Lawyers regularly using generative AI doubles in the last six months. Yet, lawyers demand AI that is grounded on legal sources

Survey suggests a quarter of UK lawyers use generative AI tools, and a third are planning to. Whilst concerns still linger, lawyers say AI that is grounded on trusted legal content would be a welcome solution.

LONDON, 12 February 2024 – Today, LexisNexis Legal & Professional^®, a leading global provider of legal information and analytics, has revealed that 26% of legal professionals are currently using generative AI tools on at least a monthly basis – up from 11% in July 2023. A further 35% of respondents unveiled plans to use the technology in the near future.

The LexisNexis survey of 1,200+ legal professionals in the UK found that substantially more than half (62%) of law firms have already made changes to their day-to-day operations as a result of generative AI.  These changes include launching AI-powered products for internal use, delivering AI-related training for staff, the hiring of AI experts and developing policies on the use of generative AI.

This continued enthusiasm for and adoption of generative AI tools is reflected in the areas legal professionals say are top priority opportunities for the technology.  91% want to use AI for time-saving tasks like drafting documents, 90% for researching matters and 73% for streamlining communication tasks such as writing emails. More complex tasks such as contract analytics (53%), connecting generative AI to case management (50%), or real-time comparisons of law across jurisdictions (45%) were also high on the priority list.

The survey found that the biggest hurdles to AI adoption were concerns over hallucinations (57%), security (55%), and a lack of trust in the current free-to-use technology (55%).  However, if legal AI solutions were grounded in reliable legal content sources with linked citations to the case, legislation or content used to create the response, two-thirds (64%) of respondents said they would be somewhat or completely confident using a solution of this description.  This confidence rose to 73% in large law firms.

Lexis+ AI, the new generative AI solution from LexisNexis, has been built specifically to address these concerns.  Grounded in the vast LexisNexis legal intelligence database, Lexis+ AI results are always backed by verifiable, citable authority or source.  It has also been built to meet the most popular use-cases for AI.

“The appetite for generative AI technology in the legal sector is unprecedented,” says Stuart Greenhill, Senior Director of Segment Strategy at LexisNexis. “Lawyers from all backgrounds are jumping at the chance to make the most of its time-saving potential. However, the demand is growing in the legal sector for generative AI tools that are grounded and trained on legal sources and can provide a higher-level of transparency for all responses generated.

Notes for editors

• The report can be found here: https://www.lexisnexis.co.uk/research-and-reports/lawyers-cross-into-the-new-era-of-generative-ai.html

About LexisNexis Legal & Professional

LexisNexis Legal & Professional^® provides legal, regulatory, and business information and analytics that help customers increase their productivity, improve decision-making, achieve better outcomes, and advance the rule of law around the world. As a digital pioneer, the company was the first to bring legal and business information online with its Lexis^® and Nexis^® services. LexisNexis Legal & Professional, which serves customers in more than 150 countries with 11,300 employees worldwide, is part of RELX, a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers.