A survey by AI training provider General Assembly has found that 71% of leaders in law firms expect junior roles to evolve, with different responsibilities and skill requirements. (iStock.com)
Some firms are already testing new approaches, according to the survey, which was conducted between Feb. 12 and 25. One in five expect graduates to go through employer‑funded training programs before starting client work.
Looking ahead to the next 12 months, 83% of law firms plan to hire or train for new AI-centric roles.
"Producing work is becoming a commodity, and the premium now is on accountability and judgment," Ash Khanna, head of professional services at General Assembly, said. "The firms that thrive will be those that help mid‑level professionals — historically, the [quality assurance] layer between juniors and partners — to reinvent themselves as workflow engineers: people who take the firm's unique, unscalable human expertise and turn it into a scalable digital asset."
The report found that AI is also prompting 75% of law firms to rethink how they communicate about pricing, with 41% reporting increased client scrutiny of pricing models and 34% proactively refining their messaging.
As U.K. law firms increase investment in AI, many leaders say the biggest skills gap sits at the very top of their organizations. When asked which group was least prepared to use AI effectively, a majority pointed to partners. Overall, 55% said partners were the least prepared, rising to 81% among U.K. respondents. Among law firms specifically, 74% said partners were the least prepared group.
By contrast, junior professionals were seen as far more comfortable with the technology. Some 54% of respondents in legal firms said associates and analysts were the most prepared to use AI.
Looking ahead to the remainder of 2026, most law firms said they plan to use AI to augment human work rather than replace it. Almost three‑quarters added that they expect to invest more in technology that supports lawyers' efficiency, rather than in AI‑first products or assets.
Law firms were also more likely than accounting and consulting firms to say they plan to keep headcount flat while using AI to drive efficiencies. Some 74% favored that approach.
Only 14% said they expect to move toward a model where AI agents do most of the work, while 6% plan to hire more staff to scale.
Another 6% said they are moving away from billable hours to develop proprietary AI solutions.
The survey also found that the vast majority of law firms — 85% — rely on manual checks and controls to enforce written policies governing AI‑generated client work. Only 15% of law firms said they are building, or have already built, an automated system.
--Editing by Hazel Vidler.
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