Our Managing Partner Tijana Kojović sat down this week at the Balkan GC Summit with Miša Vorotović, PMI, Sonja Kovač, Heinken, and Elena Tahovska, ProCredit Bank Macedonia, to discuss the evolving dynamic between in-house counsels and external lawyers. Here are the key takeaways on client expectations:
- In-house teams are beginning to adopt AI tools, with business leaders expecting greater efficiency, reliability, and speed. Increased expectations are making their way to law firms as well.
- Companies anticipate that the efficiencies gained through technology will be reflected in lower fees for standardised, non-expert tasks. Law firms need to view investment in technology as a core part of their own development, not an extra cost that can be transmitted on clients.
- Some companies are beginning to request disclosure from law firms on which AI tools are used and how they are applied to specific tasks. While the practical implementation of these requests remains to be seen, this highlights the growing importance of transparency and confidentiality in legal work, especially for highly sensitive matters.
- Clients want their lawyers to help shape new regulations—particularly in emerging sectors. They also expect lawyers to interpret new and ambiguous regulations by drawing analogies with more established legal frameworks.
- The need to adapt the style and language of our legal opinions to each client’s internal audience cannot be overstated. Understanding a client’s internal culture and preferences further embeds us as trusted advisors.
