Key facts
- 55% of Victorian lawyers use AI, up from 37% last year.
- Only 26% of lawyers report reduced client fees due to AI.
- 46% of lawyers report clients arriving with inaccurate AI-generated legal information.
- AI use is highest in trade practices (85%) and lowest in criminal law (29%).
- 79% of lawyers use consumer chatbots like ChatGPT.
More than half of Victoria’s lawyers are now using AI in their practices, a significant increase from the previous year, according to a new study. However, only a quarter of these lawyers report that AI has led to reduced client fees. The survey of 2,221 lawyers, conducted by the Victorian Legal Services Board and Commissioner, also found that clients using AI for their own legal research are often presenting inaccurate information, increasing lawyers' workloads and requiring corrections. While AI adoption is widespread across various legal fields, it is most prevalent in trade practices, banking, finance, and IT, and less common in criminal and family law. The study noted that efficiency gains from AI were not as high as expected, partly due to the need for practitioners to verify AI output.