AI LEADERS
Collaboration
Two-thirds of AI leaders say lawyers are already collaborating with clients directly with genAI
But a third 'don't know' whether clients are into the idea
Almost half (47%) of AI leaders say the firm is ‘actively working’ on enabling lawyers to collaborate with their clients on legal work itself through a platform approach in real time (just 6% can do this already). Almost two-thirds (65%) also say lawyers are already sometimes collaborating with their clients directly using genAI tools that are available to them. Indeed, more than 10% are enabling this to happen frequently, again suggesting that a small number are leading the way (in this respect).
Over half (53%) believe their clients are broadly supportive of the idea — if, that is, it leads to efficiency gains or another form of service improvement from which they would benefit. Interestingly, however, a third don’t know how clients would feel about such a proposition.
53%
say clients are 'mostly supportive' of collaboration with genAI — if it leads to an improvement in efficiency or service levels
Where firms have already enabled this form of collaboration to an extent, the most likely outcome is faster ‘flagging’ and response to points arising in processes such as deal due diligence (50%), a shared workflow for document review across the two organisations (33%), and the ability to track key milestones during a piece of work as one team (33%). Very few (8%) report they already have a record of clients’ key terms to reduce some rework, which would appear to be a solid candidate for a more streamlined process. One respondent adds that they would also value shared “management information about matter data, such as fees and hours progress”.
Similar proportions of leaders can see a strategic case for such collaborative features to streamline work with clients — with greater responsiveness to circumstances/risk and the idea of joint timeline-tracking leading the way. Over three-fifths say they can also see the business case for collaborative drafting of updates — to clients’ compliance policies in light of changing regulation, for example, among other business needs.
More generally, over half of AI leaders can envisage genAI bringing a whole raft of measurable operational improvements to how firms might work with their clients, led by overall communication involving teams on both sides every day (93%). There is also the automated adoption of client style (80%) and preferences for language or key positions (73%), the capture of more, or more useful, market intelligence (67%), and opportunity for some client self-service (67%). It’s striking, however, that many more leaders view their internal cross-practice/functional collaboration as a priority for significant improvement over 2026 compared to seizing such external possibilities, whether AI is involved in the efficiency-boosting effort or otherwise — perhaps a case of getting one's own house in order first, and with genAI opportunities here still at a relatively early stage of exploration.
From a risk perspective, a clear majority would have several “non-negotiable requirements”, led understandably by data residency and sovereignty controls (100%) and full audit trails of the extent of individuals' involvement (93%). A significant majority would also demand both ethical walls and role-based access controls (87%), but only two-thirds point to the need to revoke the third-party access instantly if it becomes necessary.