Asked to use AI, and still the one who signs off? Start with one task.

Five steps for the first month

1. Confirm the approved tool and plan. Ask whoever manages technology which AI tool your team may use, on which plan, and for which material. Read the provider's current terms for that plan. Why the plan matters
2. Pick one task that repeats. NDAs, renewal dates or summaries for the business are good first tasks: frequent, bounded and easy to check.
3. Write down your positions. Even a one-page list of what you accept, what you would accept as a fallback and what you refuse makes the AI review match your standard instead of a general one.
4. Save the instructions once. Put the prompt and positions in a project or custom instructions so each new document gets the same first pass from one message. What can run on its own
5. Check every output the same way, and keep a short record. Note the task, the model, what you checked and what it missed. After a month you will know where it helps and where it does not.

What to avoid in month one

• Pasting confidential or privileged material into a tool your organization has not approved.
• Starting with a task where a missed point is costly and hard to spot.
• Relying on a summary you have not compared against the document.
• Sharing prompts across the team before anyone has checked what they miss.

Two prompts to begin with

Every prompt below asks the AI to quote the words it relies on and to say where it is unsure, because that is what makes the answer quick to check. New to prompts? Read Your first prompt first.

You are assisting in-house counsel. We are the [DISCLOSING / RECEIVING / BOTH] party.
Review the attached NDA against these positions: [YOUR POSITIONS].
Return a table: Clause | Quoted text | Our position | Departure | Risk.
Check in particular: whether obligations are truly mutual, the definition of confidential information, the exclusions, the term and survival, and any non-solicit or residuals clause.
Say where you are unsure.

Turn my notes below into a short table: Date | Task | Tool and model | What I checked | What it missed | Time taken.
Then give three observations about where the tool helped and where it did not, using only my notes.
[PASTE YOUR NOTES]

Based on U.S. law and practice. Adapt it to your jurisdiction before use. Information and tools only, not legal advice. Run the safe to paste questions before any confidential material goes into an AI tool.