header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us

NLJ this week: Small firms call for tech clarity as AI looms

© Copyright LexisNexis 2025. All Rights Reserved.
26 September 2025
Issue: 8132 / Categories: Legal News , Technology , Legal services , Artificial intelligence , Regulatory
printer mail-detail
230753
Small law firms want to embrace technology but feel lost in a maze of jargon, costs and compliance fears, writes Aisling O’Connell of the Solicitors Regulation Authority in this week's NLJ

The SRA’s new research shows that while most firms now use digital basics such as e-signatures and cloud storage, only 12% have dipped into generative AI. Lawyers cite confusion over pricing, worries about security and integration, and scepticism about fast-changing tools. Yet many see technology as vital to improve efficiency, cut costs and expand access to justice.

To close the gap, the SRA’s Innovate programme is rolling out impartial guidance, FAQs and case studies, alongside events to help firms share experiences. O’Connell argues collaboration between regulators, providers and professional bodies is critical—otherwise small firms risk being stranded on the wrong side of the digital divide.

Issue: 8132 / Categories: Legal News , Technology , Legal services , Artificial intelligence , Regulatory
printer mail-details
RELATED ARTICLES
 

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Read All
Sponsored by
Mourant—Stephen Alexander

Mourant—Stephen Alexander

Jersey litigation lead appointed to global STEP Council

mfg Solicitors—nine trainees

mfg Solicitors—nine trainees

Firm invests in future talent with new training cohort

360 Law Group—Anthony Gahan

360 Law Group—Anthony Gahan

Investment banking veteran appointed as chairman to drive global growth

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: Traders’ convictions quashed in Libor shock
The Supreme Court issued a landmark judgment in July that overturned the convictions of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo, once poster boys of the Libor and Euribor scandal. In NLJ this week, Neil Swift of Peters & Peters considers what the ruling means for financial law enforcement
NLJ this week: Fraud claims climb as courts brace for AI threats
Charlie Mercer and Astrid Gillam of Stewarts crunch the numbers on civil fraud claims in the English courts, in this week's NLJ. New data shows civil fraud claims rising steadily since 2014, with the King’s Bench Division overtaking the Commercial Court as the forum of choice for lower-value disputes
NLJ this week: Small firms call for tech clarity as AI looms
Small law firms want to embrace technology but feel lost in a maze of jargon, costs and compliance fears, writes Aisling O’Connell of the Solicitors Regulation Authority in this week's NLJ
NLJ this week: DNA evidence—justice on ice?
In this week's NLJ, Steven Ball of Red Lion Chambers unpacks how advances in forensic science finally unmasked Ryland Headley, jailed in 2025 for the 1967 rape and murder of 75-year-old Louisa Dunne. Preserved swabs and palm prints lay dormant for decades until DNA-17 profiling produced a billion-to-one match
NLJ this week: AI boom collides with courtroom reality
Artificial intelligence may be revolutionising the law, but its misuse could wreck cases and careers, warns Clare Arthurs of Penningtons Manches Cooper in this week's NLJ
Copyright © 2025 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll