In one sentence
Yes and no: purely AI-driven legal advice in the sense of legal representation isn't permitted — AI-assisted legal information and document preparation, however, are, as long as the software works in a standardised way. The Rechtsdienstleistungsgesetz (RDG, Legal Services Act) draws the line, and from 2 August 2026 the EU AI Act additionally demands transparency.
The RDG in three paragraphs
Under the Rechtsdienstleistungsgesetz (RDG), a legal service is any activity in a specific third-party matter that requires a legal assessment of that individual case. The key word is "individual case" (Einzelfall): it's about your matter, with your facts, assessed individually.
As a rule, only lawyers and registered persons may provide such services — the legal profession is a regulated profession of trust, and the RDG protects people seeking legal help from unqualified advice.
This needs to be distinguished from permitted self-help: you're always allowed to inform yourself, use template letters, and assess your own situation. Anyone acquiring knowledge, rather than commissioning representation, operates outside the licensing requirement. This is exactly where legitimate legal AI comes in.
Where software stands legally
Is legal tech allowed? The established line of case law is: software that operates in a standardised way isn't an impermissible legal service. For contract generators such as Smartlaw, courts have repeatedly ruled that a program which assembles a document from building blocks according to fixed rules doesn't carry out an individual legal assessment within the meaning of the RDG — it follows a scheme, it doesn't advise on the individual case.
This distinction is the pivot point when it comes to the Legal Services Act and AI: as long as a system structures information, applies templates, and generates documents, it stays on the permitted side. It only becomes problematic once it presents itself as "your AI lawyer" and promises binding representation in an individual case.
What legitimate legal AI does — and doesn't do
This line results in a clear division of labour. What's permitted and useful:
- Initial assessment — SmartLegalPro provides a 60-second initial assessment, no account required, as orientation, not as binding advice.
- Document analysis — making documents easy to understand, surfacing deadlines and facts.
- Letter preparation — drafts that you review and adapt.
What's not permitted is claiming to represent you: no legitimate tool appears in court on your behalf or replaces a mandate. That's why our path ends exactly where things become a matter for a lawyer — with a one-click handover to pre-qualified law firms. Read why a generic chatbot is the wrong place for that under Why Not ChatGPT; we explain terms like "legal service" and "licensing requirement" in our glossary.
From 2 August: the EU AI Act
From 2 August 2026, a second layer is added to the RDG question: the transparency obligations under Article 50 of the EU AI Act. Anyone interacting with an AI system must be able to recognise that — chatbots, AI-generated content, and deepfakes must be labelled. Violations can be punished with fines of up to 35 million euros or 7% of worldwide annual turnover.
The stricter high-risk obligations were postponed to 2 December 2027 via the "Digital Omnibus". But the labelling requirement applies from August — and it's a good litmus test: a provider that openly discloses its AI takes the rules seriously. How we implement this is set out on our AI transparency page.
Red flags when choosing a provider
How do you spot dubious offerings? Watch for three warning signs:
- "Replaces your lawyer" — a promise that ignores the RDG boundary.
- No stated limits — a provider that never says what the tool can't do is hiding the most important part.
- No AI labelling — legally risky too, from August onward.
That this duty of care is real is shown by cases in which AI produced invented citations — read more in our assessment of the KG Berlin case. Good legal AI identifies itself, knows its limits, and hands you over to a human being when it truly matters.
