Navigating AI with Confidence

For legal professionals, understanding AI is quickly becoming less of a "nice to have" and more of an essential skill. Whether you're working in private practice or in-house, there is growing expectation that lawyers can confidently engage with the technology shaping the future of legal services.

New tools, new platforms and new use cases seem to emerge almost daily, making it difficult to know where to start and what is genuinely useful. That’s why we recently launched our AI Accelerator Series for our consultant community across the UK, Ireland, Germany, Dubai, Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia.

The aim was simple: provide accessible, practical learning from our own AI journey that demystifies AI and helps legal professionals build confidence, regardless of their starting point.

Starting with the basics

One of the challenges with AI is that people often fall into one of two camps. They are either already using tools regularly or they're unsure where to begin. The first session was designed to bridge that gap.

Delivered by colleagues from our Technology team, the session covered the fundamentals of artificial intelligence, how different models work, what prompt engineering is and how professionals can get better results from the tools they are already using.

Moving from theory to practice

Understanding the technology is one thing. Seeing it in action is another.

Our second session focused on real-world use cases and included a demonstration of Legora, exploring the different tools available within the platform and the types of outputs legal professionals can generate. Rather than discussing hypothetical future scenarios, the session focused on practical applications that lawyers and legal teams are already beginning to explore.

This approach was particularly well received, giving attendees exposure to technology they may not otherwise have had the access to experiment themselves. 

Looking at the bigger picture

For the final session, we broadened the conversation beyond individual tools and focused on how organisations are approaching AI adoption more strategically.

Mike McGlinchey, from the firm's Technology Consulting team shared insights into the work we’re supporting in-house legal teams with, helping them navigate their own AI journeys and understand where technology can deliver genuine value.

Attendees were also given a demonstration of Leah (from ContractPodAi), an AI-powered contract lifecycle management solution, providing another example of how technology is helping legal functions improve efficiency and streamline processes.

What stood out throughout the discussion was that AI is no longer simply a technology conversation. It is increasingly a business, operational and people conversation too.

More than legal resourcing

As part of Pinsent Masons, we're able to connect our consultant community with specialists from across legal, consulting and technology disciplines. That means we can offer more than access to flexible legal opportunities. We can also provide insight into the trends, technologies and challenges shaping the future of the profession.

In a market where AI is developing at pace, creating opportunities to learn directly from practitioners and specialists can make a real difference.

The success of the series reinforces something we've always believed: supporting legal professionals isn't just about helping them find their next opportunity. It's about helping them stay informed, develop new skills and remain confident in a profession that continues to evolve.

We're excited to continue bringing these types of learning opportunities to our global consultant community and with our VarioAdvance platform, consultants on assignment can access this content at any time for asynchronous learning.

If you're interested in applying to join our Vario Hub, you can send us your details through our application form.

If you want to learn more about how a Vario Consultant could help support your in-house team, click here to find out more.