In a surprising twist to the common narrative, recent insights suggest that the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) might not herald the sweeping productivity boosts or the redundancy of human roles as once feared. Instead, it appears AI could be slowing productivity growth across various sectors, including the legal field.

A detailed analysis in Fortune Magazine challenges the assumption that AI will make all businesses ultra-efficient. The article builds on economist Robert Solow's observations from the late 80s, which became known as the Solow paradox. Contrary to expectations, the introduction of transformative technologies like transistors and microprocessors did not accelerate productivity but slowed it down, due to the increase in information that needed to be managed and analyzed.

Fast forward to today, and it seems history may be repeating itself with AI. Despite significant investments in AI technologies by many companies, tangible gains in productivity are elusive. Studies suggest that many executives see little impact from AI on their operations, and confidence in the technology is reportedly declining.

For the legal industry, this might mean more work, not less. AI generates vast amounts of information, but this just leads to more data for lawyers to sift through, not necessarily lessening their workload. This could ironically strengthen the traditional billable hour model in law practices, as more time is required to handle the increased workload.

Moreover, AI is enabling lawyers to pursue cases that were previously not financially viable by reducing some costs. This has led to an uptick in litigation, further increasing the demand for legal services.

Resistance to change within the legal profession itself might also play a role in perpetuating this trend. Lawyers are trained to spot issues and solve problems, a mindset that leads them to seek more information and, consequently, more work.

As investments continue to pour into AI technologies with underwhelming returns, there might come a point when the enthusiasm begins to wane. The promise of AI revolutionizing the legal field has been heavily promoted, but the reality may be more complex and less transformative in the short term.

In conclusion, while AI is reshaping many aspects of legal practice, it's not making lawyers obsolete. Instead, it's creating different kinds of challenges and opportunities. As the legal industry navigates these changes, the story of AI and productivity in the legal sector is far from over, suggesting that predictions of the end of lawyers are premature. The future might hold more evolution than extinction for legal professionals.