header-logo header-logo

Small firms, big tech

05 September 2025 / Robert Taylor
Issue: 8129 / Categories: Features , Profession , Artificial intelligence , Legal services , Technology
printer mail-detail
228900
Access to AI risks entrenching disadvantage for SME law firms. Robert Taylor sets out the tools they need—& how to find them
  • SME law firms need AI tools that are simple, affordable, cloud-based, and focused on practical contract review.
  • AI should support, not replace, solicitor judgment, with built-in regulatory safeguards.

  • Legal technology has evolved rapidly over the past five years. From contract analytics and document automation to artificial intelligence (AI)-driven decision support tools, these developments have been enthusiastically adopted by large regional, national and international law firms, as well as by alternative legal service providers.

    However, as innovation has accelerated, so too has a growing disparity in access. Many small and high-street firms remain unable to engage with these tools, held back by barriers including cost, system complexity and limited internal technical resource. This technological divide is not merely inconvenient; it risks entrenching long-term disadvantage for firms already operating under economic pressure.

    Without access to affordable and efficient AI tools, smaller firms may find themselves offering slower

    To access this full article please fill the form below.
    All fields are mandatory unless marked as 'Optional'.
    If you already a subscriber to New Law Journal, please login here

    MOVERS & SHAKERS

    Hugh James—Phil Edwards

    Hugh James—Phil Edwards

    Serious injury teambolstered by high-profile partner hire

    Freeths—Melanie Stancliffe

    Freeths—Melanie Stancliffe

    Firm strengthens employment team with partner hire

    DAC Beachcroft—Tim Barr

    DAC Beachcroft—Tim Barr

    Lawyers’ liability practice strengthened with partner appointment in London

    NEWS
    Chronic delays, duplication of work, cancelled hearings and inefficiencies in the family law courts are letting children and victims of domestic abuse down, a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) inquiry has found
    Ceri Morgan, knowledge counsel at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP, analyses the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Johnson v FirstRand Bank Ltd, which reshapes the law of fiduciary relationships and common law bribery
    The boundaries of media access in family law are scrutinised by Nicholas Dobson in NLJ this week
    Reflecting on personal experience, Professor Graham Zellick KC, Senior Master of the Bench and former Reader of the Middle Temple, questions the unchecked power of parliamentary privilege
    Geoff Dover, managing director at Heirloom Fair Legal, sets out a blueprint for ethical litigation funding in the wake of high-profile law firm collapses
    back-to-top-scroll