AI LEADERS
Activities
Pilots running, but only two-fifths report tracking major outcomes
Three-quarters of leaders say firms have workflow pilots underway, testing AI for effectiveness in defined steps of a process
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As might be expected, there is some consensus that the key stakeholders who need to be making strategic decisions about AI implementations focused on lawyer outcomes are the firm’s leaders in technology, innovation, knowledge management and risk, bringing a breadth of perspective on both practice opportunities and practical challenges. It’s interesting that more than half say the managing parter is a key decision-maker, but 17% would not consider them a priority figure to consult at all. Relevant practice group leaders who can shine a spotlight on successes in their own areas, and perhaps influence others to explore, are more likely to be viewed as a vital presence at the table in discussions (67%) — comparable to the perceived need for risk expertise in the room where it happens, or transformation leader likely tasked with all the challenges of change management such as ongoing engagement, training and troubleshooting.
Even though the expectation is increasingly AI-augmented processes will begin to have an impact on both traditional legal skills development and longer-term shapes of legal careers, however, only two-fifths (39%) see the most senior leader of the people agenda as a critical part of this conversation.
Andrew Telling, head of knowledge management at Taylor Wessing, says: “There’s substantial agreement about what we need to do. Specialist AI boards exist to advance the agenda, but significant financial and project decisions are submitted in the usual way through the firm’s governance and decision-making structures.”
Nick Pryor, director of knowledge and innovation at Freeths, says: “This is a topic that transcends any one function or department, so it’s important to bring in diverse and representative perspectives. It improves the quality of decision-making.”
39%
of leaders say the firm tracks frequency of AI use — or major outcomes, such as time saved, impact on quality or fee realisation rates
It's not a surprise that leaders indicate their firms are more focused on the here and now of — for example — sharing use cases (85%) across the practices/functions (a core focus for knowledge) and role-specific training (82%) to develop ‘AI literacy’ around the firm. These build appreciation of the possibilities that exist, or might, and knowledge of how to pursue them most effectively. Over four-fifths (82%) have an approved list of tools in place as part of a published acceptable-use policy (98%).
Although it was identified as a significant challenge, three-quarters (74%) are also managing to pilot AI within some of their practice workflows, and three-fifths (60%) are horizon-scanning to get ahead of a possible ‘next wave’ — where AI agents complete a set of connected and successively triggered tasks in turn, perhaps to achieve quite a specific goal.
It’s surprising that only two-fifths (39%) seem able to track any trends in key outcomes — clearly linked to any attempt to establish ROI in the traditional way. Longer-term planning, such as the design of AI-adjacent future roles (29%) and new pricing/staffing structures (21%) are also much less likely to be underway — while a fifth go into 2026 with at least some standard workflows that include AI in operation.
David Hymers, IT director at Wedlake Bell, says: “Our priority this year has been to democratise AI and build a solid foundation where employees feel comfortable and well-trained using a genAI tool effectively. Once that baseline is established, we can explore more specialised solutions where they add value.”
Michael Kennedy, head of innovation and legal technology, R&D, at Addleshaw Goddard, adds: “We have already identified and begun developing agentic AI prototypes to streamline both legal and business processes. On the operational side we are building agents for HR, general counsel and technology education, enabling efficient access to firm-wide knowledge and training resources. In legal practice we are prototyping agentic workflows for tasks such as due diligence risk review, where agents can autonomously identify, analyse and validate agreements, ask relevant questions, and perform quality checks.”