As generative artificial intelligence (AI) develops into revolutionary tools for productivity, the legal profession is ripe with opportunities to transform traditional practices, enhance efficiency, and create a more satisfying work experience for lawyers.
Since the introduction of ChatGPT, I have engaged with so many lawyers across New Zealand and Australia who immediately recognised the potential of AI for streamlining their daily routines, and who have been building AI into their workdays in varied ways.
The legal profession rightly takes a cautious approach when deploying new technology. Safeguarding confidential data must be top priority. Because of this, many lawyers are working with their IT teams to safely and responsibly incorporate this technology, including ensuring compliance with enterprise-grade privacy and security standards.
There are, however, great resources out there for legal teams looking to use AI to get ahead. The New Zealand Law Society’s Guidance on using AI provides a helpful framework, showing how lawyers can take advantage of those productivity gains now, laying the foundation for the future while effectively managing the risks it creates.
The Productivity Opportunity
Lawyers today live in programs like Outlook, Word, and Teams, juggling a range of tasks, from client interactions to regulatory compliance. While lawyers are often proficient in their use of these tools, tasks like preparing PowerPoint presentations or summarising large volumes of documents can consume precious time.
Our recent publication, Generative AI for Lawyers, shows how Microsoft 365 Copilot can streamline those tasks by meeting lawyers in the computer applications where they work every day —empowering them to focus more on strategic, high-value activities.
Consider my own Microsoft Corporate, External, and Legal Affairs (CELA) team, comprising over 2,000 professionals in 55 countries. By incorporating M365 Copilot, we achieved productivity gains of up to 32% and increased task accuracy by 20%.
Simpson Grierson’s Future-Focused Approach
Simpson Grierson, a leading law firm in New Zealand, is another example of strategic, staged AI adoption. Simpson Grierson started its AI journey with a discovery workshop facilitated by Microsoft partner CCL, exploring M365 Copilot’s safety features, ensuring data protection, and understanding its enterprise-grade privacy and security compliance.
After that groundwork, Simpson Grierson began rolling M365 Copilot out to early adopters, focusing on the potential productivity benefits without rushing a full rollout. The firm’s early adopters have found AI invaluable for automating routine tasks like formatting documents or extracting information—indicating a clear path forward for larger-scale implementation.
“We constantly need to turn around pieces of work on tight deadlines, and AI can make that process much smoother,” says Tara Wylie, a real estate partner specialising in foreign investment and the energy and agribusiness sectors. “With Microsoft 365 Copilot we can spend more of that time delivering value for clients, while getting AI’s assistance on things like shifting a document from Word to PowerPoint. That allows us to dedicate our time to the problem-solving and deep thinking that is most engaging about our work.”
Though it is still early days, Simpson Grierson sees AI as potentially transformative for the legal workday, allowing lawyers to move past busy work and focus on complex, problem-solving activities that are the core of their profession. This gradual approach has allowed the firm to align AI capabilities with its real, immediate needs, ensuring a smooth integration into existing workflows.
Embracing AI for Lasting Change
To truly transform, the legal profession must continue this experimentation and embrace AI as an essential productivity driver. Microsoft’s recent 2024 Work Trend Index highlights how productivity-focused AI integration can uplift workers: 84% of New Zealand knowledge workers are using generative AI in their work, and “power users” are saving over 30 minutes a day already. The message is clear: AI isn’t just about efficiency, it’s about thriving in a modern, fast-paced work setting.
Microsoft’s CELA team has shown that frequent experimentation is a key trait of successful AI adopters. It’s important to consistently experiment with AI to integrate it into daily use. This kind of ongoing engagement—understanding where AI can assist and iterating over time—is the blueprint for making the most of tools like Copilot.
The Path Forward
AI doesn’t replace the human expertise of lawyers, but it does enable them to spend more time where it matters most. By reducing the administrative overhead— summarising documents, finding key information, and creating first drafts —AI can help lawyers dedicate their energy to legal analysis, client strategy, and creative problem-solving. To make this future a reality, firms must actively engage with AI, understand its strengths and weaknesses, and implement it incrementally but strategically.
As Simpson Grierson’s early steps show, taking a measured approach to AI can reap significant rewards without the pitfalls of rushing into technology adoption. And as more firms make AI tools available to their teams, the benefits of reduced workload, increased accuracy, and elevated job satisfaction will follow. Copilot can already create major productivity gains in the workplace, and the tools are only getting better.
The legal profession is poised for an AI-driven transformation. Now is the time to engage, experiment, and embed AI to build a foundation for the legal practice of the future.