The Tool Is New, the Duty Is Old: How Emerging Technologies Are Rewriting Legal Practice and Testing Zambia's Tech Law

Artificial intelligence has moved from the conference agenda to the lawyer's desktop. Thomson Reuters Institute research, summarised in Thomson Reuters' guide to AI and the law, found that generative AI use among professionals nearly doubled, from 14% in 2024 to 26% in 2025, with law firm lawyers leading adoption, while 34% of professionals in 2026 used AI tools their organisations had not sanctioned. For Zambian practitioners, the question is no longer whether these tools will be used, but whether they will be used responsibly.

The cost of unchecked output

Courts abroad have begun to answer that question. In Mata v Avianca, a United States federal court fined lawyers $5,000 after they filed a brief citing non-existent cases generated by ChatGPT. In Ayinde v Haringey, the High Court of England and Wales warned that placing false citations before a court, whether produced by AI or otherwise, may lead to regulatory referral, wasted costs orders or contempt proceedings. CCET has not identified a reported Zambian case of this kind, but the duty not to mislead the court applies in Lusaka as it does in London.

Zambia's own digital shift

Local institutions are digitising. The Judiciary reports that more than 113,000 case records have been scanned and is developing an Electronic Case Management System to connect the Subordinate Courts through to the Supreme Court. For practitioners, this points towards electronic filing, digital case bundles and data-security obligations. The Integrated National Registration Information System is introducing biometric-enabled national registration cards. Each efficiency gain raises a legal question: who guards the data, and on what terms?

Pressure on Tech Law

Zambia's statutory base is stronger than often assumed. The Office of the Data Protection Commissioner became fully operational in 2025, with mandatory registration of data controllers and processors. The Cyber Security Act and Cyber Crimes Act of 2025 replaced the 2021 cyber law, although the Law Association of Zambia has challenged several provisions in the High Court. Artificial intelligence, however, remains governed by a non-binding National AI Strategy launched in November 2024, with no dedicated statute or regulator.

The CCET view

Two priorities follow. First, practice guidance: Zambian lawyers need clear expectations on approved AI tools, client confidentiality and citation checks. Second, legislative foresight: data, cyber and electronic transactions law should be tested against agentic AI, deepfakes and biometric systems before disputes reach the courts. The tool is new; the duty to verify is not.

Sources

Primary sources

•      United States District Court, S.D.N.Y. (2023). Mata v. Avianca, Inc., 678 F. Supp. 3d 443 (Opinion and Order on Sanctions, 22 June 2023)

•      High Court of England and Wales, Divisional Court (2025). R (Ayinde) v London Borough of Haringey; Al-Haroun v Qatar National Bank QPSC [2025] EWHC 1383 (Admin), 6 June 2025

•      Republic of Zambia (2025). Cyber Security Act No. 3 of 2025 (ZambiaLII)

•      National Assembly of Zambia (2022). Ministerial Statement on the implementation of the Integrated National Registration Information System (INRIS), Parliamentary Debates, 10 March 2022

•      Judiciary of Zambia (2020). Computerization Project

Research and commentary

•      Thomson Reuters (2026). Artificial intelligence and law: What legal teams need to know. Reports findings of the Thomson Reuters Institute Generative AI in Professional Services Report (2025) and Future of Professionals Report (2026)

•      Bowmans (2025). Zambia: Office of the Data Protection Commissioner operational

•      Global Network Initiative (2026). Scrutinizing Zambia's New Cyber Law Regime in the Shadow of RightsCon

•      Synergy International Systems (2025). Transforming Justice in Zambia with Electronic Case Management System (vendor announcement)

•      Levellers.ai (2026). AI Regulation in Zambia: Law, Strategy and Institutions, last reviewed 8 June 2026

 Law & Technology, Tech Law & Policy, Artificial Intelligence, Zambia