Still Skeptical About Using AI in Your Law Practice? You Don’t Need to Use It for Legal Work to Benefit From It

Artificial intelligence has become one of the most discussed topics in the legal profession, particularly in conversations about legal research, contract review, and document drafting. For many solo practitioners and small-firm lawyers, however, the most practical use of AI may be far less ambitious—and far more immediately useful: helping lawyers run their practices more efficiently without being used for substantive legal work.

That distinction matters. Many lawyers remain understandably cautious about using AI in client matters because of concerns about confidentiality, accuracy, malpractice exposure, and professional responsibility. But the conversation about AI does not have to begin with drafting motions or analyzing case law. For many lawyers, especially those in solo and small-firm practice, the better starting point is far more practical: using AI as a technical, administrative, and organizational assistant.

In a large firm, many nonlegal tasks are handled by others. Technology problems go to IT, billing questions go to accounting, and software issues are often handled by administrative staff. In a solo or small-firm practice, those responsibilities often fall on the lawyer. A typical week may involve troubleshooting billing software, fixing document-formatting problems, syncing calendars, sending newsletters, reconciling QuickBooks, or preparing documents for e-filing. None of those tasks involve legal analysis, but all of them consume time, interrupt workflow, and add to the daily mental load of running a practice.

That is where AI can offer immediate value. Instead of sorting through search results, outdated message boards, or lengthy support pages, a lawyer can describe a problem in plain language and receive targeted, step-by-step guidance. Used this way, AI is not functioning as a legal research tool. It is functioning as a practical assistant for the everyday mechanics of practice.

This is especially true with practice-management and billing software. Solo practitioners often rely on a patchwork of systems—case-management platforms, accounting programs, document tools, email services, and cloud storage—to keep the office running. Even useful software can become frustrating when a report will not generate correctly, an entry needs to be corrected, or a feature is difficult to locate. AI can help lawyers understand settings, troubleshoot small problems, and make better use of the tools they already have.

The same is true of marketing and client-communication tools. Many attorneys use programs such as Mailchimp, Canva, or website builders, but often only at a basic level. AI can help explain how to adjust a template, format a mailing, or create a simple graphic without requiring the user to work through lengthy tutorials. For lawyers wearing every administrative hat in the office, that kind of quick assistance can make routine tasks considerably less frustrating.

AI can also be useful when evaluating expenses and subscriptions. Many solo practitioners continue paying for software, storage, website services, or office systems that were selected years earlier, sometimes without a clear sense of what those services still provide. AI can help compare features, explain pricing structures, and clarify whether a higher-priced plan offers anything truly useful for a small practice. These may be business decisions rather than legal ones, but they directly affect the efficiency and cost of operating a law office.

The benefit is not limited to software or subscriptions. Much of law practice involves procedural mechanics rather than legal analysis: combining PDFs, labeling exhibits, formatting forms, organizing electronic files, or setting up virtual meetings. These tasks are necessary, recurring, and often surprisingly time-consuming when something goes wrong. AI can help solve those practical problems quickly, allowing lawyers to spend less time on office friction and more time on work that actually requires legal skill.

AI may also assist with organization and workflow. Solo practitioners often manage their own files, deadlines, billing, and office routines without administrative support. AI can help generate checklists, structure recurring tasks, and create workable starting points for routine office processes. Even when the result needs refinement, beginning with an organized framework can save time.

That reduction in decision fatigue matters. One of the defining features of solo and small-firm practice is the accumulation of small responsibilities that have nothing to do with legal analysis but still demand constant attention—technology, billing, scheduling, marketing, equipment, and office management. AI can ease some of that burden by offering prompt, practical guidance on routine questions and helping lawyers move through small operational problems more efficiently.

Of course, caution remains appropriate. Lawyers must understand their ethical obligations before using AI in connection with client matters. But many of the most useful applications described here do not require sharing client information at all. Questions about software, workflow, scheduling, billing systems, office management, or purchasing decisions can usually be asked in generic terms, allowing lawyers to benefit from the technology without raising confidentiality concerns.

AI does not have to be an all-or-nothing proposition. A lawyer who has no interest in using AI to draft a brief may still find it useful for troubleshooting software, comparing services, creating administrative checklists, organizing workflow, or learning how to use features in existing programs. Those uses do not alter the lawyer’s professional responsibilities, but they can make a practice run more smoothly.

For solo practitioners and small firms, that may be the most sensible place to begin. AI does not need to start with legal research or drafting. It can start with something much simpler: solving routine office problems faster, reducing administrative frustration, and freeing up more time for the work that only a lawyer can do.

Kimberly A. Duda is the owner of the Law Offices of Kimberly Duda, Ltd., a Chicago-based solo practice serving individuals and small businesses. She is licensed in Illinois and Michigan and was admitted to practice in 1995.