Chambers NewLaw is Chambers’ guide to LawTech, Alternative Legal Service Providers and the future of the legal industry.

Our rankings cover Flexible Legal Staffing, Contract Lifecycle Management, Litigation Services, Law Firm LPOs, Company Secretarial, LawTech Vendors, LawTech Consulting and Legal Transformation Consulting.

This year, we have expanded our coverage of ALSPs across Europe and Latin America, added new global-wide categories for Intellectual Property Management services and Legal Project Management specialists in law firms, and made substantial revisions to our LawTech Vendors listings. We continue to refine our coverage of the fast-developing LegalTech and legal AI markets.

Demand for technology to streamline and improve the efficiency of in-house legal functions has been accelerated by the advent of generative AI. Legal industry AI platforms are fundamentally reshaping both the in-house function and service delivery by law firms and legal process outsourcing providers.

“These products are changing the lower-hanging fruit we are using external counsel for,” said one in-house lawyer at a major global organisation; “and we would expect the law firms to use it as well. It will change the value proposition we expect.”

In response, major international law firms and consultancies are advising their clients on digital transformation and implementing AI and automation technologies. “We’re very much focused on AI enablement and really supporting clients on their own legal operations,” said a partner at a leading regional firm; “building playbooks for them to get the most out of AI.” This work is covered in our Legal Transformation Consulting category.

LawTech Vendors are also adapting to the AI age. This year’s rankings include new listings for LawTech Legal AI Assistants and LawTech IP Management platforms (which complement our coverage of service-based Intellectual Property Management businesses). Many of the vendors ranked in our LawTech verticals are implementing generative AI capabilities to augment their existing platforms or creating new products to take advantage of this technology.

Alternative Legal Service Providers and legal process outsourcing businesses are also responding to new technology and continuing to win work off more traditional outside counsel. “It’s completely changed the rules of the game for everyone,” says an innovation leader and legal function consultant, who adds that “what will make a difference between ALSPs is how they integrate AI into the day-to-day.”

As important as technology and innovation is to the future of legal services, the profession remains a people-first business. An interviewee at a Flexible Legal Staffing business said: “AI is changing things at a speed people didn't expect. What different types of services are used to be quite well defined, but the lines are blurred now. It's going to keep going at the speed it's going in the next 12 months, we think, which leaves a big gap: there's a real focus on tools to deliver legal services, and there's a big gap with respect to how talent fits in to that and how clients can continue to access the right talent at the right time. It's opening up an exciting opportunity for us that we didn't expect to see.”

You can view the full Chambers NewLaw research schedule here.  

AI and the Elite Law Firm
Learn how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being utilised in elite law firms as discovered by the Chambers LawTech team during their research into the 2023 guide.

Market trends in Chambers ALSP 2023 research
Discover the latest legal insights and market trends across the Alternative Legal Service Providers sector based on the findings the Chambers ALSP team discovered during the research into the 2023 guide.

Analysis of Leading Alternative Legal Service Providers for 2022
Discover why the market is seeing a rise in ALSPs and see what clients have to say about those ALSPs they have worked with based on the Chambers Alternative Legal Service Providers 2022 guide and data.

Our dedicated team of Research Analysts speak directly with those firms submitting for a ranking in the guide, previous clients and referees to evaluate firms services offered.   

To learn more about the Chambers methodology of submissions and our process, please visit our methodology page.   

Discover the value of being a ranked firm and tips on how to successfully submit for rankings here.