Legal operations leaders are shifting their focus from deploying AI to operationalizing it, with data quality and measurable business outcomes now the top priority. The shift became the central theme at July's Consero Legal Operations Forum, where departments driving AI innovation have moved past asking whether AI can create value to instead tackling how to deliver it.
"The legal departments leading AI innovation are no longer asking whether AI can create value," said Jennifer McIver. "They are focused on a much more practical challenge: how to turn AI investments into measurable business outcomes."
AI becomes a business question, not a technology one
AI conversations at the event have become far more practical than a year ago, when most discussions centered on possibilities and future applications. Today, legal departments are deploying AI in invoice review, analytics, knowledge management, contract analysis, and operational reporting.
What changed is the criteria for success. Legal operations leaders no longer want a list of AI features. They want to know how it supports business objectives, whether teams will adopt it, and what governance controls are required. As AI moves from experimentation to production, success depends less on identifying use cases and more on driving adoption, governance, process change, and measurable business outcomes.
Data quality is the real bottleneck
If AI was the headline topic at the event, data was the underlying theme connecting nearly every conversation. Attendees told McIver they consider better matter, invoice, contract, and knowledge data as prerequisites for future success. Many identified data quality as a bigger obstacle than the technology itself.
Several common challenges emerged: inconsistent data capture across matters and legal processes, fragmented knowledge repositories, and poor governance practices. The strongest AI opportunities are emerging where organizations already have structured, accessible data.
Legal operations takes on a new mandate
Legal operations leaders described a growing responsibility to identify the right opportunities, establish governance frameworks, drive adoption, measure outcomes, and ensure that AI investments deliver meaningful value. This expanded role elevates the importance of data, analytics, and business intelligence.
Organizations making the most progress often have the visibility to understand where work happens, where inefficiencies exist, and where AI can have the greatest impact. Those departments move more quickly from experimentation to measurable outcomes.
Why this matters for legal professionals
Success in legal operations will depend less on access to new technology and more on the ability to operationalize it effectively. Legal professionals working in departments that want to turn AI investments into actual outcomes should focus on building strong data foundations, establishing clear governance practices, and measuring results. The organizations that can transform data into insight, insight into action, and action into business value will own the future of legal operations.
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