The International Bar Association (IBA) is launching the second part of its AI Impact Survey to gather global insights from law professionals to find out how the technology is reshaping the legal sector.
Run by the IBA’s Section on Public and Professional Interest (SPPI) Artificial Intelligence Working Group, the new phase seeks to build on previous findings and identify strategies to navigate both the opportunities and challenges posed by rapidly advancing AI technologies.
The survey aims to provide a nuanced understanding of AI’s current and potential future impact, as law firms and legal departments worldwide adapt to emerging technologies. The effort comes at a time when the legal industry continues to debate the role of AI, not only as an operational tool, but also as an issue that raises questions about ethics, regulation and professional readiness.
The working group says the survey is designed to be accessible and time-efficient, taking less than 10 minutes to complete. It ensures the anonymity and confidentiality of all participants, with responses securely stored.
Participants can access the survey and select the questionnaire that best corresponds to their role within the legal sector by visiting www.ibanet.org/AI-Surveys. The deadline for submissions is 12 September.
Sönke Lund, a dual-qualified Spanish-German partner at ECIJA Abogados in Barcelona, who chairs the working group, said: “By completing the survey, participants will greatly advance our knowledge and help frame how AI is driving legal professions worldwide.
“The insights gathered will guide policies that ensure lawyers and the legal community use AI responsibly and ethically. Every response brings us closer to a better informed and more prepared legal community.”
The findings from the survey will be presented during the IBA 2025 Annual Conference in Toronto, Canada, at a dedicated session titled ‘AI’s impact on the legal profession: from threat to game-changing advantage’, scheduled for Monday 3 November.
The work builds on the momentum established by the IBA’s 2024 report, ‘The Future is Now: Artificial Intelligence and the Legal Profession’, produced in collaboration with the Center for AI and Digital Policy (CAIDP) and launched at the 2024 Annual Conference in Mexico City.
According to that report, nearly half (48%) of lawyers surveyed supported enhanced regulation of AI in the legal profession, while 57% advocated for greater regulatory consistency across jurisdictions.
A subsequent report, issued by the IBA in February this year, suggested that legal professionals do not currently regard AI as a short-term priority.
According to ‘The Future of Legal Services - White Paper 2024’, produced by the IBA’s Future of Legal Services Commission and Lamp House Strategy, the IBA observed a “large disconnect between the impact of AI and the preparedness of the legal sector”.
The paper noted that “while the organisational attention that AI receives is growing, it still lags far behind other challenges which are often felt to be less impactful, yet receive much greater attention”.
Despite these findings, many in the sector said they believed AI represents “more of a medium-term challenge, with limited short-term impact anticipated”, according to the paper, marking AI as “next year’s problem”.
Discussions on AI have featured heavily in the IBA’s regional conferences this year, including one in Latin America.
The Global Legal Post is a media partner of the International Bar Association and will be publishing the IBA Daily News at the 2025 Annual Conference in Toronto in November.
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