Insight: Could AI transform law firm compliance?
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Compliance work keeps firms safe, but it drains time and margin. Across hundreds of conversations with firms, the same five challenges come up again and again.
- Pressure to improve efficiency
- Limited access to modern tech in the mid-market
- Digitisation and changing client expectations
- Attracting and keeping talent as tech expectations rise
- Staying compliant with limited resources
There's clear intent to act: 60% of firms plan to upgrade digital systems, and 35% are already assessing where AI can help. The goal isn't AI for AI's sake. It's specific use cases that cut admin, reduce risk, and improve outcomes.
A practical place to start: compliance
Compliance is costly in time and money. It's also high stakes. Internal file reviews take hours. SRA audits raise anxiety. The question is simple: what work can AI handle so lawyers and compliance officers focus on decisions, not checklists?
Two AI agents launching November 2025 aim to do exactly that.
AI agent 1: File Quality
The File Quality agent automates random file reviews. Pick 10, 30, 50, or 100 files across a period. The agent selects the files, checks timeliness and completeness against your audit steps, then produces a clear report.
You get a ranking of files and precise remediation: what's missing, where, and why. Patterns surface fast. Maybe a team lags on AML checks. Maybe client engagement letters aren't sent or signed consistently. These insights help you target training, improve processes, and tighten file-closure standards.
Outcome: less manual review time, faster fixes, better audit readiness.
AI agent 2: Matter Quality (always-on)
Why wait for periodic reviews? The Matter Quality agent monitors open matters in real time. Say a firm has 200 open matters. The agent scores compliance across all of them and presents a dashboard by firm, department, and individual.
You see what needs remediation on each matter before close. Example: a department has 35 matters, 24 are at a stage that should have AML checks, and they're missing. The dashboard shows the gap and the exact actions to reach 100% compliance.
Human control stays in place
AI does the legwork; lawyers and compliance officers make the call. That won't change. The next phase will go further: agents complete remediation, attach evidence, and ask for sign-off. Your digital approval becomes a clear audit trail.
The mindset shift firms need
Law has often treated tech as something to be manually driven by the lawyer. That's how 10-12 hour days happen. The market won't tolerate it anymore: regulations are tighter, clients want more, and margins are squeezed.
Don't make people press keys faster. Redesign the process so admin moves to agents and people spend more time on strategy, client work, and judgment calls.
How to pick the right AI approach
- Start with one high-cost workflow (file reviews are ideal)
- Define your audit criteria and "complete" state per matter type
- Set data rules: quality, access, and residency
- Pilot on a subset of matters and departments
- Track outcomes: time to audit readiness, % compliance, rework rate
- Close the loop with targeted training from the insights
Work with providers focused on real problems, not buzz. Ask for clear use cases, measurable outcomes, and proof your data is handled properly.
What good looks like
- Hours reclaimed from manual reviews
- Earlier risk detection and fewer last-minute scrambles
- Targeted coaching where it matters (e.g., AML, engagement letters)
- A cleaner, demonstrable audit trail
- Better margins and better client experience
"Will AI replace lawyers?"
No. But firms that ignore relevant, role-enhancing AI will get left behind by those who don't.
Helpful resources
- SRA anti-money laundering guidance
- AI training by job function (for legal teams planning upskilling)
About the solution
These AI agents are provided by OneAdvanced, with a focus on reducing administrative drag and improving compliance outcomes across firms of all sizes.
OneAdvanced
The Mailbox 101, Wharfside Street
Birmingham B1 1RF
www.oneadvanced.com
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