MWM is at the forefront of guiding companies, developers, and investors across the breadth of legal and regulatory issues arising from the rapid commercialization and use of generative AI platforms and applications.

Today, the generative AI revolution is reshaping industries faster than any prior technological shift, presenting immense opportunities and complex legal challenges. To successfully navigate this evolving landscape, where the laws are largely unwritten, understanding the law is not enough.

To assess opportunities and mitigate the risks, clients need counsel who firmly grasp the technology on a technical level, and are also immersed in the AI domain and engaged with the technology they advise on. As a technology-focused law firm, MWM has been entrenched in artificial intelligence issues since the beginning of the AI revolution. This is our competitive advantage.

Munck Wilson’s multidisciplinary team includes attorneys who are not only legal experts in their practice areas, but devoted AI enthusiasts with a deep understanding and longstanding involvement in this transformative field. With attorneys who have been drafting AI patents and developing their own AI applications for literally decades, our AI Practice Group has the legal and market insight necessary to provide informed, proactive, business-minded counsel. Key highlights of our experience include:

  • Intellectual Property Management and Protection: IP strategic consulting, patent preparation and prosecution, IP Due Diligence, IP transactions, trade secret asset management, data usage policy reviews and drafting, employee AI usage policy reviews and drafting, and open-source licensing and compliance
  • Regulatory Compliance and Advisory (including Privacy and Data Security): Advising in-house counsel and businesses on AI development, adoption, and/or implementation, data privacy compliance (GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA, Gramm-Leach Bliley Act), cybersecurity, insurance, drafting AI usage policies for private and governmental organizations, data privacy compliance considerations in choosing models for AI inference, legal opinions for companies seeking to fine-tune their AI models, and ethical AI compliance
  • AI Governance and Policy Development: Assisting private companies and governmental organizations in establishing internal guidelines and best practices for AI development and deployment
  • Early Development Consultation: Engaging with businesses and developers at the conceptual/design stages to avoid legal hiccups later
  • Legal Risk Assessments for Investors and Commercial Lenders: Legal risk and compliance assessments for AI investment opportunities, competitive analysis, and due diligence for AI startups      
  • Corporate Finance and M&A: Joint Ventures, M&A, data sharing agreements
  • Litigation and Dispute Resolution: – Handling of disputes related to AI technologies and implementations

Client Alerts

Current AI Issues in the Entertainment Space

Artificial intelligence (“AI”) is on everyone’s mind in the entertainment industry as it continues to make headlines in areas including music and performing artists’ rights. In June, the Recording Industry Association of America (“RIAA”) filed twin lawsuits against AI music generators Suno AI and Uncharted Labs, Inc. on behalf of Sony, Universal and Warner Brothers[1]

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Client Alerts

Rise of AI in Sports: Athlete’s Intellectual Property, Privacy Considerations, and the Role of the Olympic Movement

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become a focal point globally, driven by media coverage of the democratization of large language models and chatbots. AI tools are now rapidly integrating into various aspects of society, including sports. At the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Omega operated Computer Vision systems including an AI model specifically trained for each sport, AI-based

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In the News

With the Rise of AI, What IP Disputes in Healthcare Are Likely to Emerge?

Munck Wilson Mandala Partner Greg Howison shared his perspective on some of the legal ramifications around AI, IP, connected devices and the data they generate, in response to emailed questions. Intellectual property can be a thorny issue in health tech and medtech. The intersection of healthcare data and AI is setting up some complex patent

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In the News

MWM Global Managing Partner Discusses Generative AI’s Role in Legal Management

William A. Munck, global managing partner of Munck Wilson Mandala, joined the Dallas Bar Association’s Law Firm Managing Partner Roundtable Breakfast August 13 at the Arts District Mansion, for a thought-provoking discussion on generative AI’s role in managing law firms. He was joined by Sakina Rasheed Foster, partner and Dallas office managing partner at Haynes Boone and Hilda

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In the News

The Intersection of Artificial Intelligence and Federal Trademark Law

Written as a column for Daily Journal by MWM’s Kristin Kosinski Current and future uses of trademarks in Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems could implicate federal trademark law; however, not all scenarios will result in a violation of the Latham Act, nor will they always be immune from such claims. The intersection of AI and trademarks

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Client Alerts

Right of Publicity: Impact of Proposed Federal AI Bills

Talent and their representatives are no strangers to the legal issues surrounding protecting name, image, likeness, voice, and other identifiable elements of a public-facing person. Half of U.S. states have statutes protecting an individual’s right of publicity, and more have some type of common law protection over such a right, such as a common law

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Client Alerts

AI Hiring Bias and the Workday Class Action: Wake-Up Call for Employers

New Scrutiny of an Old Problem According to an IBM survey from 2023, 42% of companies use AI screening to improve recruiting and human resources,” with another 40% considering its implementation. AI-assisted hiring software offers the potential for reward (efficiency in business operations) but carries with it the risk of legal exposure. Although AI tools

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Client Alerts

Grok 2: Musk’s AI Model Sparks IP and Copyright Concerns

In a bold move, Elon Musk’s X, formerly Twitter, has released Grok 2, a large language model and AI image generator with very few safeguards. This latest update to X’s chatbot allows premium users to generate nearly any image they can imagine – including deepfakes, copyrighted characters, and potentially offensive content. Musk presents this as

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In the News

Meta’s Legal Battle over Fake Ads Reveal AI Challenges in IP Law

Written as a column for Daily Journal by MWM’s Kristin Kosinski The field of intellectual property is accustomed to the nuanced application of existing legal frameworks to issues created by nascent and evolving technologies. Artificial intelligence (AI) presents challenges to trademark, privacy, and copyright laws, such as whether AI-created images, videos, replicas, or voice simulations

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Client Alerts

AI Likeness Protections Legislative Update

While AI presents extraordinary opportunities for technological advancement, it also raises real concerns over protecting intellectual property like copyrights and an individual’s name, image, and likeness. Perhaps the most well-known example of the dangers of AI are those false, AI-generated images of the most famous person in the world, Taylor Swift. In 2024 alone she

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Client Alerts

Illinois Regulates Employers’ Use of AI in Decision-Making

Employers are increasingly embracing artificial intelligence (AI) tools for recruiting and supervising employees. Those who do so should consider the applicable laws and potential legal risks. For example, Illinois recently passed legislation requiring employers to notify employees about the employer’s specific uses of AI. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed House Bill 3773 (HB 3773) into

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Press Releases

MWM Leading the Charge in AI-Related Litigation

At Munck Wilson Mandala, we are avid champions of AI innovation. The rapid growth of AI presents enormous opportunities but also many new legal challenges. In a landmark case that underscores the complexities of AI and digital rights, Munck Wilson Mandala has filed a lawsuit against ElevenLabs, Inc., a leading provider of text-to-speech services. The

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