Over the past year, AI in legal departments has shifted from theory to practice. Organizations are maturing past the informal exploration stage and are now actively creating strategies for the implementation of AI solutions to drive efficiency. This evolution was the focus of “AI Unleashed: The Journey, One Year Later,” a key session at the ELM Amplify 2025 user conference, which provided a real-world look at progress, challenges, and strategies for successful AI adoption.
Insights from industry leaders at Marsh McLennan and DHL revealed that successful AI implementation in legal departments is not about chasing the latest technology. Instead, it requires a focused strategy, clear governance, and a deep understanding of organizational needs. Why is a focused strategy so important for AI in legal departments? A focused strategy ensures that AI projects are not isolated experiments, but integral components of the department’s long-term vision. It helps prioritize high-impact problems and aligns AI initiatives with core business goals for maximum organizational benefit.
What is the best strategy for AI adoption in legal departments?
The best strategy for adopting AI in legal departments is to focus on the quality of use cases, not the quantity. Success for legal departments often comes from the smaller, more focused use cases. Tiffani Huynh of DHL shared that her team initially pursued a long list of initiatives but soon realized the need for a more focused strategy. The key was creating a plan that directly tied AI projects to the legal department’s long-term vision.
Similarly, Chris Terry of Marsh McLennan stressed the importance of making progress. understanding core departmental needs. By concentrating on high-impact areas, their team avoids distractions from vendors and scattered internal requests. Both panelists agreed that impactful AI projects have to consider what solutions will be the most effective, future-proof, and have the most longevity. This requires developing a clear plan, avoiding distractions, and prioritizing initiatives with the greatest organizational benefit.
How are legal departments using AI today?
Over the past year, leading legal departments have made tangible progress, moving from pilot programs to live, value-adding AI in legal solutions. Their experiences show how a dedicated strategy translates into measurable advancements in efficiency and capability.
The team at Marsh McLennan has successfully established a robust AI governance process, a critical foundation for any organization. They leveraged AI in existing external solutions to drive adoption through practical applications, including:
- Translations
- Pre-execution contract comparisons and redlining
- M&A due diligence and routine legal administrative work, using an in-house ChatGPT-based platform
DHL has gone live with several key solutions that leverage AI. Notable applications include:
- An EEOC position statement generator
- Contract extraction and drafting
- A strategic shift from an in-house tool to Copilot, enhanced with legal-specific prompt training
- A legal operations career architect agent
- Pilots focused on document review and contract creation and analysis
An audience poll at the conference revealed that Copilot was the most-cited AI tool, highlighting the widespread adoption of foundational AI across the industry.
What are the main hurdles to implementing AI in legal?
The primary hurdles to implementing AI in legal departments are internal barriers related to governance, resource constraints, and organizational change. An audience poll confirmed that “approval,” “governance,” and “risk management” are the top factors slowing AI adoption.
Chris Terry noted that large organizations naturally struggle to adapt to rapid change, a challenge made worse by the need to protect sensitive data when using AI tools. Multi-layered approval processes, along with newly created internal AI committees, can create dramatic slowdowns that may leave key stakeholders disengaged or render the technology outdated prior to implementation. To push through these obstacles, Tiffani Huynh urges legal operations professionals to focus on internal marketing and consistent internal storytelling.
Furthermore, AI initiatives often require support from other departments like IT and finance, whose resources are already stretched thin. Both panelists emphasized the need to involve these stakeholders early in roadmap discussions to ensure alignment and secure necessary support.
Change management also remains a universal challenge. How can legal teams overcome resistance to AI adoption? Doing so requires both top-down support from leadership and a bottom-up effort to address team members’ concerns. Empowering internal AI advocates to demonstrate value and providing clear communication can help drive adoption and build trust.
How can legal teams make progress on their AI journey?
The session provided a clear message: successful AI in legal implementation is a marathon, not a sprint. Based on the expert panel’s insights, here are three actionable takeaways to guide your AI journey:
- Don’t chase “shiny objects.” Start by developing a strategic plan that aligns with your department’s core objectives. Focus on solving problems that will provide the broadest and most significant impact.
- Acknowledge internal barriers. Proactively engage with stakeholders in IT, finance, and other key departments. Build a strong business case and a clear governance framework to smooth the path for approval and implementation.
- Start with mindset, then move to metrics. First, encourage adoption and gather qualitative feedback. Use small, early wins to build momentum and justify further investment before focusing on demonstrating a hard return on investment.