AI by industry

AI for solicitors

In a firm, one hour in three is not billed: chasing a client for a document, building a bundle, answering « where is my matter », reconstructing time on Friday evening. It is not law, it is around the law — and it is what costs. The agent takes that hour. Advice, strategy and deadlines stay with the solicitor, and must.

5 tasks documented below1 limit no advice, no strategy, no deadline calculatedPrivilege closed perimeter, in your walls, written into the quote2 to 6 weeks before the first system opens
Chase the client for the document
Build the bundle
Reconstruct Friday’s time

The tasks we remove first in this industry

The cost

What this industry pays when nothing moves.

Ranges, not promises. They come from tasks we meet in this industry and orders of magnitude we measure in the survey — yours may fall outside, in either direction.

Changing nothing
Unbilled hours per fee earner per week10 to 15
Time to get a document from a client1 to 3 weeks
« Where is my matter » calls per day5 to 10
Time recorded the same dayrarely — Friday, from memory
Building a bundle1 to 2 hours
Billable hours lost per fee earner per month40 to 60
The firm system, opened
Unbilled hours per fee earner per week4 to 6
Time to get a document from a clientdays, chased at the right moment
« Where is my matter » calls per day1 to 2
Time recorded the same daydrafted each evening, approved in 5 minutes
Building a bundle10 minutes of checking
Billable hours lost per fee earner per month15 to 25
Five tasks

What we remove, and what we leave.

Each task is described with what the agent takes on and what stays with a person. If the second column is empty, we have not understood the industry.

01

Gather documents and chase clients

What the agent does
From the list of documents expected per matter type, it requests, chases at the right moment, files what arrives and flags what is missing.

What stays with a person
The evaluation of a document. It notes that it is there or not; what it is worth, the solicitor says.

02

Build bundles

What the agent does
It numbers, orders and indexes documents in your format, and prepares the bundle with its index.

What stays with a person
The order of the argument and the choice of documents. It assembles what the solicitor decided to rely on.

03

Draft time recording

What the agent does
From the calendar, emails and documents opened, it proposes each evening the day’s time, per matter, for approval.

What stays with a person
Approval and billing. Time on the wrong matter is a disputed invoice.

04

Update clients at first level

What the agent does
« Where is my matter », « did you receive my document », « when is the hearing listed »: it answers from the file, citing.

What stays with a person
Anything resembling a legal question or a decision. It informs; the solicitor advises.

05

Prepare the read of the other side’s document

What the agent does
It maps the structure, documents referred to, and differences with your pleadings — with no view on them.

What stays with a person
The reading and the response. « This point is not addressed » is a finding; « this point is weak » is advice, and it belongs to the solicitor.

What we do not do

No advice, no strategy, no procedural deadline comes out of an agent.

The first two are among the agency’s founding limits. The third is specific to a firm: a missed limitation or court deadline cannot be undone, so calculating it stays with the solicitor and their diary system — the agent reminds of a date that was entered; it calculates none. The diagram below shows where its reach ends.

A client message arrives — a diagram, not a screenshot
1Message received, matter identifiedtrigger
2Reading: information, document, or legal question?triage
?Can the answer be read in the file (status, documents received, dates entered)?condition
if yes
4Answer drafted from the file, item citeddraft
5The solicitor or assistant reviews and sendshuman
otherwise
6Passed to the solicitor, no automatic replyescalation

In neither branch does anyone receive advice from a machine. The condition is about the file — never about the law.

The method, in one sentence

Ten systems, one survey, one system opened at a time — the one with the shortest payback. Read the full method, or go back to the AI agency page.

The tools

What we open it with, and why here.

The choice of tool comes last, and it is reversible. But in this industry, three constraints keep coming back and steer the choice before we even start.

A closed perimeter, covered by privilege
Matters are privileged. The agent lives in your walls or a space you control, access is named, and nothing trains a model. It is the first decision of the workshop.
Your case management system, as it is
It reads what your tool exposes and writes where it allows — matters, documents, time. It replaces nothing.
A log your compliance officer can read
Every chase, reply and time entry proposed is traced. What was said to a client is checkable, and is never advice.
The objections

What we hear in this industry, before we start.

Is privilege compatible with an agent?

With an agent installed inside your perimeter, yes: matters do not leave it, access is named, nothing trains anything. If that condition does not suit you, we stop there.

And deadlines? That is where we fear error.

Which is why the agent calculates none. It reminds you of a date you entered; it never derives a time limit from a rule. Calculation stays with the solicitor and their diary — written into the quote.

How long before it is useful?

The survey of the ten systems is delivered within 72 hours. Opening the first system takes two to six weeks. In a firm, the evening time draft often goes first — and shows on the first invoice.

Where this industry concentrates

The areas where we are called most for this.

Related industries

The same tasks, in neighbouring industries : AI for legal teams, AI for conveyancing, AI for accountants.

First call — fifteen minutes

We will tell you which system to open first.

Describe the task that costs you the most. We will tell you what is feasible, how long it takes and what it costs. If the answer is no, you will leave with the two reasons why.