The AI revolution: Practice excellence is about to reach a whole new level
AI is set to redefine the legal sector — yet many firms find themselves unsure of where to begin harnessing it. Access Legal explores how AI can enhance law firms’ productivity, workflows and communication, while ensuring an ethical and responsible approach
When ChatGPT launched in 2022, I was amazed by its ability to generate responses to both simple and complex queries instantly. It marked the start of a profound shift in how business is done, particularly in desk-based professions like law.
Fast-forward two years, and I’ve focused much of my efforts on adapting this technology, specifically generative AI (genAI), to the legal sector. Like many firms, we initially asked: where should we begin? The possibilities were vast, but finding the right starting point was crucial.
AI’s potential to transform law firms is immense. It can improve practices, compliance and productivity by freeing up time for lawyers to focus on higher-value activities. But to ensure the safe adoption of AI, security and innovation must go hand in hand.
Through extensive discussions with our customers, we’ve found a common theme: firms want to know how AI can enhance their practice and client service without compromising security. This is where AI-powered case management systems come in.
AI to solve core frustrations
Case management software is often at the centre of law firms, integrating tasks, billings and communication. For firms exploring AI, an AI-powered case management system (CMS) is the ideal place to start. It can drastically reduce the time spent on administrative tasks, freeing up valuable resources to improve client experiences. Law firms that once struggled with time-consuming administrative burdens can now focus more on delivering top-tier legal counsel.
Through conversations with customers, we identified several recurring frustrations that law firms face. For fee earners, the biggest challenge is quickly finding important information. A task that should take minutes can often stretch into 10 or 20 minutes, creating delays, particularly during client calls.
Law firm leaders also struggle with accessing insights from across the firm to make strategic decisions. If retrieving a single insight takes half an hour, imagine how long it would take to analyse the entire firm’s data, leaving valuable opportunities slipping away.
Internal communication is another common issue. Fee earners, often time-poor, can’t always explain tasks in detail to colleagues, leading to misunderstandings or missed actions. Streamlining task management in one place can resolve this, improving communication within the firm and with clients.
AI can help with various tasks, such as assessing email sentiment, summarising documents, creating action points for matters, conducting research, and drafting contracts and reports. These may seem like minor improvements, but their cumulative impact is transformative. AI can save hours of manual work, enabling fee earners and leaders to focus on what truly matters — driving practice excellence, growth, client retention and better outcomes.
The future of AI in law firms
Our extensive research with customers has guided us in developing an AI experience that will launch in 2025. It will significantly reduce administrative burdens, ensuring that security remains a top priority. As our CEO Chris Bayne has said: “If you cannot protect your customers’ data, it is worthless.” This is especially true in the legal sector, where compliance and confidentiality are paramount.
Concerns around AI often focus on two key areas: security and qualified legal advice. Law firms are rightfully worried about protecting sensitive data, and ensuring AI doesn’t replace the legal counsel that practitioners are trained to provide.
For AI adoption to be successful, it must operate within secure infrastructure. Firms should begin by adopting AI solutions that work exclusively within their internal systems, ensuring that sensitive data stays protected. AI should only analyse and provide insights based on a firm’s secure data, which guarantees confidentiality.
It’s also important to clarify that AI in legal practice is not about replacing lawyers’ expertise. AI is designed to assist with administrative tasks, not provide legal advice. Lawyers should remain the expert counsel, with AI removing time constraints and allowing them to focus on serving clients.
AI’s role in improving practice excellence revolves around boosting productivity and communication, which ultimately enhances client experience. The legal sector is on the brink of an AI revolution, and while only 19% of lawyers currently use AI, 51% are interested in adopting it, with 71% planning to do so in 2025.
AI will soon redefine what practice excellence looks like in law firms, and many firms will have begun their AI journey this year. For firms looking to stay ahead, AI is the key to unlocking new levels of efficiency and client satisfaction.
For further guidance on getting started with AI, explore our AI in Legal content hub or speak to one of our experts.
