Generative AI continues to be adopted into legal workflows at pace. The Brief has taken the temperature of the sector to find out how it being deployed, and what the risks are both of doing something and doing nothing.

According to the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce (UKJT), which was established seven years ago by the Ministry of Justice-backed LawtechUK Panel, adoption of AI by UK legal practitioners has increased from 11% to 61% over the past three years. As far back as September 2024 LexisNexis was reporting that 82% of UK lawyers were either already using, or planning to use, generative AI.

The direction of travel is clear, and seemingly unstoppable.

What’s more, according to the Legal Statement on Liability for AI Harms under the private law of England and Wales, published in July by the UKJT, law firms don’t just need to worry about what can go wrong when AI hallucinates or is used inappropriately.

Professionals, it says, could also be held liable for failing to use AI in circumstances where a competent member of their profession would have done so. In short, while AI outputs still need to be treated with the utmost care, using it might no longer be a matter of choice if, on balance, it would be in the client’s best interests.

This liability already exists, in the UKJT’s opinion, under current English law.

The Legal Statement, prepared following a public consultation earlier this year, is the first comprehensive analysis of how the private law of England and Wales applies to non-deliberate harms caused by AI systems.

English law has long been capable of rising to the challenges of novel technologies, and we consider that it will be able to do so in relation to AI.

According to Matthew Levy KC, chair of drafting committee, “We have reached the view that providing remedies for AI harms does not require a new liability regime, and that English law’s existing approach to legal liability already provides a coherent framework for analysing where responsibility should fall.

“While some factual scenarios may throw up difficulties, English law has long been capable of rising to the challenges of novel technologies, and we consider that it will be able to do so in relation to AI.”

Liability, it concludes, may lie with the organisation using a chatbot, if it presents that chatbot as communicating on its behalf, adopts AI-generated statements as its own, or negligently designs or deploys an AI system.

Controlled approach

While the Legal Statement provides, at least tentatively, a framework within which the law applies to AI use, the ways in which it is being applied in the law are continually evolving.

Ross Phillips, partner and head of IT at the Wiltshire firm Goughs Solicitors, points out that it was not long ago that SME law firms were focused on cloud migration, but, “Today, with cloud adoption largely mainstream, attention has shifted to automation, AI and workflow optimisation.”

Goughs, he continues, is exploring the potential of agentic AI and AI-driven automation, “with strong governance to ensure ethical and compliant use.” The aim, he says, is “to free legal teams from repetitive administrative work so they can focus on high-value client matters.”

IT innovations, Phillips says, have to work for the lawyers who will be using them, and should only be implemented when they add tangible benefits, such as improved efficiency, stronger security or an enhanced client experience.

We have deliberately decided against some AI-driven time recording tools for now, instead focusing on internal policies and training.

He says, “We've identified tools such as InfoTrack, which has significantly improved the client onboarding journey through electronic ID verification, digital signatures and document uploads. We're also trialling products that could strengthen risk assessments and compliance processes.

“While AI will undoubtedly replace certain mundane functions, we're realistic about its current limits. Technology still lacks nuance and contextual understanding, so we're taking a measured, controlled approach.

“We have deliberately decided against some AI-driven time recording tools for now, instead focusing on internal policies and training.”

Family matters

Although many law firms are using AI to automate research and other time-consuming, mundane tasks, others have taken a step further and are using it to communicate directly with potential clients.

Paul Harker, head of transformation, technology and improvement at national firm Anthony Collins Solicitors, says they made the leap after noticing a trend of people visiting the firm’s divorce and relationship web pages outside normal office hours. While visitors could submit a contact form, he tells The Brief the firm believed there was a need to provide immediate guidance at what would often be a stressful and uncertain time.

Harker says, “We also recognised that many people struggle to understand their options or find trusted information before they're ready to speak to a solicitor. We wanted to remove some of the barriers to accessing early guidance.

"Anthony Collins developed Aida with our team of expert family lawyers. Aida is an AI-powered assistant that provides anonymous, empathetic and judgement-free guidance 24 hours a day.

Aida isn't designed to replace a solicitor. It's designed to help people understand their options, build confidence and take that important first step when they're ready.

“It is also trained to pick up on sensitive issues, such as domestic abuse, and appropriately signpost resources to help.”

Unlike general-purpose AI tools, Harker says Aida draws exclusively on information curated by Anthony Collins' specialist family lawyers. This, he continues, “gives users confidence that the guidance they receive is accurate, reliable and based on trusted legal expertise.

“We recognise that many people begin their legal journey alone, often before they feel ready to speak to a solicitor. Aida helps them understand their options and access high-quality guidance from the very first step.

“Aida isn't designed to replace a solicitor. It's designed to help people understand their options, build confidence and take that important first step when they're ready.”

Moving on up

One area that is ripe for AI transformation, at least according to technology vendors, is conveyancing. Research carried out by pollsters YouGov for LawtechUK found that 17% of home byers would be willing to use a technology-led conveyancing service if it helped accelerate completion, rising to 26% among those with two children in their households.

This might not seem like a big percentage but, with roughly 1.1 million residential property sales taking place in the UK annually, it equates to at least 180,000 customers per year who would be open to an AI-driven service – and probably closer to 250,000. As people become more comfortable dealing with AI agents across the financial services landscape this figure is likely to rise significantly.

A major factor underlying this is frustration with both the pace of transactions and the quality and quantity of communication from “flesh and blood” conveyancers. Ten per cent of homebuyers felt they were never getting the whole truth from their conveyancers, 25% said they regularly had to chase their solicitors for updates and nine per cent said they had seriously considered pulling out of transactions as a result of the stress caused by poor communications.

Where the “human touch” is failing to deliver, it seems likely that AI will fill the gap – so it is up to firms to decide whether to respond by investing more in staff (expensive), implementing AI to streamline the process and automate communication (also expensive, at least in the short term), or waiting for new, AI-driven entrants to come along and eat their lunch.

Ongoing mindset

We are, of course, still at an early stage and generative AI is not yet a mature technology, with its capabilities constantly evolving. This means there is a danger of firms running after the “shiny new thing” and implementing technologies because they can, not because they should.

Digital transformation isn't a project with an end date , it is an ongoing mindset that enables us to evolve, modernise and deliver better outcomes for our clients.

Because of this, it is more important than ever to take a strategic approach to technology – to know what you want it to achieve and then seek out the most appropriate solution. Of course, this should be informed a strong understanding of what is going on in the rapidly developing sphere of AI, but the tech tail shouldn’t wag the business dog.

Goughs Solicitors’ Phillips concludes, “SME law firms that fail to embrace automation and intelligent technologies risk being left behind. However, for specialist firms like ours, AI will enhance legal services rather than replace lawyers.

“Digital transformation isn't a project with an end date, it is an ongoing mindset that enables us to evolve, modernise and deliver better outcomes for our clients.”

Image generated using AI.