Law firms grapple with rising costs of using artificial intelligence
AI subscriptions in the legal sector are becoming more expensive, according to reporting from the Financieele Dagblad (FD). Currently, law firms pay a fixed subscription fee of a few hundred euros per month per user for legal AI tools. However, that pricing level is increasingly seen as temporary, as more AI companies move away from predictable monthly billing.
A major change was announced this week by Legora, a widely used AI platform for legal professionals. The company is replacing its fixed subscription model for its most advanced product with a usage-based system. This means that higher usage directly increases costs.
“Virtually all law firms now have an AI system," said Elgar Weijtmans, former IT lawyer and head of technology at HVG Law. Weijtmans described the impact on firms. “I receive various law firms on the phone in a panic, asking how they are still supposed to afford this,” he told FD.
Cost increases are also expected to continue. Douwe Groenevelt, legal tech expert at Datacation, told the FD that "law firms that want to continue using the very best models will have to take into account that the AI costs will be about two to three times higher."
