ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot for lawyers

Law firms and in-house legal teams are showing growing interest in artificial intelligence (AI), in particular generative AI tools such as ChatGPT and Copilot. These tools give lawyers new ways to speed up their work and raise the quality of their service. That calls for a careful look at what these technologies can and cannot do for legal practice. In this article we look at how these AI assistants can support lawyers, with a critical eye on both the benefits and the points to watch.

Our experience with more than 1,000 lawyers and dozens of law firms is clear: lawyers cannot afford to fall behind in adopting AI tools and, eventually, building them into their daily practice.

An AI lawyer, generated in a few seconds with Midjourney

How lawyers use ChatGPT and Copilot

Drafting documents with ChatGPT

Using AI to draft legal documents opens up interesting possibilities, but it needs a nuanced approach. These tools can be valuable for producing first drafts and structuring legal arguments. The real value of AI assistance depends heavily on the context in which you use it. On complex legal questions, where tailored work and in-depth knowledge of current legislation are required, AI remains a supporting tool. The lawyer stays fully responsible for the legal accuracy and quality of the final product. Even so, a lawyer using AI tools can easily carry out a range of tasks more than 30% faster than a colleague who does not.

Legal research (not) with ChatGPT and Copilot

ChatGPT and Copilot can offer lawyers new perspectives in legal research and make exploratory work easier. They can help identify relevant concepts and suggest lines of enquiry that might otherwise be missed. At the same time, you need to recognise the limits of this technology. ChatGPT and Copilot usually have no access to current case law or specialist legal databases, and they cannot fully grasp the subtleties of legal interpretation. So treat them as a complement to traditional research methods, not a replacement.

Fortunately, several AI tools are now available that let lawyers and legal staff carry out (legal) research faster and better. We cover them in our AI training for lawyers, after which most participants say they can save at least one hour a week with what they have learned, and in many cases “probably a lot more”. With some organisations we work on AI-driven changes that deliver 20-30% productivity gains and time savings per employee.

Using AI safely and effectively

Prompt engineering basics

Using AI tools well takes knowledge and skills that go beyond traditional legal expertise. Lawyers and support staff need to learn to work with these technologies in a way that strengthens the quality of their work. That means building technical skills, but also a critical understanding of what AI can and cannot do. These new competences belong in existing professional development programmes.

Ethical considerations

Bringing AI into legal practice raises fundamental ethical and legal questions that deserve careful thought. Privacy and confidentiality come first, but professional liability and quality assurance also need attention. Firms should be open with clients about their use of AI tools and set clear guidelines for responsible use. Those guidelines need regular review and adjustment as new insights and developments emerge. Across the EU, the GDPR and the AI Act set the outer frame for this.

The outlook: ChatGPT and Copilot for lawyers and law firms

AI in the legal sector is still at an early stage, but its impact is only expected to grow. Law firms that want to succeed in this changing environment need a well-considered strategy for introducing AI. That requires a balance between innovation and core values, between efficiency and quality, between technology and human contact. Ongoing evaluation and adjustment of that strategy, together with insight into and experience with these AI tools, is essential to stay relevant in a changing legal landscape.

Three lawyers during a talk about AI, also made with Midjourney

Conclusion

Bringing AI tools such as ChatGPT and Copilot into the legal profession creates both opportunities and challenges. Success depends on using these tools thoughtfully, as support within a broader range of legal expertise and services. The future of the legal profession lies not in replacing human expertise with AI, but in combining what technology can do with the parts of legal work that people cannot be replaced in: judgement, ethical awareness, and the ability to place complex legal questions in their social context. By finding that balance, law firms can raise the quality of their service while staying true to the fundamental values of their profession.