LexisNexis has published a new report titled 'Generative AI and the future of the legal profession', which captures lawyers’ opinions on generative AI adoption and confirms an overwhelming consensus that the nature of legal work is about to be transformed.

The report presents the results of a survey conducted among 1,175 legal professionals throughout the UK from May to June 2023.

Highlights include:

• Of those surveyed, 87% say they are aware of generative AI tools and of that group, 95% believe these tools will have an impact on the practice of law (38% say it will have a significant impact, 11% say it will be transformative and 46% think it will have “some impact”). 
  
• Although only a little over a third of respondents (36%) have used generative AI in a personal or professional capacity, adoption rates are likely to accelerate in the coming months, with 39% saying they are currently exploring opportunities. This rose to 64% when analysing responses from large law firms alone, and to 47% when looking at responses from in-house lawyers.
• Almost two-thirds of respondents (65%) say that generative AI technology will increase their efficiency. When asked how they would like to use generative AI specifically in their work, respondents say researching matters (66%), briefing documents (59%) and document analysis (47%) have the most potential.
• Despite the consensus that adoption of generative AI will be widespread, 90% of survey participants say they have ethical concerns about these tools. Alison Rees-Blanchard, head of TMT legal guidance at LexisNexis comments: “When generative AI tools don’t have access to the relevant data, they have a tendency to make up the answers, or hallucinate." 

You can read the full report here.

This article was written by Emma Sorrell and Eve Hayzer