The State of In-house Legal Innovation in Europe 2026


Built in partnership with Sarah Irwin, Founder of ITGC, this report draws on 88 senior in-house leaders across 11 countries to show how Europe's legal teams are adopting AI, buying technology and what is still holding them back.

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Everyone's Under Pressure to Adopt AI. Who's Making It Work?

72% of legal leaders rate the pressure to adopt AI a 4 or 5 out of 5. Leadership is supportive, and research and contract review are already paying off.

But 46% of teams are still experimenting, 63% have no dedicated legal ops function. Appetite isn't the problem. Turning it into something repeatable is.

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What's Inside?

This report shows some key insights on the in-house legal landscape in Europe.

01

Where Europe's legal teams stand
How your peers approach innovation, who owns it, and why most are still stuck in pilot mode.

02

What's working with AI, and what isn't
Where AI delivers measurable value today, and why accuracy, not job loss, is the fear that slows adoption.

03

Five steps to make innovation stick
How to move from scattered experiments to owned, governed workflows, even without a legal ops hire.

"If the legal function isn't aligned to what the organization is trying to achieve, metrics become noise."
Sarah Irwin
Phil Redhead
Head of Legal Recruitment, Leonid Group Ltd
“The biggest shift is moving from a ‘tool-first’ mindset to a ‘problem-first’ one... AI isn’t magic dust; it’s a strategic enabler that amplifies good processes and exposes weak ones.”
Alessandra Colaci
Alessandra Colaci
CEO and Founder, Legal +AI
“A fancy CLM or AI system will merely automate whatever process you've got - good or bad. The real competitive advantage comes from smart process design, clear roles, and aligning legal and business teams before technology.”
Lucy Bassli
Lucy Bassli
Former AGC, Microsoft
“ROI starts with identifying the exact pain point you want to solve — deal velocity, risk calibration, visibility, or business enablement. Without that clarity, you're fishing in the dark, no matter how shiny your tools are.”
Akshay Verma
Akshay Verma
Chief Operating Officer, SpotDraft