Unlike earlier technological innovations up to and including digitalization, the development of artificial intelligence does not merely constitute an upgrade of auxiliary tools used in legal education but represents an epistemological rupture. Artificial intelligence increasingly operates as an intermediary in cognitive decision-making processes relating to the creation, selection, structuring, and interpretation of legal knowledge. At the same time, artificial intelligence increasingly functions as a mediator in legally relevant decisions that may directly or indirectly affect the legal position of individuals and their rights. While the use of artificial intelligence in legal education undoubtedly offers significant opportunities, the associated ethical and legally relevant risks affecting legal research, teaching, and study must not be overlooked. These risks relate in particular to issues of authorship and academic integrity, the danger of excessive reliance and its impact on critical thinking skills, bias, and discrimination, transparency and accountability, as well as broader socio-economic implications. In the absence of sector-specific and education-tailored binding legal regulation, the effectiveness of the existing legal framework in adequately addressing these identified risks is called into question. Although the AI Act represents an important step towards regulating artificial intelligence in the educational sphere, it remains a horizontal legal instrument and does not encompass the dimensions specific to educational environments. As a result, a normative gap emerges, calling for supplementation through sector-specific regulation aimed at the responsible use of artificial intelligence, the management of context-specific risks, the protection of students’ rights, and the adaptation of the roles of educators and educational institutions.
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