Profitability in Law: Global Report 2026, based on a survey of legal professionals across six countries including the UK & Ireland, paints a picture of a profession caught between mounting commercial pressure and deepening operational strain. 

Despite the drag of non-billable work, 69 per cent of UK&I lawyers reported increased profitability over the past 12 months. Yet 93 per cent said their firm had the potential to be more profitable still and 70 per cent rated profit improvement as a top or high priority. 

Pricing pressure emerged as the single biggest obstacle to profitability, cited by 51 per cent of respondents, while 41 per cent pointed to the need to reduce expenses. When asked what was preventing their firm from operating more efficiently, 43 per cent blamed too many different systems, 41 per cent pointed to limited AI tools for document review or research, and 40 per cent cited excessive manual administrative work. Just over a quarter (28 per cent) said staff were underutilised. 

The operational picture is compounded by a wellbeing crisis. Some 85 per cent of UK&I lawyers said burnout was a problem at their firm, while 84 per cent identified staff turnover as a concern. A further 38 per cent said their firm lacked sufficient staff capacity and 13 per cent reported they did not have enough support staff.  

The report’s findings on technology adoption offer some indication of where firms are turning for solutions. Some 79 per cent of lawyers said their firm was already saving moderate or significant amounts of time through AI, while 33 per cent said they were using it for document review and 26 per cent for drafting and document generation. Some 88 per cent said they trusted legal technology providers to integrate AI tools responsibly and safely. 

Yet adoption remains uneven. Only 16 per cent of respondents said their firm had invested in reducing administrative burden, and just 35 per cent had prioritised better technology and tools. Meanwhile, 40 per cent said a lack of AI tools to identify opportunities or automate client outreach remained a barrier to growth. Speed and the ability to verify responses were rated equally important by lawyers when evaluating AI tools, each cited by 40 per cent of respondents. 

Shane Branagan, CEO at LEAP Ireland, said: “Keeping your non-billable hours down to a minimum is a priority for every lawyer. Time not earning is time that could be spent doing almost anything else.  I’m sure a few reading this will be all-too familiar with admin stacking up when they’d rather be taking an early Friday or re-investing hours into business development.

“What is encouraging is that the advent of AI is changing this reality and fast, already delivering real time savings for the firms that have adopted the right tools. The challenge now is closing the gap between those firms and the ones yet to act – spreading the benefits and clawing back precious time.”