Exclusive Legal Cheek research
The AI boom shows no sign of slowing, with law firms pouring serious money into shiny new tools. But exclusive research from Legal Cheek’s annual survey of over 2,000 trainees and junior lawyers suggests the rest of the tech budget is being left behind.
While firms race to embrace AI, the everyday essentials, from case management systems to laptops and work phones, are too often slow, outdated or, in some cases, quite literally falling apart. Our insiders acknowledge the investment in AI, but familiar grumbles about sub-par tech continue to rumble away beneath the surface.
“Harvey makes a difference but otherwise the firm’s systems are slow and unresponsive, and getting assistance can be like pulling teeth,” one rookie tells us. A new starter at another major firm is blunter still: “Our tech is really poor. Somehow we’re positioning ourselves as the AI law firm but we barely have working tech. Our laptops are quite rudimentary, things break often (and when needed most!), and the firm really cheaps out on providing high-quality devices/software.”
Another newbie sums up the disconnect rather neatly:
“AI is only going to get you so far if you can’t even open an email.”
It’s a theme that crops up repeatedly in the survey responses. One junior praises “good use of AI systems (including Claude, ChatGPT, and Harvey), although the laptops and IT support are at a sub-par level”, while another describes their firm as “not advanced — getting into using AI more but the actual software other than AI and devices aren’t great”.
And even where the latest tools impress, the machines running them aren’t always up to the job. “The tech itself is very advanced, but sometimes our laptops can’t actually handle the amount of tech loaded on them and they get quite slow,” says one trainee.
Others keep their verdicts short and (not so) sweet. “Case Management System is older than me,” one rookie at a City law firm tells us. “My laptop screen fell off,” another reveals, while a third makes their feelings crystal clear: “NEEDS IMPROVEMENT!”
Not every firm has jumped headfirst onto the AI bandwagon, of course. Some have taken a more cautious approach while keeping their existing tech in decent shape. One new starter at such a firm rates their set-up as “amazing, if it was 2021”.
But spare a thought for those whose firms appear to be lagging behind on both fronts, with neither cutting-edge AI nor reliable everyday tech to soften the blow.
“It could be better,” one rookie admits. “We have a basic Co-pilot subscription, but only some people have the advanced one and Co-Counsel. Our systems can play up and compared to other firms, we certainly need to up our game. Trainees are not given work phones.”
Another says their firm has “been slow to adopt AI on the whole and seem to be apprehensive about committing to one provider”, adding that the client management system is also particularly “clunky”.
It’s not all doom and gloom, though. Some firms appear to have cracked the formula, combining investment in AI with high-quality hardware, reliable software and responsive IT support. For the lucky rookies at these outfits, it’s the whole tech shebang.
“Our firm utilises AI and heavily pushes for it which makes things much more efficient,” one happy newbie reports. “Laptop and equipment are also of a really high standard with a very helpful IT team on standby to deal with any issues.”
Another reels off “Claude, CoPilot, Harvey, and more AI tools on the way”, alongside “lots of plugins to MS Office and generally a push in the firm to lean into tech”, leaving them “highly satisfied in this regard”.
And one particularly enthusiastic rookie reckons their firm is in a league of its own: “I actually can’t think of a firm which is more advanced than us in this regard at the moment.” Lucky them!
