By Viktor von Essen, CEO, Libra by Wolters Kluwer
Across recent industry discussions, including the FutureLaw Conference in Tallinn, one message is becoming clear: the legal sector has moved beyond experimentation with AI. We are already in a phase of acceleration.
In just a few years, the shift from general-purpose AI to increasingly capable AI agents has changed expectations. The question is no longer whether the technology works, but how it performs in real legal environments. That raises the standard. In legal work, speed alone is not enough. Accuracy, consistency, and traceability become baseline requirements.
Against this backdrop, the discussion about how legal departments evolve is becoming more practical. And more focused.
First, start with the workflow, not with the tool.
Legal tech creates value when it reduces friction in how work actually gets done. Fewer system breaks, fewer handovers, fewer unnecessary review loops. That requires clarity on processes and responsibilities before introducing new technology. If workflows remain fragmented, AI will only accelerate inefficiencies. If they are structured and connected, AI can support work in context and across the full process.
Second, measure quality, not only speed.
In many organizations, success is still defined by faster turnaround times. But for legal departments, that is only part of the picture. What matters equally is whether outputs can be trusted and verified. Relevant indicators include traceability, the quality of sources, the effort required for verification, adoption across the team, and the number of review cycles. Faster wrong answers are not progress. They increase risk and reduce confidence, which ultimately limits adoption.
Third, AI must become legal infrastructure, not a side chatbot.
The next phase is not a collection of isolated tools. It is an integrated operating model where AI connects matter files, authoritative legal content, drafting, review, and collaboration. Systems need to be designed for operational use from the outset, embedded in workflows rather than layered on top.
When these elements come together, the role of the legal function starts to shift. Legal becomes less of a control point at the end of a process and more of an enabler throughout it. Teams can respond faster, handle more work internally, and support better decisions earlier.
This is ultimately what will define the next stage of legal transformation. Not the number of tools in use, but the clarity of the operating model behind them.
At Libra by Wolters Kluwer, this is the direction we are building towards: combining AI with trusted, authoritative content and embedding it directly into legal workflows.
The goal is straightforward. To enable legal professionals to work with greater consistency, reliability, and confidence - and to ensure that the legal function can scale with the demands of a more complex, faster-moving business environment.