Legal teams increasingly use AI but worry about its cost, new report shows
The use of artificial intelligence has continued to grow in the legal industry over the past year, according to a new report from e-discovery company Disco. (Photo by J Studios/Getty Images)
The use of artificial intelligence has continued to grow in the legal industry over the past year, according to a new report from e-discovery company Disco.
In Legal AI in 2026: Moving Forward Faster, Disco noted that 58% of lawyers and others in the legal profession said they have integrated AI into their routine legal processes, Law.com reports. Last year, only 35% had done so.
Disco also noted that a particularly significant change is respondents’ use of AI agents, Law.com reports. Last year, only two mentioned using AI agents, but this year, 62% said they are using agentic AI.
As part of this increased usage, 69% of respondents said they are using AI to streamline routine tasks, Law.com reports. Additionally, 72% said they are at least somewhat confident about using AI for document review.
Among its other findings, Disco pointed out that law firms and legal departments are increasingly concerned about consumption-based pricing and its effect on their AI use.
“There’s definitely a lot of trepidation around usage,” James Park, the director of AI consulting at Disco, told Law.com. “We’ll see people wary about token usage and maybe that curbing some AI usage behavior.”
Disco’s report was based on information from 53 firm respondents and 51 in-house respondents, and it was supplemented by 33 interviews, according to Law.com.
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