Key Insights from Wolters Kluwer’s Future Ready Lawyer Survey Report

On October 24, 2024, Wolters Kluwer, an info providers firm, launched the 2024 Wolters Kluwer Future Prepared Lawyer Survey Report. This annual report, now in its sixth 12 months, surveys a whole bunch of legislation corporations throughout the U.S. and Europe. 

On this weblog put up, we’ll discover the important thing insights from this report alongside our earlier findings from the most recent Authorized Tendencies Report to reaffirm the urgent points dealing with at present’s attorneys—and what the way forward for the authorized career holds for them.  

Most attorneys are leveraging AI of their apply

There’s little question about it: the authorized career has wholly embraced AI. The newest Authorized Tendencies Report discovered that the overwhelming majority of authorized professionals are leveraging AI of their practices, and the Future Prepared Lawyer Survey Report has now reported comparable findings. Particularly, the Authorized Tendencies Report discovered that 79% of authorized professionals use AI in some capability of their practices, whereas 68% of legislation corporations surveyed within the Future Prepared Lawyer Survey Report reported utilizing AI not less than as soon as every week. 

These findings reaffirm the vital position that AI is enjoying within the authorized career alongside the speedy pace at which authorized professionals are adopting it. Notably, in solely a 12 months’s time, AI adoption has elevated from 19% to 79% amongst attorneys surveyed within the Authorized Tendencies Report. 

Will AI adoption kill the billable hour? 

Attorneys anticipate that the rise of synthetic intelligence will remodel the normal legislation agency enterprise mannequin: particularly, the widespread use of the billable hour. 60% of attorneys surveyed within the Future Prepared Lawyer Survey Report anticipate that AI-driven efficiencies will influence the prevalence of the billable hour. 

These findings mirror these from the most recent Authorized Tendencies Report, which discovered that generative AI might have a big influence on income for corporations that primarily depend on the billable hour. Particularly, AI automation might scale back hourly billing per lawyer by $27,000 yearly, leading to a necessity for AI-enabled corporations to contemplate different fee choices, like flat charges. 

Nonetheless, in accordance with the Future Prepared Lawyer Survey Report, attorneys aren’t apprehensive about navigating these challenges. Over half of these surveyed reported that they felt well-prepared to regulate their enterprise practices in response to the rise of AI know-how.  

Attorneys are investing in AI 

Over the following three years, anticipate to see important funding in AI know-how amongst legislation corporations. 58% of legislation corporations reported that they plan to extend their funding in AI over the following three years within the Future Prepared Lawyer Survey Report. 

Once more, these outcomes align with these uncovered within the newest Authorized Tendencies Report, which discovered that whereas corporations are solely spending 2% of their whole bills on software program, this expense is growing by 21% yearly—making software program the fastest-growing legislation agency expense. 

Thus, the overwhelming majority of legislation corporations see AI—and software program, usually—as a vital funding, they usually’re placing cash behind it to assist improve effectivity and scalability. 

Leveraging authorized traits for a future-ready apply

The authorized trade’s main report, the Authorized Tendencies Report, exhibits that AI is not an outlier within the authorized career—and extra trade experiences are doubling down on this pattern: AI has grow to be an important facet of many legislation corporations’ practices. Attorneys have clearly taken notice and are investing—and planning to speculate—in AI know-how to additional drive innovation of their practices. 

Nevertheless, the speedy uptick in legislation agency AI adoption might drive corporations to problem current processes and constructions, from how they conduct their day-to-day work to how they cost shoppers for his or her providers. Right here, we see a powerful case to be made for shifting in the direction of flat charge billing fashions, significantly for circumstances and duties the place automation might play a bigger position. Amongst these challenges, nonetheless, attorneys are largely assured of their capacity to navigate the way forward for authorized. 

Understanding the prevailing traits within the authorized career and their influence on legislation agency enterprise might help demystify the challenges inherent in authorized apply. Clio’s annual Authorized Tendencies Report uncovers insights from the most important trade information units and—alongside different trade experiences—exhibits legislation corporations the place their biggest alternatives lie. 

Learn the most recent Authorized Tendencies Report at present for extra insights.

We revealed this weblog put up in October 2024. Final up to date: October 24, 2024.

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