Legal teams being asked to make AI ‘operational and accountable’

Instead, it said, understanding, selecting, and deploying new legal technologies has overtaken work volume as the biggest challenge for legal professionals.

According to Consilio chief client experience officer Michael Pontrelli, the profession is “at a structural inflection point”.

“AI is no longer peripheral; it is being embedded into everyday workflows, but often without the coordination layer required to connect technology, data, governance, and people into a system that can scale,” he said.

The report examined how corporate legal departments and law firms are responding to accelerating AI adoption and the mounting pressure to operationalise intelligence with governance, trust, and accountability.

Key findings from the report included that over half of respondents cited legal technology selection and deployment as a primary challenge, compared to 52 per cent who cited work volume; one in two and 71 per cent of in-house legal respondents now see themselves as a strategic business partner to the business; 65 per cent of respondents are intentionally redesigning how they use AI within their legal function, with 58 per cent reporting increased efficiency and productivity from AI use; and 58 per cent of respondents cite accuracy and lack of trust as the biggest blocker to broader AI use, and 73 per cent say their top concern is incorrect or hallucinated outputs.

Pontrelli said: “Legal teams are not debating whether AI belongs in the workflow anymore.

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“They are being asked to make it operational and accountable. Our 2026 findings show the next challenge is coordination, not experimentation. The teams that build shared standards, oversight, and an operating rhythm for intelligence will be the ones that can scale AI without adding risk or complexity.”

Consilio chief technology and innovation officer Raj Chandrasekar said: “This year’s research shows that AI innovation is outpacing the adoption and governance frameworks designed to manage it.

“Without a cohesive model for integration and oversight, organisations risk fragmentation. As legal leaders are increasingly evaluated on trust and accountability, they must take a deliberate, standards-driven approach that allows gains in individual workflows to scale across the broader function.”

Consilio will discuss findings from The Age of the Innovation Orchestrator at Legal Tech Fest on 28–29 April and at the Lawyers Weekly Corporate Counsel Summit on 14 May in Sydney.