Using Generative AI to Enhance Legal Review: Practical Applications and Limitations

According to LawSites, 37% of eDiscovery professionals now use AI, up from just 12% two years ago. What does this surge mean for legal review?

GenAI is transforming how teams tackle eDiscovery by speeding document processing, improving consistency, and reducing costs.

So, let's look into practical applications and limitations of GenAI in the legal industry, from AI-assisted review and technology-assisted review to where human judgment remains essential.

Understanding GenAI in EDiscovery

GenAI is a newer type of technology that has started to change how legal teams approach eDiscovery. It goes beyond earlier tools that relied mainly on keyword searches or basic sorting.

Instead, it can interpret language more naturally and adapt to a variety of document types. It makes it a strong fit for handling the large and varied sets of data that appear in many cases.

One important point is how GenAI compares to past methods. Traditional technology-assisted review often focused on matching certain words or phrases. While that saved time, it sometimes missed important context. GenAI can evaluate meaning and tone, which can lead to more accurate results during AI-assisted review.

GenAI eDiscovery can be used alongside technology-assisted eDiscovery to create a more complete process. Older tools can handle initial sorting, while

GenAI refines results and reduces the amount of work needed from human reviewers. By blending these methods, legal teams can increase efficiency without losing the quality checks that come from human judgment.

Key GenAI Applications in Legal Review

GenAI can be applied in several practical ways that help legal teams manage eDiscovery more effectively. Uses like these focus on reducing manual workload while improving accuracy and speed. Many of these applications work together, creating a process that is faster and more reliable.

Five main applications stand out in current practice:

• Automated document summarization
• Intelligent classification
• Pattern recognition
• Language translation and adaptation
• Drafting assistance

Automated Document Summarization

GenAI can produce concise summaries of long documents. It helps attorneys understand the key points without reading every word. It speeds up early case assessment and supports better decision-making about which materials need closer review.

Intelligent Classification

GenAI can sort documents into categories such as relevant, privileged, or confidential. This step helps legal teams prioritize their review efforts. By filtering documents in this way, the process becomes more efficient and reduces time spent on nonessential material.

Pattern Recognition

Pattern recognition allows GenAI to detect trends or unusual elements in large data sets. It can help identify connections between documents that might not be obvious at first. It can also reveal inconsistencies that need further attention.

Language Translation and Adaptation

When cases involve documents in multiple languages, GenAI can translate them quickly. It can also adapt wording so the meaning stays accurate across different languages and legal contexts. This makes it easier for teams to work on global matters.

Drafting Assistance

GenAI applications can help create initial drafts of legal reports or summaries based on reviewed material. While these drafts still require human review, they give attorneys a strong starting point and reduce the time spent writing from scratch.

Advantages of AI Review for Legal Teams

AI-assisted review offers clear benefits for legal professionals who deal with large volumes of information. Four main advantages stand out:

• Speed and scalability
• Consistency and reduced human bias
• Cost efficiency
• Ability to handle unstructured data

Speed and Scalability

AI-assisted review can process large volumes of documents in a fraction of the time it would take a human team. It's especially useful for cases involving millions of files or tight deadlines.

Consistency and Reduced Human Bias

Human reviewers can interpret the same document in different ways. AI-assisted review applies the same standards every time, which helps keep results more consistent and reduces unintentional bias.

Cost Efficiency

By reducing the number of hours needed for manual review, technology-assisted review lowers the overall cost of a project. So it's more feasible for smaller firms to handle large matters.

Ability to Handle Unstructured Data

Not all legal material is neatly organized. AI-assisted review can process emails, chat logs, images, and other unstructured formats that can be difficult for manual review alone. It broadens the scope of what legal teams can manage effectively.

Human Review vs AI-Assisted Review

AI-assisted review has become an important part of eDiscovery, but it doesn't replace the need for human insight. Each method has strengths that can work together to create better results.

Legal teams often find the most success when they combine the precision of technology with the judgment of experienced reviewers.

Three key points help explain how these approaches fit together:

• Where human expertise is irreplaceable
• How AI-assisted review complements human work
• The role of hybrid models

Where Human Expertise Is Irreplaceable

Human reviewers can interpret tone, intent, and cultural references that may be missed by technology. They can also spot subtle issues such as sarcasm, coded language, or sensitive context. A deeper insight is important in cases where meaning is not clear from the words alone.

How AI-Assisted Review Complements Human Work

AI-assisted review can handle the bulk of repetitive sorting and initial categorization. It allows human reviewers to spend their time on the most challenging and significant materials. By reducing the amount of routine work, the process becomes more efficient without losing quality.

The Role of Hybrid Models

Many teams now use a hybrid approach that blends technology-assisted eDiscovery with human expertise. AI-assisted review filters and organizes the data, while humans confirm accuracy and address more nuanced issues. The combination helps maintain both speed and reliability in legal review.

AI in Legal Industry

GenAI is changing the way legal teams approach eDiscovery, offering faster review and greater consistency. When paired with skilled human oversight, it can improve accuracy and efficiency.

With Reveal, you get accelerated decision-making with an advanced, AI-powered eDiscovery platform built for investigations and legal review. Process over 900 file types with flexible drag-and-drop tools, produce documents to any specification, and use visual analytics to uncover key insights. Our features include OCR, translation, transcription, supervised learning for smarter prioritization, and customizable review tools.

Get in touch today to find out how we can help with your eDiscovery!