Year in Review 2023
December 31, 2023
The LexFusion Year in Review 2023 captures a year defined by unprecedented outreach, industry engagement, and thought leadership in the legal innovation space. Over the course of the year, LexFusion, now part of Baretz+Brunelle, conducted more than 2,600 meetings across 523 law departments and 230 law firms, creating an unparalleled network of connections and insights into the needs and priorities of both in-house counsel and law firm leaders.
A major theme throughout 2023 was LexFusion’s commitment to fostering candid, high-value conversations among decision-makers. Beyond its standard calendar of networking events such as happy hours and dinners, the organization hosted invite-only, Chatham House Rule roundtable discussions in New York, San Francisco, and London. These private sessions brought together over 100 law departments and 100 law firms to engage in unfiltered, collaborative dialogue about the real-world application of Generative AI in legal practice.
Key insights include:
The review closes by reflecting on a prediction made in 2022—that Generative AI would dominate the industry conversation in 2023, even if the profession was not yet fully ready for it. The year’s developments validated that forecast: Generative AI became a central focus for legal innovation, moving from a speculative concept to a pressing reality for many legal teams.
Download the Year in Review to explore further.
A major theme throughout 2023 was LexFusion’s commitment to fostering candid, high-value conversations among decision-makers. Beyond its standard calendar of networking events such as happy hours and dinners, the organization hosted invite-only, Chatham House Rule roundtable discussions in New York, San Francisco, and London. These private sessions brought together over 100 law departments and 100 law firms to engage in unfiltered, collaborative dialogue about the real-world application of Generative AI in legal practice.
Key insights include:
- Generative AI Foresight: LexFusion’s January 2023 prediction that GenAI would dominate industry dialogue—even if the sector wasn’t yet ready—emerged as remarkably prescient.
- GenAI Is a Path, Not a Magic Teleportation Device: While Generative AI represents a real and important advancement, realizing its potential in enterprise settings requires extensive work: prioritization, planning, scoping, knowledge management, change management, leadership buy-in, data hygiene, training, application-layer maturity, and strong UI/UX. As roundtable participants stressed, GenAI success hinges on executing worthwhile projects well—yet only 0.5% of projects are delivered on time, on budget, and with expected benefits, making disciplined project strategy essential.
- Evidence-backed Insights: LexFusion backed its claims with a meticulously curated 2,500+-item primary-source appendix, underlining the depth of its GenAI and legal-economics research.
- Transparency through Red-Teaming: As part of its commitment to authenticity, LexFusion published an anonymized Red Team Memo crafted for a Global 50 law department—showing work that usually remains private.
The review closes by reflecting on a prediction made in 2022—that Generative AI would dominate the industry conversation in 2023, even if the profession was not yet fully ready for it. The year’s developments validated that forecast: Generative AI became a central focus for legal innovation, moving from a speculative concept to a pressing reality for many legal teams.
Download the Year in Review to explore further.
