The law profession is now in a phase of intense transformation, driven by technology and the worldview of a digital age. AI-based tools are increasingly utilized to analyze evidence and perform tasks typically executed by junior lawyers. Social media has emerged as a public space where clients post reviews and feedback, and reputations can be built or destroyed almost immediately. Concurrently, legal marketing today depends heavily on web presence, with most prospective clients determining a firm’s credibility by search and rating. These changes have led to new standards for openness and quickness, and attorneys are finding themselves shifting to a realm in which information comes out more quickly than the usual pace of the courts.
This change is not unique to big city firms. Small and medium-sized firms are subject to the same demands to be fast to react, clear to communicate, and continually present online. Over 70 percent of U.S. law firms used some type of artificial intelligence for research or document review, and almost 80 percent reported that online reviews impact their client intake, as suggested in the American Bar Association’s 2024 Legal Technology Survey. The intersection of these changes raises questions regarding privacy, professionalism, and optimal means of maintaining client relationships as the focus of legal practice.
It is within this changing climate that lawyer and writer Michael Christopher Schehr presents his view. Schehr, a lawyer based in North Carolina and founder of Schehr Law PLLC in Charlotte, released Personal Injury in the Age of AI, TikTok, and 5-Star Reviews in June 2025. The book explores how artificial intelligence, social media, and online review culture are transforming the practice of personal injury and, more broadly, the process by which clients select and evaluate attorneys. More than a marketing guidebook, the book considers how these technologies influence expectations and the practice itself.
Schehr’s background gives context to his analysis. Following a bachelor’s degree in political science and criminal justice from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, he graduated cum laude from Thomas Jefferson School of Law in 2018. He became North Carolina Bar qualified in 2019 and started practicing immigration law before establishing his own firm later in the year. Schehr Law has become a well-established boutique practice in personal injury and criminal defense, competing against larger Charlotte firms while maintaining a small team model. His own experience operating a business in a competitive environment influenced his observations regarding how clients use online tools to research lawyers.
The book does not portray technology as an entirely unproblematic good. Schehr discusses the ethical dilemma of balancing speed with confidentiality and the possibility of bias in tools driven by algorithms. He also addresses the obligation of lawyers to inform clients who might overly rely on online reviews or automated advice. His view is one of caution as well as an acknowledgment that these tools are now integral to the daily practice of the profession.
Regional legal circle reviewers have characterized the book as a timely contribution to the discussions about the future of law. Although it is centered on personal injury practice, its discussion of digital reputation and client communication resonates with all specialties. The book offers a new level to Schehr’s career, which features accolades from Expertise.com in 2025 as high-rated Charlotte personal injury attorneys and a history of high-stakes settlements, such as an $802,000 outcome in Yadkin County for a customer hurt in a delivery accident.
Schehr’s timing in publishing coincides with his ongoing service as a practicing attorney and the work he does outside the courtroom. Known also for his professional paintball career, he offers the background of someone who has had to balance several endeavors; however, the book itself is grounded firmly in legal practice and its integration into a changing world. He does not position himself as a marketing guru but as an active lawyer reporting on the world around him.
By putting new technology into dialogue with client requirements, Personal Injury in the Age of AI, TikTok, and 5-Star Reviews invites the reader to think about how law can remain adaptable without sacrificing its fundamental principles. It suggests that openness and human interaction remain imperative as technology changes. For lawyers and their clients, the book provides a look at how online practices are reshaping expectations on both sides of the lawyer-client equation.
Michael Christopher Schehr’s book is a demonstration of how an individual practitioner can participate in the wider forces transforming the profession without abandoning service to discrete clients. His 2025 book is a record of one attorney’s attempt to chronicle and understand a moment of accelerating transformation. It is part of a broader dialogue concerning the future of legal service in a technologically and opinion-driven world.
Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult a qualified attorney for legal advice tailored to their specific situation.
