Law firms using AI is a contentious subject for clients and legal sector employees that is often shrouded in uncertainty and apprehension. The most effective way to soothe the anxieties around AI for law firms is to get to know it, see if it works for you, and, if you can, use it to help your team and clientele thrive.
AI tools specifically designed for law firms are already in use and are a rapidly growing trend, in line with the rising prominence of AI across many sectors. AI tools give other firms a competitive edge and allow them to significantly cut down on the time they use for administrative and other monotonous tasks. Many law firms are already using AI for:
- Document Analysis
- Document Delivery
- Instant notifications and amendments when the law changes
- Case outcome prediction
- Contract intelligence
- Public legal education.
The importance of using AI for your Law Firm
All law firms want to be thought leaders, and using AI is one way to show that not only are you not afraid of how the legal landscape changes with time, but you’re up-to-date with it. Taking advantage of AI as a new opportunity can support and empower your staff to use their full potential, unencumbered by admin and time-consuming desk work.
But what does that really mean?
Your clients will likely have mixed feelings about AI, and while it’s entirely up to you whether you openly advertise how you use it or more discretely embed it into your practice, you can use AI to free up hours spent on administration. This means your team is free to focus more on what AI cannot replace: the human element of your staff, your values, and your client care.
Think of it this way: your client will remember your firm’s creative and interactive sides the most. These are the meetings, the branding, a friendly smile and the reassurance that you’ll solve your client’s issues empathetically and practically. You’ll notice that most of your reviews are about your staff and their professionalism, not about how well you’ve organised your client contact information.
Client-facing tasks require time, creativity, mental fortitude, and dedication. Using AI will help your staff streamline the tedious day-to-day admin that takes up their valuable time, which otherwise can leave them unprepared when entering client meetings. This represents a new, exciting opportunity to optimise your way of working and improve your team’s job satisfaction.
These seemingly incremental changes can go a long way in ensuring that clients pick up on the fact that you’re dedicated to delivering fresh solutions to fit their needs. Whether it’s making your office more accessible, keeping communication open, maintaining a friendly, personable dialogue or pursuing your values, clients will notice the humanity in your care and recognise the proficiency and organisation of your firm.
Frequently asked questions about AI and Law Firms
Will clients be able to tell?
That depends on how you use it! Some firms will choose to build an AI tool into their website, letting their clients use it whenever they visit, while others might instead use it behind the scenes to help with organisation and reading documents.
If you advertise your use of legal AI tools, it is difficult to predict how they may react. Clients could either respond positively to your efforts to remain up to date and use all the tools available to you or with reserve and scepticism. It’ll likely come down to how you frame and introduce the idea.
As a general rule, most people struggle to correctly identify AI-generated content, particularly when they are looking for advice and information quickly. Many clients will indeed be looking for a fast solution and reassurance when they search for responses to their legal issues, and that will lead them to reach out to you.
What are the risks?
Much like all technological advances, AI in the legal industry will be constantly improved upon and replaced by better, more efficient alternatives. If you subscribe to one AI tool, you may find a better one pops up within that paid window, making your investment less worthwhile. It is important to get insider insight into whatever tool you are using before you jump the gun.
Furthermore, your clients, particularly those with sensitive cases or those from a more elderly demographic, may be hesitant to work with a firm that uses AI. The media has depicted it as a threat to many creative and passionate job forces, and they may feel, for reasons entirely unrelated to your law firm, that AI as a whole is a negative presence.
They could also feel that AI is not as secure as more traditional forms of work, that their information may be compromised, or that the details of their case will not be getting the human attention that they need to be properly addressed.
It is ultimately up to you to decide whether your clientele would react positively to the presence of AI and, therefore, how you will integrate it into your practice. User research is certainly advisable to ascertain the impact that the public introduction of AI to your services might have on your client base.
At Conscious Solutions, we use AI and can advise you on how to make it part of your best practice, as we believe that AI for lawyers can give you many advantages.
What’s next for AI?
New tools are constantly being announced, all designed to supplement the workforce and improve access to information and advice. It is possible that your clients are already using tools like ChatGPT and Google Gemini to get unofficial legal aid.
You need to stay on top of these changes so that your clients do not get the impression that they, without any legal training, have an equal grasp of legal proceedings and, therefore, do not need your help. The only way to truly do this is to embrace AI and all future developments as they inevitably arise.
Of course, this doesn’t mean you have to use every tool that exists, but you do need to show a comprehensive awareness that they are out there and that they can work very well. Conscious can help you integrate legal AI tools as they evolve and get even better and can help you market your forward-thinking and adaptability.
If you'd like to find out how Conscious can support with your law firm's marketing to help minimise the anxieties around using AI for law firms, get in touch on sales@conscious.co.uk