Build Your Own AI-Researched Template

The method, step by step, so you can do it for your own paperwork — an NDA, a consent form, a simple contract, a privacy notice.

Not legal advice. This is a way to get a better first draft faster, on something you already understand. It is not a substitute for a lawyer. The whole method depends on you being able to judge the output — see step one.

The one rule that makes this safe

Only do this on a document type you already know well enough to spot what’s missing. I can do it for an NDA because I’ve read and signed plenty — I know what should be in one, so I can see the gaps. Use AI to fill the gaps in something you understand, never to conjure up a field you can’t evaluate. If you can’t tell whether the output is wrong, this method isn’t for that document.

Step 1 — Make the AI research the actual law, with sources

Don’t ask for a document yet. Ask for the law first, scoped to your jurisdiction, and demand citations you can open:

“What law governs a mutual NDA and consent to record a business meeting in Spain? Give me the specific statutes and articles (national and EU), and a link to each source so I can verify it.”

The citations are the safety mechanism. They’re what let you tell real law from a confident hallucination. If it won’t cite, don’t trust it. I used a citation-first tool for this — it came back with Ley 1/2019, GDPR Art. 6(1)(a) and the LOPDGDD, each linked.

Check the citations actually say what the AI claims. Open two or three. This is the five minutes that matters most.

Step 2 — Turn it into a reusable template, not a one-off

Now ask it to draft the document, but as a fill-in template:

“Draft this as a reusable template. Put every party-specific detail in a {{PLACEHOLDER}} marker. Bake in this standing policy: [your non-negotiables].”

Placeholders mean you write it once and refill it per client in two minutes. Bake your standing policy straight in so you never re-decide it. Mine, for recordings: internal analysis only, deleted within 30 days of the report, never shared with third parties, never used to train AI.

Tip: unfilled {{MARKERS}} show up literally when you render to PDF, so anything you forgot to fill is obvious on the page.

Step 3 — Four eyes before it goes anywhere

A second human reads it. Every time. You’re too close to your own draft to catch what’s missing; a fresh pair of eyes isn’t. This is a house rule for anything that leaves the building, not just legal documents.

Step 4 — Get it checked once by a real professional

Because you’ll reuse it, it’s worth one paid hour from a gestoría or solicitor to bless the template. After that single review it’s a standing asset you reuse for free, and the cost amortises to almost nothing.

Step 5 — Show the other side

Send it to the client or counterparty before the meeting and confirm they’re happy with it. No surprises on the day.

The shape of it

Law first, with citations you check → template with placeholders and baked-in policy → four eyes → one professional review → share.

AI does the legwork. The judgement stays human.