Law Firms’ AI Nightmare Is Fewer Billed Hours and Lower Profits

Welcome back to the Big Law Business column. I’m Roy Strom, and today we look at a theory about the economics of investing in AI before learning about a real-life example. Sign up to receive this column in your Inbox on Thursday mornings.

Here is a tough sell for a Big Law managing partner: Invest millions to build a generative artificial intelligence product that will shrink billable hour revenue and crimp profit margins.

That’s what can happen when the technology makes lawyers more efficient, AI consultant Toby Brown found. Brown, a former chief practice management officer at Perkins Coie, ...