In a survey of more than 1,200 professionals in legal, tax and accounting, global trade, and risk and compliance industry legal professionals are generally optimistic about the potential for AI.
55% of legal professionals expect using AI to lower costs for firms and drive greater firm profitability. Law firms anticipate using AI-powered tools to drive growth through increased productivity, reduced costs, and improved client service. Law firms also believe AI will create new revenue streams; 81% of legal professionals expect AI to lead to new advisory services within the next five years. AI could help firms expand into new markets as well as drive efficiencies with tools that streamline client intake and automate contract drafting, for example.
In-house counsel are looking to AI to achieve greater efficiency; 48% ranked efficiency as a top priority, while 39% said reducing external spend was a priority exploring ways that AI can help them increase internal capacity and reduce outside spending without adding staff.
However, while 66% of professionals believe AI will create new career paths, they also worry that AI could lead to job cuts. Another issue, cited by 30% of legal professionals in the report, is the accuracy of AI outputs.
For legal professionals who expand their skillsets into areas including software coding and AI prompt engineering, AI will likely open up more career paths. Lawyers and legal professionals who adapt to embrace AI are going to be best positioned to use it to their advantage – improving their productivity as well as enhancing their career growth.
Source: Thomson Reuters
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