Between cyber insurance renewals, lawyer expectations and one too many “urgent” IT requests, 2025 gave firm administrators plenty to juggle. It was a year of change under pressure, with firms balancing new technology, rising security demands and the growing influence of artificial intelligence on daily workflows.
Here’s what changed, what stayed constant and what to prepare for heading into 2026.
1. The Great Document Merge: Law Firms Confront Cloud Reality
Since NetDocuments acquired Worldox back in 2022, firms have spent the past few years navigating what that change meant for their long-term document management strategy. What started as a slow pivot has now reached a deadline that can’t be pushed any further.
With roughly one year left before support meaningfully tapers off, firms that delayed migration now find themselves in a sprint. The question is no longer whether to move away from Worldox but how quickly a firm can do it without creating disruption for lawyers and staff.
The real story in 2025 wasn’t the acquisition itself but the urgency it created. Many firms that postponed decisions are now facing compressed timelines, competing internal priorities and the pressure to modernize while keeping daily operations stable.
Many firms that had quietly postponed migration decisions suddenly had to face them. Questions that had been theoretical for years became immediate priorities. How long will our on-premise DMS hold up? What’s our plan if support winds down?
The firms that handled the shift best didn’t just move data. They treated migration as a business initiative, not a technical one. Training, cleanup and communication were built into their plans from the start. Those firms finished faster, saw fewer support tickets and reported higher adoption rates across staff.
Industry research backs it up. The 2025 ILTA Technology Survey found that firms emphasizing change management and communication were the most likely to complete modernization projects successfully.
What’s new: Firms are entering the final stretch of their Worldox-to-Next-Step migrations, with little runway left for delays.
What’s still true: Successful transitions rely on planning, cleanup and user readiness, not the specific platform a firm chooses.
2. AI Gets Practical: Law Firms Move from Curiosity to Governance
After two years of curiosity, 2025 was when AI in law firms became real. Firms began experimenting with tools to assist discovery review, client intake and document drafting.
The biggest shift wasn’t the technology itself but how firms approached it.
One firm that believed its lawyers weren’t using AI decided to audit usage. The results were surprising: almost everyone was already experimenting with AI tools in some capacity. Leadership responded by cutting off access, hoping to prevent risk. Instead, frustrated lawyers began using those same tools from home.
That story wasn’t unique. Across the industry, total bans slowed productivity and drove adoption underground. Ignoring the issue didn’t help either – usage continued quietly, without oversight or data protection.
Firms that made progress took a middle path. They built practical guardrails using a stoplight model: red for unapproved public tools, yellow for supervised experimentation, green for vetted, secure enterprise tools.
Many began aligning with ethical guidance from the American Bar Association’s Formal Opinion 512, which emphasizes competence, confidentiality and communication.
Some also formed cross-functional AI working groups that included IT, knowledge management, practice leadership and risk management. These groups tested tools, documented findings and trained users on best practices.
Prompt design also became a skill worth mastering. Structured prompts with context, clarity and positive instructions consistently delivered stronger results. The Thomson Reuters Future of Generative AI Report found that firms training staff on prompt strategies saw higher satisfaction and better outcomes.
As one administrator put it, “We didn’t realize how much AI had already crept into daily work until we went looking for it.”
What’s new: AI became part of daily work, often before firms had formal policies.
What’s still true: Governance, training and collaboration matter more than the tools themselves.
3. Security Stayed Center Stage: Proof and Protection Became Priorities
Cybersecurity in law firms continued to evolve in 2025, shifting from prevention to proof. Clients, auditors and insurers began demanding evidence that security measures were active, tested and documented. Renewal questionnaires became longer and client security audits grew more common.
Law firms also faced new threats. Deepfake audio scams and sophisticated social engineering blurred the line between human and machine. According to the FBI’s 2025 Internet Crime Report, business email compromise remained one of the costliest attack types across all industries, with law firms among the targets.
The firms that stayed ahead treated cybersecurity as an ongoing discipline, not a one-time project. They enforced multifactor authentication, verified vendor controls and held regular training sessions to reinforce user awareness.
Documentation became as important as defense. Clients noticed. More firms reported that client questionnaires now focus as much on IT governance as on billable work.
As one firm leader put it, “Our clients ask more about our security posture than our hourly rates.”
What’s new: Security expectations became more rigorous, measurable and client-driven.
What’s still true: The fundamentals – backups, testing and continuous training – still prevent most breaches.
Looking Ahead to 2026: From Change to Maturity
Next year won’t bring sweeping change but will focus on steady improvement. Firms will continue modernizing with sharper focus on governance, outcomes and long-term stability.
Expect continued momentum in three areas:
- Turning AI pilots into managed programs that measure ROI
- Optimizing hybrid cloud environments for performance and cost control
- Strengthening vendor oversight and compliance reporting
Firms that connect technology decisions to governance and business goals will be best positioned to grow with confidence in 2026.
We’ll be back in early 2026 to connect these threads and share what firm leaders should expect in the year ahead.
In the meantime, you can explore a few related resources:
- The Wild West of AI in Law Firms – a practical look at AI governance, risks and real-world lessons
- Securing Your Law Firm: Key Cybersecurity Strategies – practical steps for building a security posture clients can trust
- Simplifying Law Firm IT: From Frankenstack Chaos to a Secure Unified Cloud – how firms can move from fragmented systems to a stable, unified platform
- Why SOC Reports Matter When Choosing an IT Partner for Your Law Firm – what firm leaders should look for in technology due diligence
- Strategic IT Planning for Law Firms: A Guide for Leaders and Administrators – a framework for aligning technology with business goals