A “digital divide” may emerge between those firms using and deploying artificial intelligence and those still struggling with AI, Terri Mottershead, Executive Director at the Centre for Legal Innovation, told yesterday’s Queensland Law Society In-house Lawyers Breakfast.
The Chair of the Society’s AI in Legal Practice Consulting Committee updated Brisbane and Townsville practitioners with a snapshot of developments in 2025, the impact on legal departments and trends for the next few months.
Terri shared trends in the fast-paced world of AI.
“I believe you will, literally, not be able to afford to instruct those law firms that are not embracing it, and that may seem quite harsh and quite blunt, but it is also very candid,” she said.
“You will have to be working with law firms that can at least match your capabilities in this area – that will become increasingly essential.
“So you’re going to be looking for ways to leverage your own tech, and I think you’re going to retain more and more work, and you will have to make decisions about when you brief out to outside counsel.”
Terri said talent and adding value were “really integral to risk management” moving forward and training and experience needed to be considered.
“We tend to sometimes overlook or forget that our most significant risk is people and they’re also the most significant part of making sure all of this is deployed appropriately,” she said.
“There are different experience levels in this stuff. What I would commend to your thinking is the need for encouragement within your own organisations to make sure you set up some sort of digital academies based on using the tech tools.
“But don’t forget the flipside of that is our work is changing. Our world is changing and what’s not going to change is the need for human skills.
“So there is a re-emphasis now on academies that deal with human skills or if you like that’s one of the tech impacts and refocuses. New roles are emerging; (it’s) not uncommon now to see AI offices as separate stand-alone offices that have that oversight of how AI is being used.”
In-house Counsel Committee chair Phil Ware.
Terri said the AI impacts will start to show up in performance management.
“That is, if you don’t have these skills, you’re not going to be able to actually do your job,” she warned.
“We are already seeing it in recruitment and retention. We’ve got folks actively asking questions at recruitment, particularly for law firms I imagine that will ask it of you as well, which is what tech do you use and how do you use it.
“Remember the tech stuff is starting in primary school now.”
Terri also urged practitioners to think about AI as a work mate rather than just a tool and look at what AI did best for them.
“Are we at the point where we now accept the fact that some stuff is being done by AI better than humans will do it?” she asked the audience.
“Lawyers at this particular point in time are still better than AI at research. That’s probably not going to surprise you.
“Basically in terms of AI, where are we generally? Great at a first draft not the end draft. Verification and certification is still going to be required.
“One of the big things about use is the importance of increasing knowledge to be able to increase comfort levels. Very often folks are not comfortable using these tools because they don’t understand the context of the technology itself before they actually start using the tools.
Event partner Matt Rupp of NetDocuments introduced Terri.
“Also they are still buying tools based on what their neighbours have bought the tools for, rather than starting where we all need to, which is trying to find what the solution is that we are looking for and then seeing if the technology is needed or it’s not needed.
“The other thing is creating situations where you can actually experiment with the technology – a sandbox if you like internally – to be able to do that is absolutely critical. And eventually getting to the stage where you see the tools as not just a tool but actually a team-mate.”
She also advised practitioners to make sure their firms had a technology roadmap and recommended the QLS guidance statement.
There will be two more QLS In-house Lawyers Breakfast events in 2025.
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