Contents
1. AI is no longer optional in the legal industry 2. Lawyers who have embraced AI will begin to separate from the pack 3. Invest in technology that reduces administrative workload 4. The future of law firms isn’t about AI—it’s about reinvention 5. Building on the basics while advancing your legal tech expertise 6. AI will blend seamlessly, but not universally 7. AI that connects data sources to streamline workflows Subscribe to the blog 8. Defining quality legal work with the adoption of new technology 9. Reimagining legal revenue models and advancing AI integration
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What will it take to be a successful lawyer in 2025?
With technology developing at an ever-increasing rate and AI working its way into every industry, it’s never been more important to focus on law firm innovation and technology trends.
To find the most useful legaltech trends that lawyers need to know, we reached out to top industry technologists, lawyers, legal professionals, and consultants. We asked them this question: “What will be the most important legal technology trends (or challenges) for lawyers and legal professionals to follow in 2025?”
Read their answers below to set your law firm up for success in 2025 and beyond.
1. AI is no longer optional in the legal industry
“AI tools are being integrated into the tools and products we use on a day-to-day basis, and we have seen a huge amount of progress on this in the last year, for example, Google Gemini to our own Clio Duo. This migration to AI from the Cloud to being on-device is a really exciting trend. We are starting to see accelerating progress in how good these AI models are.
Legal is outpacing other industries when it comes to adopting AI; whether it is document drafting, client communications, or legal research, we are seeing lawyers realize the value of AI in a concrete way, further reaffirming that if you don’t embrace AI, you’re at a fundamental, competitive disadvantage.
Embracing AI and integrating it into our daily workflows is not a nice to have, this has rapidly become table stakes in an adoption cycle that I’ve personally not seen before in my professional career.”
Jack Newton, ClioCon 2024, Founder and CEO at Clio, @jackbnewton
2. Lawyers who have embraced AI will begin to separate from the pack
- “I expect to see a lot more agentic AI systems in law: services that break complex tasks into component parts or checklists, complete them with a mix of software, lawyers, and allied legal professionals, then reassemble them into complex first drafts of legal work
- Lawyers who started using AI in 2024 and early 2025 will begin to separate from the pack. They will become known as experts, will be seen as indispensable by clients, and will command higher fees for their tacit expertise.
- Law firms will be in a footrace to adopt GenAI tools (and to show their value) before their corporate clients do. Firms that don’t adopt legal AI won’t have a shocking breakup call with corporate clients, but their phones will ring less in 2025 as corporate clients take on more tasks in-house with the help of legal AI.”
Ed Walters, Chief Strategy Officer, V Lex, @EJWalters
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3. Invest in technology that reduces administrative workload
“Going into 2025, AI is, of course, at the top of most legal professionals’ minds, and it is exciting to see how AI is already impacting the more cumbersome admin-related tasks like note-taking during Zoom calls and tools like Plaud Note that can summarize phone calls.
At RayNa Corp, we are still big fans of the basics, investing in technology that streamlines document automation, email customization, case management, and KPI tracking, which is evolving rapidly. While AI is making headlines, tools that cut down on administrative tasks should remain everyone’s first stop!
As with all great innovations and technology, these tools are fantastic for assisting our legal professional humans with their workload, but proper oversight and evaluation/training of these tools is still a must!”
Lori Gonzalez, CEO of RayNa Corp, @RaynaCorp
4. The future of law firms isn’t about AI—it’s about reinvention
“Generative AI is undeniably exciting, but the real challenge for law firms isn’t adopting new tools—it’s reimagining how work gets done within a system that resists change. The billable hour rewards inefficiency, stifles creativity, and keeps firms tied to outdated definitions of productivity.
To unlock AI’s potential, law firms need to go beyond simply layering new technology onto old habits. They must rethink how they deliver value to clients, breaking free from the time-for-money mindset that limits innovation. They must be willing to rethink the traditional business model of a law firm.
Reinvention isn’t about the shiniest new tools; it’s about questioning why we work the way we do and having the courage to build systems that prioritize results, collaboration, and client experience over time spent.”
Debbie Foster, Chief Executive Officer, Affinity Consulting, @debbiefoster
5. Building on the basics while advancing your legal tech expertise
“In 2025, I’m excited about the growth in documentation automation, which can significantly streamline workflows and reduce errors.
Foundational tech skills, such as proficiency in Outlook, Word, and PDF manipulation, remain critical—especially as I’m seeing a trend of attorneys struggling to find skilled legal assistants. This shortage underscores the need for lawyers to become more self-sufficient with technology.
Additionally, while AI tools hold tremendous potential to enhance efficiency, many legal professionals remain hesitant to explore them, representing both a challenge and an opportunity for those ready to adapt.”
Adriana Linares, Legal Technology Consultant & Trainer, @AdrianaL
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6. AI will blend seamlessly, but not universally
“In 2025, the novelty of generative AI will begin to wear off as lawyers recognize the limitations of this new tool, and its use will become part of their everyday practice.
As hyped as AI was in 2024, the truth is that it can help lawyers write, review, research, etc. much faster, but it will not fundamentally change our profession in ways we weren’t already headed.
Like online legal research before it, AI will make lawyer’s lives much easier, but the practice of law will go on and some lawyers will (unfortunately) still turn to their books.”
Jordan Couch, Partner at Palace Law, @jordanlcouch
7. AI that connects data sources to streamline workflows
“The most exciting innovation in my law firm is “agentic AI.” Our businesses and, I would guess, most small practices have cobbled together zaps to stack and connect software services and disparate sources of data. I’m looking forward to an agent that can help connect all these data sources in a streamlined manner to help improve the service we provide clients.”
Colin Ley, Co-Founder of LayRoots, @layyourroots
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8. Defining quality legal work with the adoption of new technology
“I think (or maybe just hope) that 2025 is the year that legal starts setting some baseline standards for quality in what we create, how we create it, and what the results of our efforts are.
There have been fears/predictions/claims of lawyers being replaced in whole or part by technology since literally the first post-WWII mainframes were spun up. Over the past two years with the advent of Generative AI, we’ve seen this kick into overdrive.
But can we really say what a “good” human work product is? Or what is a successful outcome? How can we compare the effectiveness of these tools when measured against the status quo or even each other if we have no idea what the end goal should be?”
Sarah Glassmeyer, Legal Innovation Enthusiast, @sglassmeyer
9. Reimagining legal revenue models and advancing AI integration
“Building on last year’s momentum, we continue to explore alternative revenue models beyond hourly billing. With Generative AI already replacing almost, if not more than 50% of some common legal tasks, the time was yesterday to reimagine how we bill and serve clients.
Disjointed AI tools are another challenge and opportunity. For legal professionals and legal tech providers, moving away from a siloed approach to AI is essential. No one wants a bloated tech stack, and right now, development is rapid, but long-term strategic integration seems lacking.
Now is the time for lawyers to transition from using AI to “save me money” to “using AI to make me better.” Let’s get strategic. Let’s get intentional. Let’s scale our impact.
There’s so much opportunity—professionally and personally. Exciting times.”
Kimberly Y. Bennett, Founder at K Bennett Law, @kbennettlaw
We published this blog post in December 2020. Last updated: .
Categorized in: Technology
