How AI adoption is defining the future of litigation practice
September 23, 2025 . 7 minute read
Highlights
- Litigation firms that hesitate on AI are losing efficiency, talent, and client trust to firms moving faster.
- AI is projected to save each professional ~240 hours per year, worth about $19,000, with a $32B annual impact across the U.S. legal sector.
- Professional-grade AI built for legal work (e.g., Thomson Reuters CoCounsel Legal) outperforms general AI, with measurable ROI and enterprise security.
The competitive reality
Clients want speed, accuracy, and predictable cost. Rate pressure is rising, and every billable hour is scrutinized.
Firms using professional-grade AI deliver faster case analysis, better document review, and clearer strategy. The gap compounds daily. Firms that delay are hit twice: productivity falls behind, and top talent leaves for AI-enabled environments.
Efficiency gains across litigation workflows
AI delivers practical wins across four areas that matter most to litigators:
- Document review and analysis: Analyze tens of thousands of pages in hours, not weeks. Free attorneys to focus on strategy, not sorting.
- Predictive case analytics: Use historical data and similar fact patterns to estimate outcomes and potential exposure. Move client conversations from speculation to strategy.
- Real-time matter management: Centralized visibility into case status, AR, and performance metrics to shift from reactive to proactive decisions.
- Routine task reduction: Junior associates spend 60-80% of their time on research and review. Offload to AI and reclaim ~240 hours per lawyer annually (~$19,000 in value). Scaled across the market, that's a ~$32B opportunity.
Why professional-grade AI matters
General chatbots are built for broad use. Litigation needs accuracy, citations, security, and workflow fit. That's where purpose-built tools like Thomson Reuters CoCounsel Legal stand out.
- Analyze case law patterns and precedents
- Draft preliminary documents with citations
- Extract key facts from complex records
- Track deadlines and priorities
Firms with visible AI strategies are already seeing returns. According to recent data, 53% report ROI from AI, and that jumps to 81% among organizations with clear AI plans (versus 23% without).
Security and confidentiality are non-negotiable. Professional-grade platforms bring enterprise governance and keep responses grounded in verified legal content-critical for compliance with confidentiality duties under Model Rule 1.6.
Real-world implementation
At Bassford Remele in Minneapolis, leaders embraced AI early. With solutions like CoCounsel, Westlaw Precision, and Practical Law, they report stronger efficiency, better recruiting, and sharper client service.
Attorneys there cite saving six to eight hours of attorney time on a typical day by pairing precision research with AI assistance. Initial security concerns were addressed through policy, training, and vendor controls-clearing the path for firmwide adoption.
A practical playbook to get started
- Set the target: Pick 2-3 metrics (hours saved, turnaround time, write-offs reduced). Establish baselines.
- Choose legal-grade tools: Prioritize verified legal content, audit trails, permissions, and data governance.
- Pilot high-volume work: Start with document review, research memos, deposition prep, and brief drafting support.
- Build guardrails: Define confidentiality rules, human-in-the-loop review, and citation verification.
- Train workflows: Teach prompts, checklists, and review protocols. Document what works into firm playbooks.
- Measure monthly: Track ROI, expand what works, retire what doesn't. Share wins to drive adoption.
The cost of waiting
Clients will favor firms that deliver speed and accuracy at competitive rates. Talent will choose environments where they can do higher-value work with better tools. Each month of delay compounds the gap in institutional knowledge and client outcomes.
Bottom line
AI won't replace legal professionals. Professionals who use AI will outperform those who don't. The firms that operationalize AI now will set the standard for litigation work and capture durable advantages.
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