# Indie Law Signs The Higher Bar, a Voluntary 14-Principle Pledge on Responsible AI in Law > Indie Law signed The Higher Bar, a voluntary pledge with 14 principles on responsible AI use, committing to human review of every AI output before it leaves the firm. - Published: 2026-11-14T07:43:21+00:00 - Section: Business - Author: News Desk - URL: https://newsforagent.com/news/2026-11-14/indie-law-higher-bar-ai-pledge - Source: [24-7 Press Release](https://www.24-7pressrelease.com/press-release/540483/indie-law-signs-the-higher-bar-a-public-pledge-on-responsible-ai-in-law) ## Key takeaways - Indie Law signed The Higher Bar, a voluntary pledge convened by Best Era that sets out 14 principles for AI use in legal work. - The pledge commits Indie Law to having a person check every AI output before it leaves the firm and to never selling client files to train AI. - Joey Vitale, founder of Indie Law, said a lawyer remains responsible for the work regardless of the tools used. - The Higher Bar creates no legal obligation and changes no rule of professional conduct. Indie Law, a Chicago trademark law firm serving entrepreneurs and growing businesses, has signed The Higher Bar, a voluntary public pledge on how lawyers use artificial intelligence. The pledge, convened by law firm consulting company Best Era, sets out 14 principles covering human oversight, client data protection and honesty about AI's limits. [24-7 Press Release](https://www.24-7pressrelease.com/press-release/540483/indie-law-signs-the-higher-bar-a-public-pledge-on-responsible-ai-in-law) announced the signing on November 14, 2026. ## What Indie Law Committed To Under The Pledge By signing, [Indie Law](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/02lqce3/indie-law) commits to using AI to serve clients, courts and communities with a lawyer responsible for every use. The firm also commits to having a person check every AI output before it leaves the firm, and to never filing evidence it cannot verify is real. The pledge bars using AI to harass, intimidate or bury anyone in filings, and bars selling or licensing client files or case data to train anyone's AI. Other principles cover protecting client data as ongoing work, using AI to make the team better rather than replace it, and being honest about what AI can and cannot do while keeping the firm's own voice in everything it sends. "Our clients trust us with the name their business is built on," said Joey Vitale, trademark attorney and founder of Indie Law. "Signing The Higher Bar is a public way of saying that no matter what tools we use, a lawyer is responsible for the work and our clients' information stays protected." The Higher Bar is voluntary. It creates no legal obligation and changes no rule of professional conduct. The full pledge and the list of signers are on Best Era's website. Best Era, based in West Hartford, Connecticut, launched a three-hour live AI training workshop for paralegals priced at $4,375 per firm, according to EIN Presswire, with scheduling for December or January 2026. ## Indie Law's Trademark Practice At A Glance Indie Law is a privately held boutique trademark law firm founded in 2016 and based in Chicago, according to akta.pro [company records](https://akta.pro/company-data). The same records list a headcount range of 1-10 and a revenue estimate of $1 million-$5 million. The firm offers flat-fee federal trademark registration, search, office action response, cease-and-desist and renewal services for entrepreneurs, small businesses, creators and other law firms across all 50 states and internationally. The same records show more than 2,500 trademark applications filed for clients, a 97% success rate for trademark applications and more than 200 five-star reviews from trademark clients. Indie Law also runs an attorney referral program under which other law firms route their trademark work to it, and it launched the proprietary RAD Method three-step trademark process. ## Where The Pledge And Its Signers Go Next Best Era's website carries the full pledge and the list of signers. The firm's paralegal AI workshop is scheduled for December or January 2026. ## Companies in this story - [Indie Law company profile](https://akta.pro/company-profiles/02lqce3/indie-law) · website: https://indielaw.com --- News for Agent · https://newsforagent.com/llms.txt