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Upending the legal industry

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Bernadette Bulacan on how AI is reshaping the sector

The legal industry stands at a pivotal moment for transformation, as AI technologies such as generative AI (gen AI), autonomous agents and large language models have begun reshaping how legal teams operate. From law firms to in-house legal departments, the integration of AI promises to evolve the roles and responsibilities of legal professionals at all levels.

AI is particularly advantageous in the legal sector because deep reasoning and strategic decision-making are highly valued, and established workflows are primed for automation. The Blickstein Group’s latest Law Department Operations survey shows that more than 90% of legal departments will substantially utilise gen AI in the next three years—proof that the sector’s perspective on AI has rapidly progressed beyond early scepticism to mark a pivotal moment in the evolution of legal practice.

AI-specialised professionals

Recent innovations have pushed AI’s capabilities beyond an assistive role into autonomous agents that can take action to support and augment human productivity. As agentic AI becomes ubiquitous, every

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Harneys—Maggie Kwok & George Weston

Harneys—Maggie Kwok & George Weston

Harneys senior leadership appointments

Freeths—Keith Browne & Jim Jordan

Freeths—Keith Browne & Jim Jordan

Freeths strengthens London Construction and Engineering practice with two strategic senior hires

Anthony Collins—Laura Moss

Anthony Collins—Laura Moss

Anthony Collins announces strategic hire to deepen skills base in the social business sector

NEWS
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Part-time status need only be an effective cause of less favourable treatment, rather than the sole cause, the Supreme Court has held in Augustine v Data Cars
Britain’s new acknowledgement that Israel’s occupation is unlawful, and accompanying settlement-goods ban and sanctions, is significant but overdue, argue Danny Friedman KC and Victor Kattan in NLJ this week
New planning fee rises, wider trade union access rights and a service-by-email trap feature in Stephen Gold’s latest Civil Way
Existing defamation law can respond to AI ‘hallucinations’, but allocating responsibility will prove harder where outputs reach users without human intervention
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