Robert Ambrogi's LawSites

[Another in a series of mini-reports on what I saw at the annual LegalTech conference in New York this week.]

Predictive analytics are all the rage in e-discovery, but here is a new product that uses artificial intelligence and deep data to predict the course of a negotiation, estimating when the parties are likely to settle and for how much.

Called Picture It Settled, this web-based tool draws on data harvested from thousands of cases. Its developers claim that it is able to estimate when parties are likely to settle and for what amount with a high degree of accuracy. Advocates in a negotiation or mediation can use the tool to plot scenarios and plan strategies.

Here is how the website describes it:

Negotiation between legal parties has historically been a process dominated by uncertainty, guessing games and anxiety. However, today’s professionals can make strategic decisions based on deep data and predictive analytics to improve conventional wisdom and correct cognitive errors in judgment. Using neural networks to examine the behavior of negotiators in thousands of cases, Picture It Settled can predict what an opponent will do, thereby saving time and money while optimizing settlements. Picture It Settled does not replace lawyers – instead, it is a critically important resource that gives them a distinct edge in the negotiation process.

The tool was developed by a team led by Don Philbin, a San Antonio-based attorney and mediator. Its release at LegalTech follows the 2011 release of Picture It Settled Lite, a less-robust mobile app. (In fact, data collected through the mobile app was used to augment the case data collected from other sources.)

Until March 31, you can try Picture It Settled for free. After then, it will be available via subscription as a software-as-a-service.