Insights

A year ago, one of the big calls was that AI in legal would move from the lab to the desk. That’s happened. 

Across law firms and in-house teams, AI has moved from “interesting pilots” to everyday usage. But the story doesn’t end at adoption. Once a tool is on every desk, the questions change. From can we use it? to how do we use it safely, consistently, and in a way that actually holds up under scrutiny?

Here are three shifts we expect to define 2026. 

1. The conversation shifts from AI adoption to Responsible AI

While legal tech tools are seeing a rise, professionals are using their own tools on the side. Personal GPTs, browser plugins, and AI add-ons are to getting work done faster. The intent is understandable. But the risk isn’t. 

When AI usage is uncontrolled, it creates three problems at once: 

• Confidentiality risk (what data is being shared, and where?) 
• Inconsistent quality (different outputs, different standards) 
• No audit trail (hard to explain how an outcome was reached) 

2026 will bring a need for putting “guardrails” in place. This includes clear rules on what tools can be used, what can be uploaded, and how outputs must be reviewed. 

Responsible AI isn’t about slowing people down. It’s about letting teams move fast without stepping on a landmine.

2. AI Governance comes from the top

The push for AI isn’t only coming from legal teams, it’s increasingly coming from boards and leadership. And when that happens, organisations start building institutional mechanisms. The most visible one: AI governance committees. 

In 2026, we expect: 

• more governance committees being set up, 
• more cross-functional oversight (legal, privacy, security, compliance, IT, risk), 
• and more GCs / Heads of Privacy playing a central role in shaping what “safe adoption” actually looks like. 

This isn’t just theoretical. Governance will determine which vendors are approved, what data can be used and retained, how AI outputs are reviewed and documented, what happens when tools change models or policies, and how the organisation stays compliant across jurisdictions. 

AI governance will move from “someone should look into it” to “this is owned, structured, and monitored.” 

3. New roles emerge and become essential

The third shift is organisational. As legal tech and AI mature, new roles are no longer experimental but become the backbone of how teams run. 

We’ll see more hiring (and more importance) for roles like: 

• Legal Engineers (bridging legal + systems + automation) 
• Legal Data Analysts (making sense of contract and matter data) 
• Legal Operations (service design, workflow, metrics, adoption) 

These roles aren’t replacing lawyers. They’re creating leverage so lawyers spend less time wrestling with process and more time applying judgement. 

By the end of 2026, teams without these capabilities will feel like they’re running a modern kitchen with no prep staff: talented chefs, but too much time spent chopping vegetables. 

The throughline for 2026

AI adoption is no longer the headline. Control, governance, and capability-building will be. 

• Responsible AI will reduce risk from shadow usage. 
• Governance will formalise accountability as AI becomes board-level. 
• New roles will make legal teams scalable not just faster. 

If 2025 was about putting AI on the desk, 2026 will be about making sure it’s used in a way you can defend operationally, ethically, and legally.