THOMSON REUTERS INSTITUTE
The AI adoption board game: Why law firm leaders can't afford to play it safe
By Michelle Nesbitt-Burrell
Strategic AI adoption separates winners from laggards — and the gap is widening faster than most law firms realize
- The recognition gap is widening — While 87% of UK lawyers say they recognize AI's transformative impact on the legal industry, only 38% say they expect significant change in their own firms this year, which creates a dangerous disconnect between vision and action.
- Strategic advantage is quantifiable — Law firms with visible AI strategies are 3.9 times more likely to experience ROI than those firms without plans, with innovation leaders expected to unlock £53,000 in value per lawyer within 12 months.
- Clients are outpacing their counsel — More than half (54%) of corporate legal departments invested in new AI tools compared to just 45% of law firms, with corporate counsel using AI at double the rate for core work and making technology prowess a key differentiator in client relationships.
The game has already started, and some law firms don't even realize they're playing.
At a recent Legal Geek conference session in London, attendees were asked a simple question — can you articulate your firm's AI strategy in one sentence? The uncomfortable silence that followed revealed a critical gap in the legal industry — the distance between recognizing AI's transformative potential and doing something strategic about it.
This gap creates winners and losers at an unprecedented pace. The window for strategic positioning is closing rapidly, according to the latest Future of Professionals research from the Thomson Reuters Institute, which surveyed 985 legal professionals across 53 countries.
However, there is a roadmap for those firms that are ready to bridge this gap. Seven essential rules that spell out exactly how to play strategically:
PLAYERS — Pilot with purpose; Leadership sets the pace; Action beats perfection; Yield to ethics; Educate to accelerate; Rely on data; and Strategy before tools.
These aren't theoretical principles. They're the proven patterns that separate firms achieving 3.9 times better return on investment (ROI) from those stuck in expensive experimentation.
The recognition-to-action gap
The numbers tell a stark story. While 80% of law firm respondents surveyed said they believe AI will fundamentally transform their businesses within the next five years, only 29% said they expect to see transformational change within their own firms this year. That's like seeing a train approaching the platform but remaining frozen in place.
This disconnect is particularly pronounced in the United Kingdom and European markets, where legal professionals demonstrate superior foresight about technological change. A striking 87% of UK lawyers say they expect significant AI transformation within five years, compared to 77% in the United States and 70% in Canada. Yet paradoxically, only 38% of UK and European lawyers say they expect transformational change within their own organizations this year.
British and European lawyers can see the future more clearly than their global peers; however, they're just not acting on that vision at the pace required to maintain a competitive advantage.
However, here's what should concern every law firm partner — corporate legal departments aren't just playing the same AI adoption game, they're winning it.
Our data reveals that 54% of corporate legal departments have invested in new AI tools in the past 12 months, compared to just 45% of law firms. That investment is only part of the story, however. Usage patterns reveal an even more significant gap. Nearly half (47%) of UK and European corporate counsel are now regularly using AI-powered tools to start or edit their work, about double the rate seen in UK and European law firms.
These tech-enabled clients can now accomplish more sophisticated work in-house, and they expect their outside counsel to match their technological sophistication. Technology leadership has moved beyond a “nice-to-have" feature and is now a key differentiator in client relationships.
“We can now handle contract reviews that used to take our external firm a week — we do them in a day,” says one general counsel. “If our law firm can't match that speed and insight, why are we paying premium rates?”
The three positions on the game board
Our research reveals three distinct levels of AI maturity among law firms, each with dramatically different outcomes.
Level 1: Lagging behind. One-third of respondents say their law firms have no significant AI plans. While some are deliberately waiting for the market to mature, this position carries increasing risk. Just 18% of firms without AI initiatives are experiencing ROI, and they're beginning to face talent retention challenges as lawyers, particularly younger professionals, migrate to more technologically sophisticated environments.
Level 2: Unstructured experimentation. The largest cohort (40%) of law firm respondents say their firms are experimenting with AI but lack a structured approach. These firms are seeing early returns, with 58% already experiencing ROI, mainly in the form of efficiency gains and time savings.
This group represents a critical learning phase in which firms build confidence with tools, discover use cases, and develop organizational muscle memory. The challenge isn't being here, it's staying here or getting stuck here. Without a strategic framework to channel this experimentation toward deliberate objectives, firms will plateau and their AI use will remain confined to making existing tasks more efficient rather than transforming how legal work gets delivered.
Level 3: Strategic players. Only 22% of lawyers surveyed say their firms have a visible AI strategy. But the ROI data that these firms report tells a compelling story. Most (71%) of these firms are experiencing at least a form of ROI, more than those firms in the experimentation level and almost four times as much as firms without significant AI plans.
In addition, these Level 3 firms are 1.7 times more likely to see revenue growth compared to unstructured adopters. And what's particularly notable is that strategic advantage isn't exclusively about large firm budgets — midsize law firms also are appearing in this tier because they approached AI deliberately from the start.
By the end of 2025, according to our research, the average lawyer expects to free up 240 hours per year through AI usage, up from 200 hours in 2024. That equates to approximately $19,000 worth of time on average annually that can be redirected toward higher volumes of work, business development, or more valuable strategic matters — and that's just the raw value based on compensation, without factoring in multiples when converted into billable time.
However, the real winners won't be those firms that just use AI to do the same work faster. The ultimate victors will be those that use these tools creatively, not just to speed up existing workflows, but to devise entirely new ones — new service models, new ways to deliver legal insight, and new approaches to client relationships that didn't exist before AI.
Innovators, adopters, and laggards
We surveyed lawyers on their firm's AI adoption level, and on their personal current hours worked, expected time savings from AI, and compensation levels. We were then able to calculate the potential value saved per lawyer and compare average value saved by lawyers at firms at different levels on an AI adoption curve.
This adoption curve categorizes firms by their approach to new technology. For example, Innovators and Early Adopters embrace change proactively; Early Majority adopts once technologies are proven; Late Majority waits for more widespread adoption; and Laggards resist change entirely.
Looking ahead 12 months, our research predicts a dramatic market separation, due mainly to the different levels of AI adoption. We foresee that Innovator law firms are expected to achieve $53,000 in value per lawyer — more than £26 million for a 500-lawyer firm, or $2.6 million for a 50-lawyer operation. Early adopters will see $25,000 per lawyer. Meanwhile, late majority and laggard firms will struggle with talent attraction and face increasing competitive pressure.
Given all this, the window for strategic positioning hasn't closed, but it's narrowing rapidly. Those law firms that want to win better start playing the AI adoption board game.
PLAYERS: The 7 rules for playing to win
So how do law firms bridge the gap between recognition and results? As we said, our research points to seven essential principles that spell out a clear framework, PLAYERS.
P — Pilot with purpose
Strategic law firms don't implement AI firm-wide on day one. Rather, they identify two to three high-impact, high-feasibility pilot projects at the practice area level. AI innovation embedded into actual legal workflows proves far more enduring for adoption and usage than firm-wide mandates. Early success builds momentum, provides critical lessons, and demonstrates value — all of which make broader adoption easier.
L — Leadership sets the pace
Firms leaders who lead by example, especially during significant change, consistently see better results within their firms. This isn't about mandating AI usage from the top; instead, it's about leadership that is visibly using AI tools, championing change, and investing appropriately. When partners demonstrate AI adoption behaviors rather than just approving budgets, adoption accelerates at every level below.
A — Action beats perfection
Many law firms get trapped waiting for the perfect AI solution or 100% accuracy before scaling beyond pilots. However, strategic firms accept that the competitive advantage gained from implementing AI now, even at 85% to 90% accuracy with human oversight, outweighs the marginal benefits of waiting for perfection. Don't let perfect become the enemy of good.
Y — Yield to ethics
Establishing governance policies early on isn't about slowing down adoption, but rather about enabling confident, rapid deployment. Successful firms develop clear policies around data privacy, security, responsible AI use, and client notification practices. They define approval processes for new AI tools and establish protocols for output verification, creating the foundation for trust and sustainable growth.
E — Educate to accelerate
AI is simply a tool; it’s people that drive its success. However, almost half of law firm professionals surveyed said they see skills gaps among their colleagues. To counter this, strategic firms invest in training for lawyers and staff. This training is not just around how to use AI, but when and why — and critically, how to evaluate AI outputs with professional judgment. This can address anxieties and foster cultures of responsible experimentation through open communication about strategy and benefits.
R — Rely on data
Because AI is only as good as the data it's trained on or references, strategic firms ensure they have comprehensive strategies for managing, securing, and leveraging data assets. This includes not just client and third-party data, but also the firm's own internal knowledge base and legal case work. Firms that neglect data strategy find even the most sophisticated AI tools will deliver mediocre results.
S — Strategy before tools
This is the most critical rule, supported by the starkest data in the research. Firms should align their AI strategy with their overall firm strategy, especially if the goal is revenue growth. AI initiatives should directly support that objective rather than defaulting to generic efficiency plays. Leaders also should establish SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) objectives with clear metrics. And they should define key performance indicators to track success and be prepared to adapt as technology and client needs evolve.
The firms that begin with “which AI tool should we buy?” rather than with “What are we trying to achieve?” consistently underperform their more strategic peers.
The execution pyramid
Having rules isn't enough. Firms need to understand how these rules interact. Our research identifies what's called the AI Success Pyramid, with four interconnected levels that must all function properly for AI initiatives to deliver ROI.
At the top of the pyramid sits Strategy. The 22% of firms that have achieved the previously mentioned Level 3 have created a clear, visible strategy that guides all AI investment and adoption decisions.
Below that, Leadership must actively champion transformative change and openly model adoption behaviors. Without visible leadership engagement, even the best strategies stall at the pilot phase.
The Operations level is where transformation actually happens. Strategic firms are making changes to how they price legal work, how they staff matters, and how they deliver services. Indeed, they are not just adding AI to existing workflows, rather they're redesigning their fundamental business model.
At the foundation are Individual Users, the lawyers and staff who must understand AI, feel empowered to use it, and maintain accountability for outcomes. When users lack training or view AI as something imposed rather than enabled, adoption crumbles regardless of the three levels above.
Those law firms that can achieve ROI do so by engaging all four levels simultaneously. Those struggling typically excel at one or two levels but miss the others. And when strategy at the top is weak, every level below suffers from misalignment.
Your firm’s next move
The board is set, and the pieces are moving. Some firms are several squares ahead, while others haven't realized the game has started. However, in this particular boardgame, there's no reset button and no pause function.
The question for every law firm leader is simple: What's our next move?
Will you continue playing without strategy, hoping that your ad hoc adoption and individual experimentation will somehow coalesce into competitive advantage? Or will you follow the seven rules that spell success — PLAYERS — and play strategically?
The firms that answer that question with deliberate action rather than further analysis will be the ones setting the pace in 12 months' time. The firms that continue to wait and see while competitors act eventually will find themselves explaining to clients, recruits, and partners exactly why they fell behind.
The AI adoption board game rewards strategic players. It's your turn.
About the research
The insights in this feature article are drawn from the Thomson Reuters “Future of Professionals Report 2025”, which surveyed 985 legal professionals across law firms in 53 countries. The research provides comprehensive analysis of AI adoption patterns, implementation challenges, and ROI outcomes across the legal industry.
