What role will lawyers play in modern legal practice?

The legal profession has traditionally been one tightly-entwined with the skillsets and work ethic of individuals who labour as lawyers and paralegals. Legal work involves a labour-intensive mix of research, document drafting, administration, negotiation and judgment-making, which is time consuming and, at times, repetitive.

Possessing an advanced knowledge of the law is paramount; a deep understanding of how to structure an argument, the difference between average professionals and those at the top.

Like many professions, the encroachment of new technology is starting to have an impact on law. Whether permissible or not, many legal professionals are turning to artificial intelligence (AI) tools like Open AI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Notebook LM to help alleviate at least some of the more mundane parts of their work.

But AI is not just a basic tool to help draft parts of a simple contract, it can also serve as a strategic catalyst that promises to transform the very definition of legal practice.

Legal research

Leveraging purpose-built legal artificial intelligence to accelerate the search of case law, precedents and statutes is one of the technology’s primary use-cases, but it also processes the capacity to succinctly synthesize and summarise findings. As a legal research tool it can save hours of work and vastly improve the quality of output.

Legal documentation

Drafting contracts and other legal documentation can be automated by trustworthy AI tools using predefined templates. These advanced methods offer the peace of mind of precise, consistent and compliant documents that free up legal professionals to spend their energy on higher-value work.

Dispute resolution

Generative artificial intelligence is capable of facilitating better dispute resolution by assessing case merits, providing prediction of litigation outcomes, case analysis and offering suggestions of optimal and alternative strategies. In close collaboration with their skilled, human counterparts these knowledge tools are able to provide an additional perspective to matters that can be of great value in legal practice.

Whatever could go wrong?
Beside the fact that the word ‘intelligence’ is part of the term artificial intelligence – mainstream AI technologies do not process the ability to pass judgment. Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT are prone to hallucinations and are not trained on a strict, defined dataset of legal information, which makes them susceptible to error and possible reputational risk for those who rely on their output without scrutinizing it for accuracy and relevance. 

Mainstream AI struggles with understanding context, handling ambiguous situations, and generating creative legal arguments.

While the tech does offer many efficiency benefits, it also raises ethical and regulatory issues.

Platforms that are not optimised to ensure the privacy and security of personal information should be a concern, so too those that are not purpose-built to offer relevant legal guidance that is robust, transparent and accountable.

The future of legal practice

AI is already here and having an impact on the legal landscape. The forecast is that these, and more advanced, LLM technologies will play an increasingly prominent role in the day-to-day operations of legal firms.

For now the forecast is that it’s extremely unlikely that AI will replace lawyers in the practice of law, but they certainly will affect the role lawyers play in the legal process. Human lawyers will work alongside AI, but their talents will most likely be focused on strategic legal thinking, client advocacy, and complex decision-making. The future of legal practice will be characterized by a blend of human judgment and technological efficiency.

Smaller law firms have traditionally faced critical operational challenges when competing with larger firms, which often have more resources and personnel. Artificial intelligence has levelled the playing field, giving smaller law practices innovative and cost-effective ways to compete through enhanced efficiency, reduced costs, and the ability to deliver high-quality legal services.

Digital transformation is a key focus for most corporate organizations. Corporate legal teams are constantly striving to stay ahead in their approach to compliance and risk management. By integrating AI into their processes—such as document analysis and drafting—legal and compliance departments can greatly enhance efficiency, accuracy, and overall smooth functioning of their business operations.

This evolution will no doubt transform law into a dynamic discipline that delivers far better client service, enjoys the benefits of vastly improved operational efficiency, and ultimately expands access to justice. Some might see the dawning of the AI-age as a threat, but on the African continent it should be regarded as the spark that ignites the golden age of law. The promise and delivery of ‘justice for all’ is on the horizon.

SOURCES

Legal Blog. (2025). How AI is transforming the legal profession.
The Law Society. (2024). How AI is reshaping the future of legal practice.

LexisNexis. (n.d.). The Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Legal Profession.

Pinsent Masons. (2024). Artificial intelligence taking growing role in legal sector

Harvard Law School. (n.d.). The legal profession in 2024: AI. RSM Global. (n.d.). How AI is transforming the legal sector.

RSM Global. (n.d.). How AI is transforming the legal sector.

De Rebus. (n.d.). Bits and bytes: The future of the legal profession in an artificial intelligence future.