I was honored to facilitate the “What’s Hot?” session for leading large law firm innovation professionals at the 2025 invitation-only Strategic Knowledge & Innovation Legal Leaders’ Summit in New York City on March 27, with Oz Benamram, the event’s co-founder and the former chief knowledge and innovation officer at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.

In a combination of discussion and exploration of survey research, the conversation served as a roadmap for law firms aiming to advance their practices into the future.

The SKILLS survey interviewed approximately 100 professionals in the first quarter of 2025 regarding their use of various artificial intelligence applications. The research respondents primarily came from large law firms, although firms of all sizes that emphasize innovation were encouraged to participate. The overwhelming majority (70) were based in the United States, with nine from the United Kingdom, eight from Canada and 13 from international law firms, mainly split between New York and London headquarters and various other countries. Completing the survey was a requirement to attend SKILLS.

Large law firms are deploying generative AI

The report identified 22 use cases and 180 solutions. On average, the law firm leaders that responded have 18 active generative AI solutions, six in a pilot phase and 22 under consideration. The most common use cases included contract drafting, time entry, due diligence and legal research.

One foundational principle resonating with the group is the leadership essential for driving change, and participants offered several recommendations to gain support. First, effective change management demands consistent communication from the top down throughout the organization. Second, innovation leaders who report directly to an executive, including the managing partner, may wield more influence in implementing change. Third, cross-functional leadership can enhance a team’s value for specific projects.

Nearly all SKILLS law firms have AI use policies

Nearly all law firms that responded (99%) have an AI use policy. However, fewer firms have developed an AI strategy (92%) or created an AI task force (87%). These results underscore the significant importance that law firm leaders place on tactical AI guidance, effective deployment protocols and collaborative talent.

They also serve as vital benchmarks for innovation teams dedicated to laying the groundwork for new initiatives. Without policies, strategies and skilled teams, companies may struggle to gain the essential trust of their internal stakeholders and clients needed to succeed with generative AI. This is particularly important as many legal professionals still fear and remain unfamiliar with several AI applications used by the respondents.

Developing an AI roadmap requires leadership and a framework

During the discussion, attendees recommended that policies governing the use of artificial intelligence include provisions for ethics, restrictions on firm-approved products, the significance of human involvement and a framework for risk assessment. Companies should also enhance their efforts by collaborating with external providers to supplement limited in-house resources.

While the adoption of generative AI at some firms is strong and sustained, the audience agreed that no clear demographic patterns exist. One attendee noted that the more senior a professional is, the greater value they can derive from using an AI platform by asking “smarter questions,” given their depth of knowledge and ability to add substance to a prompt.

Innovation teams are adapting to the shift from tools to transformation

Unsurprisingly, the innovation teams at the responding law firms hold primary responsibility for implementing the firms’ AI strategies (59%), closely followed by knowledge management (44%) and IT (43%), both of which share a similar level of oversight.

While the innovation team’s involvement has remained stable over the past year (59% in 2025 compared to 62% in 2024), knowledge management (44% in 2025 compared to 63% in 2024) and IT (43% in 2025 compared to 74% in 2024) have seen changes. Additionally, a quarter of respondents in 2024 indicated that other departments provided input, and 15% relied on external support for their AI initiatives.

Specific law firm trends have influenced which teams are responsible for certain actions. The discussion among law firm leaders regarding the deployment of artificial intelligence has quickly transitioned from technology to transformation. Law firms are increasingly reexamining their entire suite of applications and evaluating the quality and integrity of their data to ensure that any large language models they use can deliver the best results.

In 2025, this will concentrate less on technology and more on redefining the law firm’s strategy for maximizing the value of its information. Consequently, the innovation, IT and knowledge management teams will work together to navigate AI’s transformative impact on the firm.

Many organizations lacked clarity a year ago as law firms were still assessing potential applications and use cases. The rapid pace of AI development and the insatiable demand for its availability necessitates a cross-functional and interdisciplinary team to drive the firm forward, with a designated ambassador coordinating its proliferation. That diplomat is the head of innovation at many firms, whose responsibilities are broader and deeper than in 2024, yet the diplomatic corps remains multifaceted.

In particular, the role of IT teams in law firms has become significantly more prominent since the pandemic. As budgets have increased, cybersecurity has become essential, and growth is closely aligned with technology. This position emphasizes holistic operational excellence rather than merely digital transformation.

Another important trend to note is the expansion of knowledge management to include innovation, legal operations and artificial intelligence. Today, law firms frequently recruit talent from knowledge management and either assign responsibilities for innovation or promote a KM leader to a broader innovation-focused role. While only 35% of respondents work at firms that have appointed a “Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer” or created a similar leadership position, this will likely change and influence who addresses or navigates these challenges.

While the data indicates that innovation teams are becoming the primary AI stakeholders, the ownership structure remains more nuanced due to overlapping talent and experience. Additionally, more professionals use the term “innovation” in their titles.

The majority of law firms have deployed generative AI

More than two-thirds of participants (73%) have implemented an internal generative AI solution—either developed an AI chatbot internally or deployed one through a secure API. Sixteen percent reported that they built or commissioned a custom internal language model. Although uncommon, almost a quarter (24%) have created client-facing or revenue-generating products using generative AI. This trend appears to mirror the actions of law firms several years ago, which initially developed mobile apps for internal use and later began offering more comprehensive versions to clients.

One participant suggested creating a fully accessible library for generative AI prompts and project-specific recommendations, akin to Netflix for queries.

OpenAI’s GPT is the leading LLM in law firms, but the generative AI support market is fragmented

Among the 73% of respondents who have implemented a generative AI solution, about three-quarters (76%) use OpenAI’s GPT as their foundational LLM model. Anthropic’s Claude ranks second with 19%, while Google‘s Gemini ranks third with 15%. Interestingly, 3% reported developing with China’s DeepSeek.

A third (33%) reported using an external provider to help them build their language model; however, the market remains fragmented. Respondents mentioned about 15 applied AI partners. Although consolidation is expected, the current demand will likely drive short-term growth rather than contraction in the provider market.

Encouraging the adoption of generative AI remains challenging

While 73% of respondents indicated that their firms utilize a legal AI assistant or chatbot, 62% have adopted the application across the entire firm or a substantial subset for testing purposes.

Adoption rates have remained low, with only 22% reporting a 50% to 100% adoption rate. This low adoption level is one reason certain teams stopped using specific tools. Other factors include cost-effectiveness and the availability of better alternatives. As the market grows and the barriers to entry diminish due to advancements in robust AI models, competition will continue to intensify.

To ensure success, the attendees agreed that law firms should begin their initiatives with individuals who are willing and passionate, especially since adoption is rising within the existing user base rather than from a surge in new participants in any given project.

Additionally, when evaluating technology and processes, exploring markets beyond the United States, especially in Europe, can be advantageous for generating fresh ideas and acquiring a thorough understanding of the evolving legal industry.

In some firms, discussions about generative AI use cases are reigniting interest in document automation. It is experiencing a renaissance, as it may provide a more effective and cost-efficient solution to the challenges that some professionals expect generative AI to address.

AI legal assistants and chatbots are leading use cases

The research indicated that an AI legal assistant or chatbot was the most popular use case. Other significant applications included data extraction, summarization, legal drafting, contract review and analysis, proofreading, research and searching. In contrast, the least cited applications were patent and IP drafting, litigation management, automation of discovery responses, pitches and proposals, and compliance.

When considering a new application, “try to avoid signing a long-term agreement,” advised an audience member, who added, “Price renewals are also absurd, and a similar tool is often available at half the cost with better functionality.” A peer offered, “Applications without a unique value proposition, i.e., a moat protecting their competitive advantage, may not be worth a long-term investment.” Finally, one participant cautioned, “Don’t try to learn everything because the technology will continue to evolve and only get faster.”

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Ari Kaplan is a lawyer and legal industry analyst who publishes benchmarking reports on legal technology trends and is an experienced webinar and conference facilitator.

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This column reflects the opinions of the author and not necessarily the views of the ABA Journal—or the American Bar Association.

Historically, the legal profession has been slow to embrace emerging technologies. E-discovery software, however, was an exception, largely because Congress amended Rule 26(f) to the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, which required its implementation. While e-discovery adoption was not always enthusiastic, it was notable, representing one of the first times legal professionals truly leaned into modern technology.

Initially, e-discovery software was cutting-edge, offering legal professionals the ability to sort through and categorize massive amounts of electronically stored information for production in litigation matters. Over the years, significant advancements in this category of software were few and far between. Systems transitioned from premises-based systems to the cloud—an important change—but truly innovative updates were rare.

In November 2022, generative artificial intelligence tools became widely available to the general public, which laid the foundation for the next stage of innovation in discovery software. Since then, more than 10 companies have integrated this technology into their products.

With generative AI features embedded in e-discovery tools, the identification, collection, preservation, processing, review and analysis of relevant electronic documents are simplified. The software can also assist with rapidly analyzing large volumes of data, identifying patterns and providing insights overlooked during manual review. Some platforms even include generative AI-driven advanced search capabilities, which enable more accurate keyword searches, tagging and redaction.

Choosing e-discovery software with generative AI features

If your law firm is interested in exploring how generative AI can improve the e-discovery process, first assess your firm’s specific needs and how these tools will integrate into your litigation workflow. What are the biggest challenges when managing electronically stored information? Which tasks consume the most time? How can generative AI streamline the process by automating document review, categorization or privilege identification?

Next, consider the tools that your firm is currently using. Do they include generative AI features, or is generative AI development on the product road map? Are there integrations available that would provide the functionality that you’re seeking? If your current providers are expanding their AI capabilities, it may be more efficient to adopt those updates, rather than implementing an entirely new platform.

Trusted providers should be the first place that you look before exploring new vendors. Leveraging existing tools with AI enhancements can minimize disruption, reduce onboarding time and ensure consistency in your firm’s workflows.

Vetting e-discovery providers

When your firm adopts cloud-based e-discovery tools, you are entrusting a third party with sensitive client data. Ethical obligations require you to vet the provider thoroughly, which includes reviewing data security measures, storage locations, access controls and backup policies to ensure compliance with professional responsibilities.

For AI-enhanced platforms, it’s also essential to understand the accuracy of AI-generated outputs, how the provider protects user data, and whether queries will contribute to training AI models.

Finally, whenever possible, take advantage of free trials or demos to test usability and determine whether a platform aligns with your firm’s needs.

With these considerations in mind, let’s explore AI-powered e-discovery tools.

E-discovery tools with generative AI features

  • Reveal: Offers an AI-powered platform featuring “Ask,” a generative AI search tool that facilitates natural language queries and streamlines document review and analysis by providing verifiable insights and summaries.

  • Relativity: Provides “Relativity aiR,” a suite of AI tools designed to enhance review to gauge the responsiveness of documents; case strategy to create case summaries and timelines; and privilege review, which accelerates the identification of privileged information.

  • DISCO: “Cecilia” is its generative AI tool that translates and summarizes documents and depositions, enables interrogation of evidence or individual documents, generates timelines, and automates document review.

  • Everlaw: Features the “EverlawAI Assistant,” which integrates with Everlaw’s Storybuilder and document review products. Using a Q&A format, it provides verifiable outputs that expedite document review and surface critical information to assist in crafting convincing arguments.

  • Exterro: “Exterro Assist” is a generative AI tool embedded in the company’s e-discovery and legal governance solutions. With it, users can query the system using natural language to obtain contextually relevant results. It can also be used to automate workflows, summarize cases and documents, and create reports.

  • Lexbe: Offers “CoPilot,” a generative AI-powered feature that summarizes documents, extracts key details and improves review efficiency. This tool enables legal teams to understand evidence and develop case strategies quickly.

  • HaystackID: HaystackID’s “Core Intelligence AI” automates key e-discovery tasks, such as data classification, document summarization and the identification of sensitive information. It helps legal teams manage large volumes of data, speeds up review and streamlines the process of locating relevant and privileged documents.

  • eDiscovery Assistant: For e-discovery practitioners, eDiscovery Assistant also integrates generative AI technology into its software. The functionality enables the generation of concise caselaw summaries, allowing legal professionals to assess the relevance and implications of judicial decisions swiftly.

Driving change

Having led the legal profession’s first major shift to digital workflows, e-discovery is once again driving change—this time through AI. With so many companies prioritizing generative AI development, e-discovery practitioners have more options than ever. As the technology improves, deeper integration will increase efficiency and introduce new capabilities.

Generative AI innovations are providing legal teams with an expanding set of tools to streamline document review, enhance predictive analysis, and uncover insights that might otherwise go unnoticed. As the technology evolves, deeper integration will further improve efficiency and introduce new capabilities, reinforcing e-discovery’s role as a key driver of legal innovation.

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Nicole Black is a Rochester, New York-based attorney, author and journalist, and she is the principal legal insight strategist at MyCase, a company that offers legal practice management software for small firms. She is the nationally recognized author of Cloud Computing for Lawyers and is co-author of Social Media for Lawyers: The Next Frontier, both published by the American Bar Association. She writes regular columns for ABAJournal.com and Above the Law, has authored hundreds of articles for other publications, and regularly speaks at conferences regarding the intersection of law and emerging technologies. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) @nikiblack, or she can be reached at [email protected].

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This column reflects the opinions of the author and not necessarily the views of the ABA Journal—or the American Bar Association.

Welcome to 2025! The ABA Journal’s Legal Rebels Podcast is not usually in the business of making prognostications. Let’s face it: If we were, we’d be playing the lottery or putting bets on sports games and the stock market and not doing this. But it seems like a safe prediction to say generative artificial intelligence will dominate 2025—just like it did in 2024.

If last year was when generative AI went mainstream, could this year be the one when it gets even bigger? Will we see more people, law firms, companies and government agencies adopt, use or integrate it into their day-to-day activities? Will we see more rules and regulations from states or the federal government regarding its use? What about law schools and generative AI? Will we see more start to teach it? And will lawyers finally learn more about what to do, or not to do, when it comes to using it?

In this episode of the Legal Rebels Podcast, the ABA Journal’s Victor Li talks to Oliver Roberts, who will look ahead and make his best predictions as to where generative AI is heading. Roberts is the editor-in-chief of AI and the Law at the National Law Review; the co-chair of the AI practice group at Holtzman Vogel; and the CEO and co-founder of Wickard.ai, a legal AI startup in education and training.