work for your practice?
Practical information
DATE AND TIMES
See below.
COSTS
EUR 525, excluding 21% VAT
METHOD OF PARTICIPATION
This course is only offered in person.
LOCATION
60 Koninginnegracht, The Hague
GROUP SIZE
Maximum of 15 participants
PO/PE POINTS
6 points (non-legal/non-tax)
TAKE WITH YOU
Your own laptop (not required/necessary)
FURTHER REQUIRED
ChatGPT account (not essential, but useful if you want to practice and apply what you learn during the course)