Reprinted with permission from the July 16, 2026 issue of Law.com / Legaltech News. © 2026 ALM Media Properties, LLC. Further duplication without permission is prohibited. All rights reserved.

The legal industry spent years asking whether artificial intelligence belonged in law firms. In 2026, that question is largely settled. The new question, “How do you implement AI successfully?” is harder. The firms that answer it thoughtfully will help set the standard for the profession. The ones that don’t will spend years catching up.

One lesson learned from AI deployment projects is that implementation and adoption rarely happen at the same pace. As with any new tool or process introduced within an organization, questions arise, and adoption rates vary across practice groups and business teams. Litigation professionals had different use cases and priorities than members of the marketing, HR, finance, and IT departments. The variation was significant enough to shape how training, governance, and support needed to be approached across the organization.

The experience reiterated something we are already seeing in other organizations implementing AI. Change management, governance, and training are often the most critical components of an AI deployment plan. This hard work, governance, data security, training, oversight, and professional responsibility, needs to happen well in advance of putting these tools to work for clients and client matters.

It is incumbent on firms to create policies, set usage scenarios, and implement training and support so that all members within the firm understand the strengths and weaknesses of these technologies. People don’t always embrace AI technology in the same manner.

Practice groups and business functions require different guidance and training, and proactively addressing these differences increases adoption and usefulness. As firms begin to embrace broad implementation, governance and change management become increasingly important.

Firms are already using gen AI in summary reports of depositions and client documents, for drafting routine communications, identifying document discrepancies, and identifying similar cases.

Members at all levels of firms use it for a variety of day-to-day business functions. Today, these applications are increasingly widespread. If used thoughtfully, gen AI will enable professionals to focus on tasks that require expertise, judgment, client relationships, and accountability.

That distinction is important because the value of these tools depends on a clear understanding of where technology ends, and professional responsibility begins.

Gen AI remains a tool. It is not the decision maker. It owes no duties to clients. It does not practice law. It does not exercise professional judgment. It does not bear responsibility for legal advice ultimately delivered to clients.

That responsibility rests with lawyers and other professionals.

That, in turn, makes governance imperative before any significant deployment.

Responsible deployment of gen AI includes policies, restrictions on client and confidential data, review processes, human oversight, collaboration among operations, IT, and risk management teams, and ongoing evaluation as technology evolves.

Training, a concern for many organizations today, requires significant attention. Users must be trained not only on specific use cases but also on how these tools fit into existing workflows. They need opportunities to ask questions, share experiences, and learn from others as adoption progresses. Without robust ongoing training, any technology’s impact will be diminished.

Organizations should also be prepared to communicate clearly with clients about how these tools are being used and what safeguards are in place. Transparency helps reinforce trust and demonstrates a continued commitment to professional standards.

The legal industry also has a broader opportunity. AI literacy will become as important a professional skill as legal research, writing, and negotiation. Legal and business professionals who develop an understanding of AI and its capabilities and limitations will be better equipped to navigate technological change.

The firms that derive the greatest value from AI will not necessarily be those that move first. They will be the firms that invest in governance, training, and change management from the outset.

AI will become a feature of legal practice. Ensuring that adoption is responsible, reliable, ethical, and sustainable is one of the defining challenges facing the profession.