Brattle Experts Author Westlaw Today Article on Using AI-Driven Synthetic Surveys as Early-Stage Analytical Tools for Survey Work in Litigation

Synthetic surveys – or survey data created by AI – enhance the early-stage analytical toolkit that supports better decision-making early in a case.

Brattle Principal Hans Weemaes and Senior Associates Dr. James M. Sappenfield and Dr. Animesh Giri recently coauthored an article on the potential use for synthetic surveys – survey data originating from LLM responses – as early-stage analytical tools for survey work in litigation. Potential applications include:

• When the relevant target population for a survey is small, geographically dispersed, or otherwise difficult to sample at scale, synthetic samples may help assess whether meaningful variation or subgroup patterns are likely to be observable, while reserving the human respondents for the actual survey.
• Because small wording differences can influence survey results, synthetic samples may assist researchers in evaluating whether proposed questions are clear, balanced, and non-leading. Used appropriately, they can support adherence to established survey best practices.
• Synthetic samples may help identify areas where results could be sensitive to survey structure or assumptions, enabling experts to refine survey design so that the findings reflect substantive responses rather than artifacts of survey construction.
• It is plausible that market research firms may eventually offer access to synthetic consumer panels built from anonymized personas. Such panels could function as a “try-before-you-buy” option for traditional surveys, allowing researchers to explore preliminary questions — such as the relative importance of product attributes in an intellectual property dispute — before investing in a full survey.
• Synthetic panels may offer advantages in terms of time and scale, as they could be accessed on demand and queried repeatedly without respondent fatigue. This immediacy may allow legal teams to test ideas, explore alternative framings, or respond quickly to new information as a case evolves.

The full article, “Synthetic Surveys as Early-Stage Analytical Tools for Survey Work in Litigation,” is available below.

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