Abstract

This Article brings together two critical conversations rarely considered in tandem – the impact of generative AI (GenAI) on legal education and the need for more practical skills – and argues for a shared solution centered on oral communication skills. Law schools have historically devoted substantial attention to teaching students how to write like lawyers, but not how to speak like one. Although a long-standing imbalance, the widespread use of GenAI in written work provides an additional urgent reason to place more emphasis on oral assignments.

This Article argues that doctrinal classes offer an underused, scalable opportunity to develop oral competence in ways that meet the challenges of an AI era, and a recognized need for increased skills. Drawing on learning science and assessment literature, this Article shows how short oral reports and presentations embedded in doctrinal classes can deepen substantive learning while simultaneously promoting readiness for practice. Unlike expansion of experiential learning, such as law school clinics recommended by the ABA recommends, theseapproaches require no new resources. Also, these experiences can mirror oral work that junior lawyers perform,such as explaining law to supervisors, clients, and courts.

This Article provides specific recommendations for the ABA, law schools, and individual faculty. However, recognizing institutional reform can be slow, the Article focuses on providing classroom-ready strategies that individual faculty can immediately adopt. By recentering oral communication as a core mode of legal assessment, this Article provides a practical and principled response to GenAI that also strengthenslegal education and professional preparation.

Recommended Citation

Ho, Cynthia M., WHAT AI CAN’T SAY: ORAL COMPETENCE IN LEGAL EDUCATION, 66 Santa Clara L. Rev. 506 (2026).
Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.scu.edu/lawreview/vol66/iss3/3