This article introduces a new downloadable whitepaper by Kira Systems.
Countless industries have been digitized over the past decade, leveraging new technology to future-proof their businesses by improving customer experience and automating repetitive processes.
The world of law is no different. In fact, over the past few years, contract analysis software has become a mainstream solution that clients have come to expect. Yet, despite growing adoption rates, some firms are still reluctant to add these solutions to their tech stack.
This puts leading organizations like Freshfields in the UK, Cognia Law in South Africa, and Goodwin Proctor in the US ahead of the pack. As a result of investing in AI software, these top firms were able to enhance their legal services while driving greater efficiency at every turn.
So, how can your business remain competitive in an increasingly technological legal landscape? Leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) is one way to accomplish this.
AI Augments The Contract Review Process
The sheer number of contracts can be daunting. Currently, most contract review is done manually. These reviews can be done by lawyers but it’s often the junior associates who take the first crack at manually reviewing these contracts. Now consider that the average company has experienced a 20% increase in their number of contracts in just five years, with the average Fortune 1000 company having an estimated tens of thousands of active contracts to review.
So, it should come as no surprise that the manual contract review process is slow, costly and prone to human error. As Noah Waisberg, founder and CEO of Kira Systems puts it:
‘Most people I know who have supervised contract review can share stories of the missed provisions they have found in the course of this work. (And, no doubt, many of those stories involve finding misses at inconvenient times.)‘
As we now know, this doesn’t have to be the case. Machine learning technology augments this process in a number of areas, specifically when it comes to:
1. M&A Due Diligence
AI software is perfect for automating the extraction and analysis of key provisions from contracts across the scope of the review. Summaries can be created in seconds, and analysis that normally could take weeks can begin in only a few minutes.
2. Contract Metadata Extraction
AI-driven contract review software can empower law firms to quickly and accurately populate contract metadata during implementation and migration.
3. Win New Business
AI-driven contract review software can be a key differentiating factor in winning new business, especially when leveraging knowledge gained in an initial review to win additional work.
Nearly all contemporary contract review systems include features that automatically locate user-specified information in contracts and put findings into summary charts. They may also include interface features to help users refine or organize results. Kira, for example, automatically reads contracts for user-specified provisions (e.g., change of control, assignment, term), puts its findings into summary charts, and includes workflow tools to help users refine results.
This Isn’t About Replacing Lawyers
It’s important to note that the hype around AI is not about replacing lawyers but saving them time; time they can invest in client services and attracting new business. Despite this fact, a 2019 survey by Bloomberg Law of nearly 500 practitioners from U.S. law firms and corporate legal departments revealed that fewer than one-quarter of respondents were using AI-powered machine learning legal technology.
The truth of the matter is, leveraging AI tools for contract review produces outcomes that are tangibly beneficial.
Clients of Kira Systems, for example, have reaped time savings of 20-40% for first-time users, and up to 90% for those with more experience. That’s because software like Kira’s is a perfect way to find, extract, and review in just minutes and manage contract review projects more efficiently.
In short, contract review software exists to help users review contracts faster and more accurately and/or better organize the process and results.
The Stakes Are Too High To Ignore
Taking advantage of AI technologies in contract review is becoming table stakes when it comes to competing with peers, winning business and attracting/retaining talent.
As expectations continue to rise, firms will need to step up and leverage AI software like Kira for routine transactions, large volumes of contracts, and complex review. The end result? Improved productivity and enhanced client experience.
To read up on more use cases and learn tangible ways you can incorporate AI into your contract review process download our latest whitepaper: ‘How Law Firms Leverage Kira’s AI To Cut Contract Review Time By Up To 60%‘.
[ Artificial Lawyer is proud to bring you this sponsored thought leadership article by Kira Systems. ]
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