LEGAL TECHNOLOGY AS A NEW FIELD OF LEGAL RESEARCH

Resumen

In the contemporary era, the rapid advancement of science and technology, along with the ongoing digital transformation, has exerted a profound influence across all domains of social life, including the legal sciences. Legal technology (LegalTech) is a relatively new concept that has been conceptualized and interpreted in various ways within academic and professional discourse. This article explores several theoretical and practical approaches to legal technology, analyzes its positive impacts as well as potential risks to legal science, and, on that basis, proposes policy and research implications for Vietnam. The integration of technology into legal systems represents a paradigm shift in how law is practiced, interpreted, and even created. LegalTech encompasses a wide range of technological tools and methodologies designed to automate, optimize, and innovate legal processes. These include data analytics for case prediction, natural language processing for legal document review, blockchain-based smart contracts, and artificial intelligence (AI) systems used to support judicial decision-making. In a broader sense, legal technology not only serves as a mechanism for efficiency but also functions as a transformative force that challenges traditional notions of legal reasoning, professional ethics, and human agency in the administration of justice (Susskind, 2019). The global expansion of LegalTech has been accelerated by the increasing demand for access to justice, transparency, and cost efficiency in legal services. In many countries, especially those undergoing digital transformation, LegalTech has become a cornerstone of reform efforts aimed at simplifying procedures, improving public trust in legal institutions, and facilitating international integration (Vinogradova, 2023). For example, the United States and the United Kingdom have witnessed the proliferation of automated legal advice platforms and online dispute resolution systems, while civil law jurisdictions such as Russia and Vietnam are exploring the digitization of normative legal acts and the potential use of AI in legislative drafting. However, the emergence of LegalTech also raises important theoretical and ethical questions. Scholars debate whether the increasing reliance on AI could undermine core legal principles such as fairness, accountability, and due process (Surden, 2020). Algorithmic decision-making, while efficient, may lack transparency and be vulnerable to bias, particularly when trained on incomplete or unbalanced data sets. Moreover, the introduction of LegalTech disrupts traditional legal education and professional formation, requiring future jurists to acquire interdisciplinary skills in technology, data management, and cybersecurity. In Vietnam, LegalTech remains an underexplored but promising field. The country’s growing emphasis on e-governance and digital transformation provides a favorable environment for its development. Nevertheless, challenges persist in areas such as fragmented legal databases, limited institutional capacity, and the need for clear regulatory frameworks governing the ethical and technical standards of LegalTech applications. Against this backdrop, this paper argues that Vietnam should adopt a strategic approach that combines comparative research, institutional capacity-building, and legislative modernization. By examining the experiences of countries such as Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Brazil, and the United States, this study highlights both the opportunities and challenges of integrating technology into legal processes. Legal technology, if developed responsibly, can enhance the coherence, transparency, and accessibility of the legal system. Yet it simultaneously demands careful policy design, interdisciplinary research collaboration, and ongoing public oversight to ensure that the human dimension of law is not lost in the pursuit of technological progress.