In-house legal teams face new risks

Litera, the legal AI platform provider that best unifies the practice and business of law, published the eBook, "Legal Departments at the Leading Edge: How General Counsel Are Navigating a New Era of Corporate Risk," revealing while today's General Counsel are stepping into their role as trusted strategic advisors, the governance infrastructure required to manage AI-driven risk has not kept pace. Based on a survey of approximately 100 senior legal leaders at Fortune 1000 companies in the U.S. and Canada, the report reveals that AI is delivering measurable business impact across legal departments, and that most General Counsel should be focused on building the governance infrastructure to match that progress.

In-house legal teams are being asked to manage more risk, more regulatory complexity, and more stakeholder pressure than ever, often with the same headcount and tooling they had two years ago. More than 57% of respondents say greater use of automation and legal technology, including tools for NDA review and contract workflows, would most help their teams accelerate decision-making without compromising risk management.

Sixty-four percent of respondents say AI is improving operational efficiency, and 62% report it is automating workflows, but 75% cite data privacy and security vulnerabilities as their top AI-related risk. More than 66% have not updated key contract clauses in the past 12 months to reflect emerging risks. “An integrated commercial network can be hard to unwind,” said Av Maharaj, Vice-President, Canadian Legal & Corporate Affairs and Global Legal Procurement, the Kraft Heinz Company. "Single-source supplying is becoming a much larger risk for organizations to manage. Supply chains are going to take a long time to readjust."

The eBook also reaffirms the "10 Ps" framework for smart risk-taking, developed by Dennis Garcia, Vice President and General Counsel, Litera, based on decades of advising organizations through high-stakes decisions. The framework offers in-house legal leaders a practical methodology for moving faster without sacrificing judgment. "The most effective General Counsel aren't waiting for perfect conditions," said Dennis Garcia. "They're building the capability, the cross-functional alignment, and the technology infrastructure to make better decisions faster, and they're doing it now."

The report is available on demand along with the webinar, "Counsel at the Edge: Advising on Strategic Risk in Public Companies," hosted by the Legal Innovation Forum. Dennis Garcia and Av Maharaj speak alongside legal professionals from financial services companies with Andrew Bowyer, Founder and CEO, The Legal Innovation Forum, as chair of the session.

Access the webinar replay at https://info.litera.com/adb-insights-counsel-at-the-edge.html