A majority of general counsel and other senior legal heads at some of the world’s largest companies say that human traits such as empathy and soft skills will be critical in the coming years as AI adoption increases, according to a Simmons & Simmons survey

The ‘Law firm of the future’ study, which seeks to understand how the legal profession will change over the next decade, found that 78% of the 500 legal heads surveyed believe those human traits will still be in demand as AI rapidly advances. More than three-quarters (77%) also believe that lawyers’ skills will transform in response to changing client expectations, with the need for more multidisciplinary skills such as technology proficiency to complement traditional legal expertise.

Julian Taylor, Simmons’ senior partner, said: “Our findings show that legal advisers from some of the world’s biggest companies expect the law firm of a decade from now to look dramatically different.”

Taylor added: “It’s clear the profession is on the cusp of a deep transformation. It will be those law firms that embrace these changes and invest wisely today – in their people, in technology and in their legal services – that will reap the most benefits in the coming years.”

Almost three-quarters of respondents (74%) reckon the anticipated technological revolution will disrupt services and pricing models, while four in five respondents also agreed that law firms will be much more focused on wellbeing in 10 years from now, both for their employees and clients.

Three-quarters of respondents also expect tech transformation to act as a force for good, such as opening up access to law for people from underserved communities.

Simmons surveyed 500 legal heads across businesses valued between $500m and $50bn, based in the UK, Europe, US, Asia and the Middle East. The fieldwork took place last November.

A survey back in December by Thomson Reuters found that 62% of corporate counsel think they should be using AI tech for their jobs, up from 54% in 2023. The same survey also found that more than a quarter of in-house teams and law firms are using public AI tools such as ChatGPT, though just 12% are using legal specific tools.

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