AI is shaking things up in the legal world and fast. In just a year, the number of legal professionals using AI tools jumped from 19% to a whopping 79%.
People are catching on to how much time and effort these tools save, especially for repetitive tasks like contract review and research. Even clients are on board—70% say they’re fine with or even prefer working with firms that use AI.
This shift isn’t just a trend; it’s becoming the new normal. As AI keeps evolving, it’s clear that lawyers and firms who embrace these tools now will have a big advantage in the future.
So, how can you get in on it? In this guide, we go over everything you need to know about legal AI, including the different types, benefits, and the best tools you can start with.
What Is Legal AI?
Legal AI is a technology designed to simplify and speed up legal work. It’s not meant to replace lawyers—these are tools that legal professionals need to handle repetitive tasks more efficiently.
For instance, it can review contracts in minutes, spotting errors, missing clauses, or potential risks that might take a person much longer to catch. It can also help with legal research, finding relevant case laws or statutes quickly without endless hours of manual searching.
What makes it so useful is how accurate and consistent it is. It doesn’t get tired or miss details, which can be a huge help when you’re dealing with complex or high-volume work.
Whether it’s processing massive amounts of legal documents, analyzing data, or drafting basic agreements, Legal AI handles the groundwork so legal practitioners can focus on their expertise—giving advice, building strategies, or solving client problems.
But “legal AI technology” is such a broad term. Let’s talk about the different types of tools that make it what it is.
Types of AI Technology in the Legal Industry
AI isn’t just made for the legal industry, but a lot of its technologies work really well for legal tasks. Whether it’s tools built just for lawyers or general AI that can make things easier, there are a bunch of ways AI is helping out.
Here’s a quick look at some of the most common types of AI being used in legal work:
1. Natural Language Processing (NLP)
Natural language processing is what helps AI tools make sense of human language, even the complex and technical terms often used in legal documents. It’s the backbone of many legal AI tools, allowing them to:
- Extract important clauses, dates, or terms from lengthy contracts
- Summarize case law, legal opinions, or statutes in a way that’s easy to understand
- Answer legal questions using plain language, making research faster and less tedious
- Identify inconsistencies or risky clauses in documents
With NLP, legal professionals can handle large amounts of text efficiently to save time and avoid manual errors.
2. Machine Learning
Machine learning helps AI get smarter and more effective over time by learning from historical data. It’s like giving the system a library of past contracts, case outcomes, or legal trends to analyze so it can make better predictions and decisions.
For instance, machine learning can predict litigation risks based on similar cases, identify trends that might impact a client, or flag unusual clauses in contracts that might need extra attention.
This adaptability makes machine learning a key part of legal AI as it helps professionals make informed decisions faster while reducing the chance of oversight.
3. Predictive Analytics
Predictive analytics revolves around using data to make smart guesses about what might happen next.
For litigation lawyers, it can predict how a case might play out in court, which makes it easier to decide if it’s worth settling or going all the way.
It’s also super handy for spotting legal risks early, especially in compliance, so you can deal with issues before they get out of hand. Basically, it gives lawyers a clearer picture of what to expect so they can make better calls and stay ahead of problems.
4. Document Automation
Document automation makes creating legal documents like contracts, NDAs, and settlement agreements faster and easier.
Instead of drafting everything from scratch, you can use pre-built templates that handle the repetitive stuff for you. It’s a lifesaver for law firms or teams dealing with tons of paperwork.
Here’s how it helps:
- Drafts common legal documents in minutes
- Fills in names, dates, and other details automatically to cut down on errors
- Lets you tweak or customize documents when needed
- Handles large volumes without slowing anyone down
- Keeps everything up-to-date and compliant
With document automation, lawyers get accurate, professional documents in less time, which leaves them more room to focus on their clients and bigger-picture tasks.
5. AI Contract Review
AI contract review makes managing contracts a lot simpler. Instead of reading through every line manually, AI tools quickly analyze contracts to find errors, highlight missing clauses, and flag anything unusual. They can also check if terms align with your company’s policies so nothing gets overlooked.
This is especially handy if you’re dealing with a large number of contracts, like vendor agreements or client deals. It saves time, reduces mistakes, and takes the pressure off.
6. Legal Chatbots
Legal chatbots are conversational AI tools designed to assist with common legal questions and processes. They’re user-friendly and often used to help people understand their rights, fill out forms, or navigate straightforward legal tasks.
While they’ve been popular in consumer-facing situations, like helping individuals with small claims or tenant issues, they’re becoming more common in law firms, too.
For instance, many firms now use chatbots for client intake, saving time by collecting basic information and answering FAQs.
Chatbots can:
- Help users understand basic legal rights in plain language
- Guide individuals through filing documents, like small claims or visa applications
- Collect information during client intake, streamlining the onboarding process
- Provide answers to frequently asked questions, reducing workload for legal teams
Of course, chatbots aren’t meant to replace human legal services, but they can take care of all the repetitive questions and routine communications.
7. AI-Powered Legal Research Tools
AI legal research tools take the hassle out of finding case law, statutes, and precedents. Instead of scrolling through database after database, these tools do the heavy lifting and deliver accurate results in a fraction of the time.
They’re smart enough to understand questions phrased in everyday language, which makes them easy to use. By processing large amounts of information, they highlight the most relevant details and cut down the time spent on repetitive searches.
8. E-Discovery
E-discovery focuses on finding and organizing digital information for legal cases. With so much evidence in emails, text messages, and other files, manually reviewing everything can take forever.
AI tools make the process faster by searching for specific keywords, patterns, or file types and filtering out irrelevant data. They’re especially helpful for lawsuits or investigations that involve large amounts of information.
What Are The Benefits of Adopting AI-Powered Legal Tech?
The benefits of AI might be somewhat apparent to you by now. However, to be able to invest in something, you should know what you’re getting back.
So, we’ve compiled some of the best reasons why integrating AI into your legal workflows is worth it:
AI Can Help You Save So Much Time
One of the biggest advantages of AI-powered legal tech is how much time it saves. Tasks like contract review, legal research, or analyzing case data that once took hours—or even days—can now be completed in minutes.
These tools are designed to sift through massive amounts of information quickly and efficiently while pinpointing exactly what legal teams need. This means less time spent on repetitive, manual work and more time focused on strategy, client discussions, and high-value tasks.
Here’s how AI tools save time:
- Analyze contracts in minutes, identifying risks, missing clauses, and inconsistencies
- Quickly search legal databases to find relevant case law or statutes
- Extract key information from large volumes of documents without manual effort
- Automate tasks like drafting standard agreements, saving hours of work
- Process e-discovery data faster, sorting relevant files from unnecessary ones
With AI handling the tedious parts, legal professionals can focus on the work that truly requires their expertise.
You Can Improve Accuracy
Mistakes happen, especially when deadlines are tight, and the workload feels endless. AI tools help by taking on detail-heavy tasks with unmatched consistency.
They don’t get tired or overlook important details, which makes them perfect for catching errors in contracts, spotting inconsistencies, or highlighting key points in case law.
You Can Increase Your Bottom Line
AI tools help firms cut costs by handling repetitive tasks like contract review or legal research.
This means you don’t need to hire extra staff just to keep up with the workload. Instead of spending hours on tedious work, your team can focus on more important tasks to save both time and money.
For example, if you’re reviewing a stack of contracts, an AI tool can handle most of it quickly, leaving your team free to focus on what really matters. Faster turnaround times also mean clients get good value without costs piling up.
It’s a practical way to manage resources better, keep expenses down, and deliver great results without overloading your team.
You Can Provide Better Client Service
Clients expect quick, accurate answers, and AI helps make that happen. It speeds up tasks like reviewing contracts or pulling up relevant case law so legal teams can get back to clients faster. Plus, fewer mistakes mean clients can trust the work is solid.
With AI taking care of the routine stuff, lawyers have more time to handle the complicated issues that really need their attention. Whether it’s wrapping up a deal or tackling a tricky dispute, AI gives teams the bandwidth to focus on what matters most to their clients.
Your Team Becomes More Productive
AI helps your team get more done without feeling overloaded. It takes care of repetitive tasks, like reviewing contracts or sorting through data, so your team can focus on the work that actually matters.
This means they can take on more cases, handle more contracts, or spend more time coming up with strategies for clients. Eventually, this increased productivity will loop back to other benefits, such as increased profitability and better client services!
Are Law Firms Keeping Up With AI Technology?
The legal sector isn’t exactly known for jumping on new technology quickly, and AI is no different. A study by Clio found that only 8% of firms were using AI tools universally in 2024, even though these tools are becoming standard in other industries. So, why the slow adoption?
A big part of it comes down to concerns about security. Law firms deal with a lot of sensitive client data, and there’s understandable hesitation around how AI handles that information.
Then there’s the issue of time—traditional billable hours don’t leave much room for testing new tech that might not pay off right away. For smaller firms, the cost is another roadblock since AI solutions can feel out of reach budget-wise.
That said, things are starting to shift. The pandemic pushed firms to embrace digital tools just to keep running, and now more are realizing the efficiency and accuracy AI can offer.
While many firms are still cautious, the industry is catching on. Those who stick to old ways risk being left behind as AI reshapes what it means to practice law in a modern, tech-savvy world. It’s not a matter of if AI will take hold—it’s a matter of when.
Best AI Legal Tools to Add to Your Tech Stack
While some law firms are hesitant to embrace AI, others are already seeing the benefits firsthand. For those ready to explore what AI can do, choosing the right tools is essential. The good news? There are plenty of options tailored to different legal needs, from contract review to legal research.
Let’s take a look at some of the best AI legal tools that can help modernize your business.
1. Percipient: Contract Review
Percipient offers a unique approach to contract review by combining advanced AI-powered analysis with human expertise. This makes it ideal for legal teams and businesses managing a high volume of contracts that need precise results and expert oversight.
Unlike tools that rely solely on software, Percipient integrates a service component so that nuanced legal issues are addressed with care.
Their tailored onboarding process and collaborative feedback loop make it a standout choice for organizations looking for accuracy, efficiency, and a partner in their contract management process.
Best Features
- Tailored onboarding: Customizes the AI model based on your organization’s contract standards, clauses, and preferences.
- Human validation: Experienced legal professionals review AI outputs for accuracy and handle complex issues.
- Advanced AI redlining: Identifies clauses, flags risks, and suggests edits while extracting metadata for easy integration with contract management software.
- Collaborative feedback loop: Provides clear redlines and explanations, allowing your team to make informed adjustments.
Pros
- Combines AI efficiency with expert human oversight
- Customizable to align with unique organizational needs
- Ensures accuracy for high-stakes contracts
2. Lex Machina: Legal Analytics
Lex Machina offers detailed analytics to help law firms, in-house teams, and legal professionals make data-driven decisions. It’s particularly useful for litigation teams looking to analyze case trends, predict outcomes, and gain insights into opposing counsel or judges.
Source: LexMachina.com
Essentially, Lex Machina transforms complex legal data into easy-to-understand insights to give legal professionals an edge in both strategy and preparation.
Best Features
- Comprehensive case data: Provides insights into case outcomes, timelines, damages, and more.
- Judge and opposing counsel analysis: Offers detailed reports on patterns and tendencies, helping shape litigation strategies.
- Practice area modules: Tailored analytics for areas like intellectual property, antitrust, and employment law.
Pros
- Helps legal professionals make informed decisions based on real data
- Saves time by organizing complex legal information into actionable insights
- Covers a wide range of practice areas
3. CoCounsel: Generative AI
CoCounsel by Casetext is an advanced generative AI tool tailored specifically for the legal profession. Powered by OpenAI, CoCounsel is designed to handle a variety of tasks, such as drafting, reviewing, and summarizing legal documents with speed and accuracy.
It’s particularly useful for lawyers and legal teams who want to offload repetitive, time-consuming work while maintaining high standards of quality and compliance.
Source: Casetext.com
Best Features
- Document drafting and summarization: Quickly creates polished drafts and concise summaries.
- Legal question answering: Provides precise, AI-generated responses to legal queries based on relevant case law.
- Contract review: Identifies issues, inconsistencies, and missing clauses in contracts.
- Ease of integration: Seamlessly fits into existing legal workflows and tools.
Pros
- Saves significant time on document-heavy tasks
- Provides highly accurate, context-specific outputs
- User-friendly and accessible to all experience levels
4. Kira Systems: Large-Scale Document Review
Kira Systems is an AI-driven tool for legal professionals who need to handle large volumes of documents efficiently. Known for its ability to analyze contracts and extract key data, Kira is widely used for due diligence, compliance, and other document-heavy tasks.
Source: KiraSystems.com
Its machine learning capabilities allow it to recognize and adapt to different types of legal language, so it’s suitable for firms and businesses working across various industries or jurisdictions.
Best Features
- AI-powered clause extraction: Identifies important clauses and provisions with precision.
- Customizable models: Adapts to specific legal requirements or organizational needs.
- Supports over 1,000 document types: Handles a variety of contracts and agreements, from NDAs to financial deals.
- Bulk document processing: Analyzes large datasets quickly, saving significant time.
Pros
- Handles high volumes of documents efficiently
- Reduces errors with consistent, accurate analysis
- Customizable for specific business or legal needs
5. ROSS Intelligence: Legal Research
ROSS Intelligence is an AI-powered legal research tool designed to make finding case law and legal information faster and easier for legal professionals. Built using natural language processing, ROSS allows lawyers to ask questions in plain English and get precise, relevant results in seconds.
Source: ROSSIntelligence.com
Best Features
- Natural language queries: Search using everyday language without needing complex legal syntax.
- Comprehensive legal database: Access case law, statutes, and regulations across various jurisdictions.
- Highlighted key passages: Quickly identifies the most relevant sections of legal texts.
- Smart updates: Keeps you informed about new cases or changes in legal precedents.
Pros
- Simplifies legal research with intuitive, user-friendly tools
- Saves time with quick and accurate results
- Ideal for lawyers across different practice areas
What Does the Future of AI Look Like For Legal Professionals?
The future of AI in the legal profession is exciting, but it’s not without challenges. AI tools are already changing how lawyers work, taking on tasks like contract review and legal research faster than ever before.
Some experts even predict that AI might replace certain entry-level tasks within the next five years. That’s a big shift for an industry that’s traditionally slow to adopt new tech.
But let’s be clear—AI isn’t replacing lawyers anytime soon. It can’t match the judgment, creativity, or personal touch that legal professionals bring to the table.
The real opportunity lies in combining AI’s efficiency with human expertise. This balance can lead to better outcomes for clients and help firms tackle more work without burning out their teams.
Of course, there are hurdles to overcome, like figuring out data privacy and navigating new regulations around AI use. Still, firms that embrace these tools and adapt to the changes will be better positioned to thrive in an increasingly tech-driven industry.
Let Percipient Modernize Your Contract Workflow
AI is no longer a future concept—it’s here, and it’s changing how legal teams get things done. By handling repetitive tasks like contract review and legal research, AI allows lawyers to focus on work that makes the biggest difference.
If managing contracts feels overwhelming or time-consuming, Percipient can make it easier. With their support, you’ll have more time to focus on what matters most. Ready to see how it works?
Contact Percipient today and take the first step toward smarter legal workflows.
FAQs About AI Legal Tech
What is legal tech AI?
Legal tech AI refers to artificial intelligence tools AI companies design to help legal departments with their work. These tools can handle tasks like reviewing contracts, conducting legal research, managing case data, and predicting case outcomes. They streamline repetitive tasks, save time, and improve accuracy, allowing lawyers and legal teams to focus on more complex and strategic work.
What is the best legal AI software?
The best legal AI software depends on your specific needs. For contract review, tools like Percipient and Kira Systems are popular. If you’re looking for legal research, options like Casetext or ROSS Intelligence stand out. For analytics, Lex Machina is a top choice. Each tool excels in its area, so it’s important to pick one that aligns with your firm’s priorities.
Will AI replace paralegals?
AI isn’t likely to replace paralegals entirely. While it can handle repetitive tasks like document review or research, it can’t replicate the critical thinking, problem-solving, and personal interaction that paralegals provide. Instead, AI is more likely to assist paralegals by taking over time-consuming tasks, allowing them to focus on higher-value work.
How is AI being used in the legal profession?
AI is used in the legal profession to automate and enhance a variety of tasks. It helps with contract analysis, legal research, e-discovery, and compliance monitoring. AI can also predict case outcomes using data analytics and draft documents quickly and accurately. By integrating AI, legal teams and even federal courts can save time, reduce costs, and provide better service to their clients.
Is AI difficult to integrate AI into legal workflows?
Not really. Most AI tools are designed to work alongside your existing processes, making the transition fairly straightforward. Many offer integrations with tools like document management systems or case management software so they fit seamlessly into your workflow. Providers often include training and onboarding to help your team get comfortable with the technology. With a little setup, AI can quickly become a valuable part of your daily operations.
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