New Foundational Guide Addresses AI Adoption, Ethics, and Professional Responsibility Across the Legal Profession
Chicago, IL, 29 June 2026 — The International Legal Technology Association (ILTA) and the Thomson Reuters Institute announced today the release of the AI Guide for Legal Professionals: A Foundational Overview, a co-published resource designed to equip lawyers, legal operations professionals, and in-house counsel with a practical, authoritative foundation for navigating artificial intelligence in legal practice.
About the Guide
Developed by ILTA and the Thomson Reuters Institute, the guide is part of ILTA's AI Guideline Series. It is designed to be broadly applicable across practice areas, firm sizes, and both private practice and in-house legal departments. It functions as a primer, not a playbook, addressing the current state of AI adoption in law, the core platforms and AI types available to practitioners, real-world applicability across legal workflows, and the professional responsibility obligations attorneys must navigate when deploying AI tools.
Key areas covered include legal research, drafting work products, document review, ediscovery fact development, and legal administrative workflows. The guide also addresses accuracy risks, including AI hallucinations, ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, and ethics guidance from state bar associations.
Why It Matters
AI adoption across the legal profession is uneven but accelerating. Generative AI tools capable of drafting documents, summarizing opinions, and conducting legal research have moved from the margins of practice to the center of the profession's technology conversation in a remarkably short period. Yet consensus on appropriate use, professional responsibility boundaries, and what these tools can reliably do remains in the early stages. This guide directly addresses that gap.
Courts are issuing new standing orders on AI disclosure. Bar associations are issuing new ethics opinions. Vendors are continually releasing tools that bring both new capabilities and new risks. The guide acknowledges that staying current is now a component of the professional obligation to be competent.
Co-Authors and Contributors
The guide represents a cross-institutional collaboration of legal practitioners, technologists, and academics. Andrew Shulman, AI for Justice Innovation Lead & Program Manager, Thomson Reuters, Brendan Miller, Former AmLaw 100 Partner, Legal Innovation Leader, Caitlin Moon, Professor of the Practice of Law; Co-Director, Program on Law & Innovation; Founding Co-Director, Vanderbilt AI Law Lab, Dan Surowiec, Global Chief Information Officer, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP, Doug McGhee, Advanced GenAI Solutions Engineering, Thomson Reuters, Frank Schilder, Senior Director, Thomson Reuters Labs, Gillian Glass, Director of Legal Services, Farella Braun + Martel, Kassi Burns, Senior Attorney, Trial and Global Disputes,King & Spalding, Kim Wolfe, Chief Administrative Officer of Legal, State Street, Sean Easter, Senior Manager, Applied Research Technology, Thomson Reuters Labs, Zafar Khan, Global Enterprise Architect, Thomson Reuters.
ILTA: Jannise Vinson, Vice President of Content, ILTA, Brian Balistreri, Senior Education Programs Manager, ILTA, Kelly Thomas, Editor of Content & Publications, ILTA
Thomson Reuters: Stephen Seemer, Senior Director, Thought Leadership Content and Strategic Relations, Thomson Reuters, Bryce Engelland, Enterprise Content Lead for Innovation & Technology, Thomson Reuters, Joseph Kubes, Director, Strategic Alliances, Thomson Reuters Legal
Quote
"The legal profession has always held itself to a higher standard, and AI should be no different. Working with ILTA on this guide reflects our belief that the most important contribution we can make right now is helping legal professionals understand not just what AI can do, but what it must do to be worthy of their trust. That is the standard we build to, and it is the standard this guide helps practitioners apply."
Zafar Khan - Global Enterprise Architect, Thomson Reuters
Availability
The AI Guide for Legal Professionals: A Foundational Overview is available now at iltanet.org. It is part of ILTA's ongoing AI Guideline Series. It is accompanied by a glossary of core technical concepts and appendices that include examples of professional responsibility, risk, and court cases involving the use of legal AI.
About ILTA
The International Legal Technology Association (ILTA) is the premier global community for legal technology professionals, serving more than 26,000 members across 50+ countries. For over three decades, ILTA has led the way in sharing knowledge and experience with those facing technology challenges in their organizations and legal departments. Learn more at iltanet.org.
About Thomson Reuters Institute
The Thomson Reuters Institute is the dedicated thought leadership arm of Thomson Reuters, bringing together people from across the legal, corporate, tax, accounting, and government communities. Its content includes analyses, data sets, interviews with industry leaders, and world- class events. Visit thomsonreuters.com/institute for more.
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