Legal
AI
London
UK lawyers are projected to realise £2.4 billion in AI-driven productivity gains in 2026. Regular generative AI use has more than doubled. Yet 95% of pilots still fail.
This December, the UK legal profession comes together to compare notes on what has actually worked, and what 2027 will demand.
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30+
AI FOCUSSED FIRMS
30
EXPERT SPEAKERS
6
CORE THEMES
29 days
Intensive Format
HOST & LEAD PARTNERS
EVENT PARTNERS
EVENT DETAILS
📅 1–2 December 2026 📍 Clifford Chance, 10 Upper Bank Street, London E14 5JJ, UK
👥 100+ Legal Leaders, Innovators & AI Practitioners 🎫 Law Firm, In-House, and Vendor passes available
Six Core themes
What We're Examining
From scaling AI adoption to the EU AI Act’s implications for UK practice. The six dimensions shaping how the UK legal profession moves from pilots to responsible, productive deployment at scale.
01 / 06
Scaling AI Adoption: From Pilot to Enterprise
Regular generative AI use has more than doubled in UK law firms, yet AI pilots still fail to deliver measurable impact. The adoption-to-value gap is the defining challenge for 2026. UK firms that have reached operational deployment are reclaiming ~4 hours per lawyer per week, translating to roughly £80,000 in annual billable capacity.
How are firms achieving measurable ROI at scale?
02 / 06
AI Governance & Risk: Building Trust at Scale
The EU AI Act’s high-risk rules for Annex III systems apply from 2 December 2027; rules for high-risk AI embedded in regulated products apply from 2 August 2028. For UK firms with European clients or operations, preparation remains a live governance issue.
Governance is no longer optional.
It is a prerequisite for client trust.
03 / 06
The Client–Firm AI Divide: Expectations, Transparency, Trust
80% of corporate legal executives expect AI to translate into lower bills. 50% of UK corporate legal teams expect transformational AI change within 12 months. Trust in AI as a reliable resource has nearly doubled from 21% to 40% among general counsel in a single year. UK clients are no longer asking whether firms use AI, they are asking how, with what governance, and with what accountability.
Clients want proof of AI impact, not promises.
04 / 06
Knowledge Management as AI Infrastructure
Fewer than 30% of UK organisations have data moderately prepared for AI. Knowledge management has been elevated from a support function to business-critical infrastructure. AI is only as good as the data it ingests, and for most UK law firms, years of unstructured precedents, inconsistent tagging, and siloed practice group knowledge represent the single biggest constraint on AI performance.
What happens when AI output quality is directly tied to knowledge architecture?
05 / 06
The Economics of AI: Productivity, Profitability & Pricing
UK lawyers are projected to realise £2.4 billion in AI-driven productivity gains in 2026. AI could cost firms £20,000+ per lawyer annually if pricing models do not evolve to reflect efficiency. 71% of clients prefer flat fees over hourly billing. The firms that reprice proactively will capture market share; those that do not will face margin compression from both clients and AI-efficient competitors.
How can firms turn AI productivity gains into sustainable margins and clearer client value?
06 / 06
Practical Workflows: From Drafting to Agentic AI
Allen & Overy has deployed Harvey to 3,500 lawyers; DLA Piper operates 5,000 Harvey licences globally. 75% of law firm tasks are potentially exposed to AI automation. Agentic AI is at the cusp of mainstream adoption, yet fewer than 20% of UK firms have widespread agentic workflows.
Which legal workflows are ready for agentic AI, and what human oversight do they require?
2026 Faculty
Speaking Faculty
Sarah Harris
Director of Innovation and Knowledge, Partner
Kingsley Napley LLP
AI STRATEGY
FIRM LEADERSHIP
Claire McNamara
Partner and Director of Knowledge and Learning
Penningtons Manches Cooper
AI STRATEGY
FIRM LEADERSHIP
Christine Astaniou
Global Director, Practice Innovation & Knowledge Solutions
Kennedys
AI STRATEGY
FIRM LEADERSHIP
Dr Catriona Wolfenden
Director of Product and Innovation, Partner
Weightmans LLP
AI STRATEGY
FIRM LEADERSHIP
AGENDA
Day 1 Agenda
1st DECEMBER
From AI Experimentation to Enterprise Transformation
DAY ONE: TUESDAY, 1ST DECEMBER, 2026
Day 1 / 8:30 AM - 9:15 AM
Registration and coffee
Day 1 / 9:15 AM - 9:30 AM
Chair’s opening comments
CHAIR
Kieron Champion, Managing Director, Advisory and Knowledge Strategy, Epiq
Representative from Clifford Chance
Day 1 / 9:30 AM - 10:15 AM / FIRESIDE CHAT
Beyond the Pilot: Why Legal AI Projects Still Fail
From experimentation to enterprise deployment
- What separates promising pilots from AI that actually scales?
- Why do successful experiments fail when introduced across the wider firm?
- What leadership decisions, infrastructure and organisational changes are needed to move beyond experimentation?
- How should firms decide which AI initiatives deserve further investment?
SPEAKERS
Representative from Clifford Chance
Representative from Microsoft
Speaker names to be confirmed.
Day 1 / 10:15 AM - 10:45 AM
AI Independence: Building Optionality for the Legal AI Era
How law firms can maintain independence, resilience and choice while adopting AI, managing data sovereignty, supply chains and evolving technology.
- Understand the strategic dependencies behind today’s AI platforms
- Protect data sovereignty and sustainable access to legal knowledge
- Build optionality into long-term AI technology and supplier decisions
- Measure AI’s impact beyond efficiency, cost and productivity
SPEAKER
Sarah Harris, Director of Innovation and Knowledge, Partner, Kingsley Napley LLP
Day 1 / 10:45 AM - 11:15 AM
What Clients Actually Pay For: Rethinking the Value of Legal Advice
How is AI challenging traditional assumptions about the value, pricing and delivery of legal advice?
- Who defines value: clients, law firms, or both?
- Can hourly billing coexist with subscriptions and alternative pricing models?
- How will AI reshape incentives, profitability and junior lawyer development?
- What will successful law-firm business models look like by 2030?
SPEAKERS
K-Ming Lee, Head of Customer Engagement, Harvey
Cliff Fluet, Partner and Joint Head of Media & Entertainment, Lewis Silkin
Day 1 / 11:15 AM - 11:45 AM
Networking and coffee
Day 1 / 11:45 AM - 12:30 PM
Making AI Work: From Experimentation to Everyday Legal Practice
How firms can build the capability, knowledge and organisational approach needed to move AI from experimentation into everyday legal practice.
- Moving beyond sandbox pilots towards adoption across legal and business teams
- Building AI literacy, confidence and effective user behaviours
- Combining technology, knowledge, data and process to embed AI into workflows
- Creating the organisational conditions for sustainable, scalable AI adoption
SPEAKERS
Adam Curphey, Director of Innovation & AI, Macfarlanes
Day 1 / 12:30 PM - 1:15 PM
Knowledge Management as AI Infrastructure: Preparing Legal Knowledge for the AI Era
Why AI performance depends on trusted, accessible and well-structured organisational knowledge
- Turning fragmented precedents and practice-group knowledge into usable AI-ready information
- Connecting knowledge management, data and AI to improve everyday legal work
- Interactive discussion: what does an AI-ready knowledge environment actually look like?
SPEAKERS
Gabriel Karawani, Co-Founder and Director, AtlasFuse by ClearPeople
Katya Linossi, Co-Founder and CEO, AtlasFuse by ClearPeople
Day 1 / 1:15 PM - 2:00 PM
Networking lunch
Day 1 / 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM
Session to be confirmed
Day 1 / 2:45 PM - 3:30 PM
Unlocking Relationship Capital: How AI Can Transform Law-Firm Growth
How can law firms use AI-driven relationship intelligence to unlock new business opportunities, deepen client relationships and turn existing networks into sustainable growth?
- Identifying untapped opportunities across clients, partners and practice groups.
- Using AI to understand relationships and anticipate client needs.
- Turning relationship intelligence into actionable business development strategies.
- Balancing commercial growth with trust, confidentiality and professional judgement.
SPEAKERS
James Wang, Co-Founder, Postilize
Matthew Layton, Board Member, Barbri
Day 1 / 3:30 PM - 4:00 PM
Networking and coffee
Day 1 / 4:00 PM - 4:45 PM / PANEL
Beyond the Pilot: Turning Legal AI into Sustainable Client Value
Law firms have spent the past two years experimenting with AI. The challenge for 2027 is turning successful experiments into sustainable improvements in legal work and client service.
- From pilots to production: What separates scalable AI from abandoned experiments?
- Redesigning legal work: How AI changes processes, roles and service delivery
- Proving value: What should clients and firm leadership actually measure?
- Building for 2027: How firms turn AI adoption into sustainable advantage
MODERATOR
Claire McNamara, Partner and Director of Knowledge and Learning, Penningtons Manches Cooper
PANELLISTS
Claire Stripp, Head of Knowledge and Learning, Browne Jacobson
Stuart Hopper, Founder, Table 13, Consultants
Eleanor Windsor, Partner, Director of KM, Irwin Mitchell
Day 1 / 4:45 PM - 5:00 PM
Chair’s closing comments
Day 1 / 5:00 PM
Networking drinks
AGENDA
Day 2 Agenda
2nd DECEMBER
AI Operations, Risk and Competitive Advantage
DAY TWO: WEDNESDAY, 2ND DECEMBER, 2026
Day 2 / 8:30 AM - 9:15 AM
Registration and coffee
Day 2 / 9:15 AM - 9:30 AM
Chair’s opening comments
CHAIR
Kieron Champion, Managing Director, Advisory and Knowledge Strategy, Epiq
Day 2 / 9:30 AM - 10:15 AM / FIRESIDE CHAT
Scaling Legal AI: From Experimentation to Enterprise
What are law firms learning as AI moves from pilots into real-world deployment?
- What does successful AI deployment look like beyond individual pilots and experiments?
- How is AI changing the economics, resourcing and delivery of legal work?
- What governance and oversight are needed as AI becomes more deeply embedded?
- What are the practical challenges of deploying AI across a global law firm?
- What lessons are emerging from Jones Day's work with Epiq — and what might other firms learn?
- What should law firms be prioritising as AI adoption accelerates through 2027?
SPEAKER
Representative from Jones Day
Speaker name to be confirmed.
Day 2 / 10:15 AM - 11:00 AM
Redesigning Legal Workflows Around AI
From adding technology to redesigning legal work
- Removing unnecessary manual work and duplication
- Re-engineering processes around what humans and AI do best
- Changing roles and responsibilities
- Identifying workflows where AI can genuinely transform service delivery
SPEAKERS
Amy Earlam, Legal Director, Knowledge, FRDG, TLT LLP
Adam Ford, Associate Director, Applied AI, White & Case
Christine Astaniou, Global Director, Practice Innovation & Knowledge Solutions, Kennedys
Day 2 / 11:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Networking and coffee
Day 2 / 11:30 AM - 12:15 PM / PANEL
Clients Using AI: Changing the Demand for External Legal Services
How the growing use of AI by clients is changing the relationship with external law firms
- How is client-side AI changing the type and volume of external legal work?
- What do sophisticated clients now expect from AI-enabled external legal services?
- How are AI, data and governance changing client–law firm relationships?
- Where must external firms demonstrate value beyond technology and efficiency?
SPEAKERS
Dan Guildford, General Counsel, Financial Times
Tyler Dearson, Head of Legal, Barclays
Additional panellist to be confirmed.
Day 2 / 12:15 PM - 1:00 PM / PANEL
AI Governance Under Pressure: Enabling Innovation Without Losing Control
As AI moves from experimentation into everyday legal practice, governance is becoming a continuous operational challenge.
- Who owns AI risk? Accountability across legal, IT, risk, innovation and business teams
- Governing deployment: Building frameworks that enable experimentation while maintaining oversight
- Managing the risk landscape: Regulatory, IP, data protection, confidentiality, cybersecurity and reputational risks
- Managing AI suppliers: Due diligence, contractual protections and rapidly changing AI products
- Client expectations: Transparency, confidentiality and communicating how AI is being used
- Keeping governance current: Updating policies, training and controls as technology evolves
SPEAKERS
Toby Bond, Partner, Bird & Bird
Vanessa Searle, Senior Associate - Risk, Burges Salmon LLP
Dr Catriona Wolfenden, Director of Product and Innovation, Partner, Weightmans LLP
Day 2 / 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Networking lunch
Day 2 / 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM
AI Procurement in 2027: Choosing Technology That Will Last
Assessing AI tools beyond functionality and marketing claims
- Managing contractual, IP, data and regulatory risks
- Avoiding vendor lock-in and AI washing
- Negotiating protections for rapidly evolving AI services
- Future-proofing long-term AI investments
SPEAKER
Roch Glowacki, Partner, Lewis Silkin
Day 2 / 2:45 PM - 3:30 PM / PANEL
The AI-Ready Lawyer: Skills, Standards and Professional Responsibility
- What skills must lawyers retain? Critical thinking, legal analysis, judgement, verification and professional scepticism
- Using AI responsibly: Applying professional obligations when researching, drafting, reviewing and advising
- What can AI safely replace? And what must remain a human responsibility?
- Training the next generation: How should trainee and junior lawyer development change?
- Supervision and accountability: Who remains responsible when AI contributes to legal work?
- Professional standards: What should firms, regulators and clients expect from AI-enabled lawyers?
MODERATOR
Lila Gailling, Knowledge and Development Lawyer, Financial Conduct Authority
PANELLISTS
Lex Coe, Innovation Lawyer - Senior Associate, Gateley
Mark Ford, Consultant
Additional panellists to be confirmed.
Day 2 / 3:30 PM - 4:00 PM
Networking and coffee
Day 2 / 4:00 PM - 4:45 PM / PANEL
AI Geopolitics: Regulation, Government and the Global AI Race
A senior-level discussion examining how competing regulatory approaches, government strategies and corporate responses are shaping the global AI environment.
- The regulatory landscape: EU, UK, US, China and emerging approaches
- Government response: Regulation, industrial policy, national security and AI investment
- The corporate response: How multinational businesses are navigating increasingly divergent regimes
- AI and economic power: Productivity, investment, markets and competitiveness
- Strategic implications for law firms and their clients
- What does the global AI landscape look like heading into 2027?
SPEAKERS
Bojana Bellamy, President, CIPL Hunton
Dr Jufang Wang, Co-director, Centre for Dialogue and Global Affairs
Additional panellists to be confirmed.
Day 2 / 4:45 PM - 5:00 PM
Chair’s closing comments
Day 2 / 5:00 PM
Conference close
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EVENT DETAILS
📅 1–2 December 2026
📍 Clifford Chance, 10 Upper Bank Street, London E14 5JJ, UK
👥 100+ Legal Leaders, Innovators & AI Practitioners
🎫 Law Firm, In-House, and Vendor passes available
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