By: Will Seaton
Chief Customer Officer, DraftWise

The brutal truth: 73% of mid-sized firms say their tech doesn’t support how they actually work. Here’s how to join the 27% getting real ROI.

Mid-sized law firms are wasting money on Legal AI that sits unused. You know the story—promising demos, disappointing adoption, frustrated partners asking why the firm spent six figures on software nobody touches.

The problem isn’t the technology. It’s the mismatch.

Your Lawyers Bill 29% of Their Day. AI Should Fix That.

Thomson Reuters data reveals that lawyers at mid-sized firms bill only 29% of their workday. The other 71% is for administrative overhead, document formatting, searching for precedents, and reinventing language that already exists somewhere in your system.

Firms using the right Legal AI see 20-30% increases in realization rates. Not because they work harder, but because they work smarter.

Why 73% of Legal Tech Implementations Fail

Engineers, not lawyers, built most Legal AI solutions. They assume your team wants to learn new workflows instead of enhancing existing ones. They offer generic templates instead of your firm’s court-tested language.

The disconnect is expensive:

• Low adoption rates despite significant investment
• Partners resistant to “another new system”
• Associates frustrated by tools that slow them down
• Clients paying premium rates for inefficient processes

The 85% Adoption Rate Secret

When Legal AI aligns with how lawyers actually draft, review, and negotiate, adoption rates hit 85%. The difference? Precedent-driven AI that surfaces your firm’s knowledge, not generic recommendations.

Successful implementations share three characteristics:

1. Zero workflow disruption → Works directly in Microsoft Word, where lawyers live
2. Instant value → No months-long training or configuration
3. Firm-specific intelligence → Learns from your precedents, not competitor data

What Good Legal AI Actually Delivers

Mayne Wetherell saw 85% adoption within weeks. Here’s what changed:

• 70% reduction in document review time → More billable hours per day
• 20-30% increase in realization rates → Direct profit impact
• Instant access to firm knowledge → Junior lawyers draft like seniors
• Client preference tracking → Personalized service at scale

The technology didn’t replace lawyer judgment—it amplified lawyer expertise.

Your Next Move

Stop evaluating Legal AI like a traditional software purchase. Start with your most significant workflow pain point. Then find the AI that solves that specific problem without creating new work.

Download our Lawyer’s Guide to Legal AI for Mid-Sized Firms for our evaluation framework with firms achieving 85% adoption rates. You’ll get:

• ROI prioritization matrix for AI investments
• Vendor evaluation criteria that predict adoption success
• Real metrics from firms seeing measurable profit improvements
• Implementation strategies that work without dedicated IT resources

The guide takes 15 minutes to read and could save you from another expensive AI implementation failure.

Because in a world where efficiency determines profitability, the right Legal AI isn’t optional—it’s a competitive advantage.

Will Seaton is the Chief Customer Officer at DraftWise, where he helps mid-sized firms implement Legal AI that lawyers actually use. Connect with him on LinkedIn or download the implementation guide here: A Lawyer’s Guide to Legal AI for Mid-Sized Firms.