From Manual Frustration to Efficiency: How One Mid-Sized Law Firm Cut Document Review Time by 83%
Firm Overview
A prominent mid-sized law firm with diverse practice areas joined Litera's Early Access Program for Lito, the AI Legal Agent, designed to automate every aspect of legal workflows. While the firm had been modernizing its technology infrastructure, many lawyers were still wary of adopting new tools. The rollout was overseen by an implementation team consisting of an associate attorney, who quickly became a primary user, and an IT application specialist responsible for managing the deployment.
Business Challenges
Manual Document Work Consumed Time and Frustrated Lawyers
Before implementing Lito, the firm struggled with significant operational inefficiencies that directly affected lawyer productivity and satisfaction. Everyday document tasks such as clean-up and redlining routinely took 30 minutes per document. Lawyers spent hours each week on manual formatting, detracting from billable work and slowing case progress.
Adoption Barriers: Despite the firm’s commitment to technology upgrades, adoption was hindered by lawyer skepticism. Many described themselves as “not very techy” and expressed concerns about complex learning curves. This apprehension led to resistance and delayed the benefits of previous technology investments.
Workflow Inefficiency: The lack of integration between tools forced lawyers to switch between multiple applications to complete a single task. This fragmentation resulted in lost productivity and compounded the frustration, making routine work feel even more burdensome.
Solution
AI automation embedded directly in Microsoft 365
The firm deployed Lito, the AI Legal Agent, within its Microsoft 365 environment. Lito integrates directly into Microsoft Word, Outlook, Web, and iOS, with the firm using the AI Legal Agent primarily in Word so lawyers could complete document reviews, bulk redlining, and comparison tasks without changing their workflow.
Lito sits in Microsoft Word's top navigation ribbon, making it accessible right where lawyers already work. The interface is straightforward, requiring minimal training. Tasks that once needed manual attention now run in minutes with consistent results.
Lawyers began using Lito on their first day, with one lawyer noting, "It was very easy to use. It doesn't take much time on the front end to learn how to use it.”
Results & Metrics
83% time savings and instant adoption across practice areas
- Quantitative Impact: Internal metrics from the Lito Early Access Program revealed that routine tasks, once taking 30 minutes, were reduced to just 5 minutes—a dramatic 83% decrease in time spent per routine document review. This substantial reduction immediately freed up lawyer time for higher-value, client-facing activities.
- Lawyer Feedback: Lawyers participating in the Early Access Program reported immediate productivity gains and minimal onboarding time. One associate lawyer stated, “Everything that is horrible to do and takes thirty minutes now takes five, so that’s awesome. The tasks that used to be frustrating just don’t feel that way anymore.” Another lawyer noted, “The first day we were shown Lito, I was already using it for bulk redlining.” These testimonials underscore the measurable efficiency improvements and the rapid adoption observed across practice areas.
- Workflow Efficiency: By embedding AI automation directly into Microsoft Word, Lito streamlined document review and comparison tasks, reducing the need to switch between multiple tools and minimizing friction in routine processes.
- Adoption Insights: Even lawyers who were initially hesitant about new technology quickly became active users. The IT application specialist emphasized the importance of strong change management and hands-on support in driving widespread adoption across practice areas.
- Customer Voice: By embedding AI automation in lawyers' existing workflows, the firm reduced frustration, recovered billable time, and demonstrated that even tech-hesitant users can quickly adopt innovative solutions when implementation is thoughtfully managed.
To learn how Lito can help your firm can automate workflows across the practice and business of law, schedule a demo.
Metrics and testimonials are based on lawyer interview feedback during the Lito Early Access Program.
