Inhouse Lawyers…They’re Evolving!

A new survey by CLM company Summize has found that the role of the inhouse lawyer is evolving, with 77% saying their role has changed in the last two years, with about a third saying it’s transformed significantly.

Summize’s CEO, Tom Dunlop, said: ‘Inhouse legal professionals are no longer confined to traditional legal tasks. They now face increased demands for compliance, more governance around data and security protocols, plus the need to integrate technology to aid and enhance their business function.’

As seen in the table below, the survey of 250 lawyers found that compliance and risk management are soaking up more and more time for most inhouse lawyers – which is no surprise given the way that regulations that impact corporate life in myriad ways seem to arrive at an exponential rate these days. Plus, this deluge of red tape; external oversight – often becoming increasingly intrusive; as well as growing threats based on % of total revenue fines; or just the fear of market backlash, only seem to grow every quarter.

Summize data.

But, in terms of the legal tech world, the part that’s most interesting is that ‘transformation of processes and automation with tech’ is the third-most noted area for all respondents, at 44%. While for more senior folks working inhouse, ‘transformation’ was number one in terms of prominence.

This is surprisingly good news, and it echoes other surveys Artificial Lawyer has seen recently about how inhouse teams are really getting to grips with AI tools. And Summize’s survey also found that 49% said ‘AI tools are in regular use’. Which tools, we don’t know, and it could be something like a legal research platform with some added LLM capability, so not always a CLM or contract-focused product. This site would guess that across the whole inhouse legal sector use of AI for contracting needs is probably closer to the 10% to 20% level – albeit growing steadily. Either way, it’s a positive sign and shows why GCs are spending time on this.

What does it all mean?

First, it suggests that genAI’s arrival has provided the level of usability that lawyers needed to really adopt such tools. They don’t need to train these system on their own, and they can see the positive results instantly. Are they perfect? No. But, they do deliver value very quickly and they’re easy to use.

That is clearly why things are changing. Five years ago many inhouse lawyers were also tinkering with AI tools and contract management, but plenty felt a bit disappointed. Understandably, the need to think about ‘transformation’ was hardly necessary. If you don’t really believe the tech works for you, you won’t engage deeply or strategically with it.

But, now, that’s all changed, as seen in the results above.

Final thought: if the clients change, then the external advisers have to change as well. If clients are using AI to review, draft, and manage their contracts, as well as support compliance and risk needs, then those that help on more process level work, whether law firms that want such tasks, or ALSPs, have to adapt as well.

Try sitting in a client meeting with a GC who is totally onboard with the latest genAI tools and is using them at scale within their team…..and then tell them that you’ll do some work for them of the same type, i.e. a contract review at scale, but using mostly manual methods and at great expense. It likely won’t go well, or at least won’t in the near future.

So, yes, it does look like things are evolving. And that evolution will change not just inhouse teams.

(Picture: Charles Darwin considering the evolution of the legal species.)