In the news
The new training challenge for law firms
New research from LexisNexis, explores how AI is increasing the speed of legal work, and also reshaping how junior lawyers develop core professional skills.
Its report, the mentorship gap, released in early February, highlights how 58% of lawyers using AI are producing work faster, and this rises to 65% among those using paid legal AI platforms. Junior lawyers are increasingly relying on AI for legal research, drafting, and document review, all tasks that have traditionally been part of the early stages of legal training.
When asked how skills development should be supported when using AI, 65% of people say it should be used as a “thinking partner” rather than just a shortcut.
The report also notes differences in how success is measured, with leaders prioritising revenue growth, while associates put more emphasis on billable hours and client feedback. These differing priorities could influence how AI is applied across firms.
UK Government seeks evidence to shape new AI growth lab
The UK Government has opened a call for evidence on its proposed AI Growth Lab, a pioneering programme led by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT). The Lab is designed to accelerate the development and deployment of AI‑enabled products and services by removing regulatory barriers that limit innovation by allowing modifications to existing rules.
The government is seeking input from individuals, organisations, and experts who may use the Lab, be affected by it, or have experience implementing regulatory sandboxes. The evidence gathered will help refine the Lab’s operating model, identify priority sectors, and shape future regulatory reforms.
The call for evidence, which launched in October 2025 and closed in January, encouraged participants to respond to specific questions on how the Lab should run, what regulatory changes are most needed, and how successful pilots could transition into long‑term policy updates.
The responses will be analysed by DSIT, who will prepare a formal government response, and a summary will be published on GOV.UK.
Judges warned over rise of fake case citations
A recent article in the Law Gazette highlights how Judges in England and Wales are being urged to stop repeating fake case citations after a rise in AI‑generated material appearing in court submissions. There is growing concern that invented case names and summaries, which are produced by generative AI tools, are now being quoted in some official judgments, leading to misinformation being embedded on the public record.
The concern follows several incidents where lawyers relied on AI searches that produced entirely fictitious case law, or ‘hallucinations’. In some examples, judges included these false references in their rulings to show how the mistake arose, but specialists warn that repeating them can give the material a legitimacy it does not deserve.
Senior lawyers are calling for a change in practice, and argue that judges should avoid naming fabricated cases, or labelling them to make it clear that the material is not real and therefore prevent it being reused by others.
Find out more by reading the full Law Gazette article here
Watch our webinar on using AI in law firms
If you need more support and advice on using AI effectively in the workplace, watch our recent webinar ‘Innovating with AI in your firm’. The short webinar introduces our upcoming guidance to help law firms adopt generative AI safely and responsibly and transform how legal services are delivered.
In the session, we introduce two upcoming SRA resources to support legal firms.
The first is a set of FAQs developed as supportive guidance to respond to questions we hear regularly from solicitors and law firms about how AI should be used in legal services. There are six themes that cover everything from scoping to procuring and implementing AI in your workplace.
The second tool is a best practice note on using sensitive data in AI tools. This sets out how existing duties around confidentiality, privilege and data protection apply when AI tools process client information.