Tech skills linked to higher salaries for legal professionals
Lawyers with AI skills can expect to tag a premium onto their salaries, new research suggests.
The report, published by Big Four accountancy firm PwC, found that UK lawyer salaries attract a 27% premium where AI skills are required.
This figure was even higher in the US, where lawyers can expect an extra 49% top-up for being tech savvy.
The use of AI within the legal industry is already widespread. MacFarlanes and A&O Shearman have both taken on AI bot ‘Harvey’ to aid lawyers with reviewing, analysing and summarising documents, whilst a second bot, ‘Lawrence’, passed a mock SQE exam.
Another report published earlier this year by LexisNexis found that over a quarter of lawyers regularly use AI in their practice.
Lord Justice Birss has also been vocal in his support for AI in law, noting that ChatGPT is ‘Jolly useful’, and that AI ‘can be a force for good’.
Not to be beaten, however, law students are also making the most of AI’s legal offerings. A flash poll of 1,303 students by Legal Cheek found that one in five had used AI to help with training contract and pupillage applications, with Shoosmiths going as far as to offer advice to candidates who wish to use tech to aid their applications.