NGA’s virtual coffee chats are designed to be interactive, with members asking questions and sharing tips that have worked for them. Each one-hour chat will have an overall theme, but not necessarily a full presentation. This is a great opportunity to ask and answer questions in real time while participating in a casual environment.
ChatGPT as a Practical Assistant for Guardians and Conservators
Monday, November 9, 2026 | 1:00 pm Eastern
Moderated by Ben Johnson
This informal coffee shop chat will explore practical ways guardians and conservators can use ChatGPT and other AI tools in everyday work. Drawing on the facilitator’s own experience as a regular user, he will share what has been useful, what has fallen short, and what he’s learned along the way. No technical background is needed.
We’ll start with basic tips for getting useful results: providing context, explaining your goal, specifying the audience and format, and refining an answer through follow-up questions. Examples will go beyond legal research to include drafting professional emails, turning rough notes into clear summaries, preparing for difficult meetings, organizing information, and developing checklists and follow-up plans.
We’ll also discuss using AI as an assistant while keeping professional judgment firmly in charge. That includes asking it to challenge your assumptions, identify missing information, and help you prepare better questions for attorneys, medical providers, and others. We’ll cover confident but incorrect answers, the importance of verifying legal sources and jurisdiction, and why AI’s agreement with you does not establish that you are right.
Finally, we’ll discuss client confidentiality, HIPAA considerations, and questions to ask before entering sensitive information into any AI product. We’ll also explore limitations with rapidly changing information, such as hotel prices, flight availability, and driving times. Participants are welcome to bring questions and hypothetical examples for a practical discussion about where AI can help—and where additional verification is essential.
You must register in advance for this meeting. Register here.
Coffee chats are offered exclusively to NGA members. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
We are limited to how many people can attend each chat. If you register, please attend, or cancel if your plans change so that we may offer the space to other interested members.
Coffee chats will be recorded and the most recent recording is available to members.
Coffee chats are interactive discussions with other members. They are not educational presentations and are not eligible for continuing education credit.
All coffee chats are held at 1:00 pm Eastern.
Recording from previous coffee chat: Click here.
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