Here is my recent Daily Record column. My past Daily Record articles can be accessed here.
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From Hype to Habits: Comparing Data on Generative AI in Law Firms
There’s a lot of noise about lawyers using generative artificial intelligence (AI)—and not always appropriately—but how is it really being used in law firms? Are legal professionals embracing it, or are they taking a “wait and see” approach? For those who’ve jumped in feet first, has the investment paid off, or is it a waste of time and money?
If you’re as curious about these issues as I am, you’re in luck. Since generative AI was first publicly released over two years ago, a litany of reports has been released that provide insight into how law firms are approaching it and the changing perspectives on its benefits and risks.
Most recently, Thomson Reuters released the 2025 Generative AI in Professional Services Report in mid-April. (Online: https://www.thomsonreuters.com/en/reports/2025-generative-ai-in-professional-services-report). This report provides insight into how and why professionals, including lawyers, accountants, and government agencies, are integrating generative AI into their workflows. When its law firm statistics are compared to similar data points from another recent report, the 2025 AffiniPay Legal Industry Report, interesting adoption trends and perceptions about this emerging technology are revealed. (Online: https://www.affinipay.com/legal-industry-report-2025/).
For example, the Thomson Reuters report shows that 28% of law firms are already using generative AI, with another 14% planning to start in the near future. Meanwhile, 36% are still just researching it, and 22% say they have no plans to use it at all. Compare that to the AffiniPay report, where only 21% of firms say they’re using legal-specific generative AI tools. Just 3% said they’ll never use it, which suggests most firms are at least open to the idea, even if they haven’t jumped in yet. Bottom line: interest is there, but a lot of firms are still figuring out how (or if) generative AI fits into their practice.
When it comes to how often firms are actually using it, the numbers are even more interesting. According to Thomson Reuters, only 12% of users say they’re tapping into generative AI multiple times a day, and 21% use it daily. Most fall into the “weekly” category at 36%, and 6% use it only occasionally. The AffiniPay data suggests a higher frequency of regular usage: 45% of individual users say they use it every day, and 40% weekly. That’s a noticeable jump, and it could mean that once firms commit to it, there is enough value to make the technology a regular part of workflows.
Next, let’s take a look at how legal professionals are using generative AI. The two reports show some overlap but also some telling differences. In the Thomson Reuters report, which surveyed a significantly higher base of large firm users, the top legal use cases are document review (77%), legal research (74%), and summarizing documents (74%), followed closely by drafting briefs or memos (59%) and contract drafting (58%). In contrast, the AffiniPay report shows a broader range of lighter-touch use cases: 54% use it to draft correspondence, 47% for brainstorming, and 46% for general research. Fewer use it for core legal tasks—only 40% say they draft documents with it, and just 38% use it for legal research. The takeaway? While some larger firm lawyers are leaning into high-impact legal work, legal professionals from smaller firms are still testing the waters with lower-stakes tasks.
Even without a one-to-one comparison of data from the AffiniPay report, several statistics from the Thomson Reuters report stand out. Overall, support for generative AI in legal work is growing: 59% said it should be applied to legal tasks (up from 51% last year), and 89% said it can be.
But that optimism doesn’t mean firms have everything figured out. Over half (53%) said generative AI won’t impact billing rates, while 20% expect rates to rise, likely reflecting added value rather than cost savings. Only 7% expect rates to drop, which is surprising given the time savings often associated with the technology. Apparently, a small minority of firms have no interest in passing that windfall on to clients.
On the cost side, 42% plan to absorb generative AI-related expenses, while 30% will pass at least some costs on to clients, again highlighting a tendency to favor profit over client savings.
Finally, how important is generative AI knowledge in the hiring process? Despite growing use, only 21% of firms see generative AI knowledge as a “nice to have,” and 34% say it’s not required at all; the rest are unsure or have no plans to hire new staff in 2025. These viewpoints suggest firms still see generative AI as a business tool rather than a core competency for legal professionals.
No matter how you slice the data, one thing is clear: law firms are moving fast to incorporate generative AI into their tech stacks. Some are all in, others are still testing the waters, but across both reports, it’s clear the technology is shifting from buzzword territory to an everyday tool. While there is still uncertainty around pricing, impact, and training, that hasn’t slowed momentum. Generative AI is already changing how legal work gets done, and adoption is occurring at a much faster rate than for the technologies that preceded it.
Nicole Black is a Rochester, New York attorney, author, journalist, and Principal Legal Insight Strategist at MyCase, CASEpeer, Docketwise, and LawPay, practice management and payment processing tools for lawyers (AffiniPay companies). She is the nationally-recognized author of “Cloud Computing for Lawyers” (2012) and co-authors “Social Media for Lawyers: The Next Frontier” (2010), both published by the American Bar Association. She also co-authors “Criminal Law in New York,” a Thomson Reuters treatise. She writes regular columns for Above the Law, ABA Journal, and The Daily Record, has authored hundreds of articles for other publications, and regularly speaks at conferences regarding the intersection of law and emerging technologies. She is an ABA Legal Rebel, and is listed on the Fastcase 50 and ABA LTRC Women in Legal Tech. She can be contacted at niki.black@mycase.com.