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Will Law Firms Become the Biggest Power Users of AI Voice Agents?

By Kris Altiere |
November 18, 2025

Will Law Firms Become the Biggest Power Users of AI Voice Agents?

The following article was contributed by Kris Altiere, US Head of Marketing for Moneypenny.

A new cross-industry study from Moneypenny suggests that while some sectors are treading carefully with AI-powered voice technology, the legal industry is emerging as a surprisingly enthusiastic adopter. In fact, 74% of legal firms surveyed said they are already embracing AI Voice Agents , the highest adoption rate across all industries polled.

This may seem counterintuitive for a profession built on human judgement, nuance and discretion. But the research highlights a growing shift: law firms are leaning on AI not to replace human contact, but to protect it.

Why Legal Is Leaning In: Efficiency Without Eroding Trust

Legal respondents identified labor savings (50%) as the most compelling benefit of AI Voice Agents.  But behind that topline number sits a deeper story:

  • Firms are increasingly flooded with routine enquiries.
  • Clients still expect immediate, professional responses.
  • Staff time is too valuable to spend triaging logistics.

Kris Altiere, US Head of Marketing at Moneypenny, said:
“Some companies and callers are understandably a little nervous about how AI Voice Agents might change the call experience. That’s why it’s so important to design them carefully so interactions feel personal, relevant, and tailored to the specific industry and situation. By taking on the routine parts of a call, an AI agent frees up real people to handle the conversations that are more complex, sensitive, or high-value.”

For the legal sector, that balance is particularly valuable.

A Look At Other Industries

Hospitality stands out as the most reluctant adopter, with only 22% of companies using AI-powered virtual reception for inbound calls and 43% exploring AI Voice Agents.
By contrast, the legal sector’s 74% engagement suggests a profession increasingly comfortable pairing traditional client care with modern efficiency.

The difference stems from call types: whereas hospitality relies heavily on emotional warmth, legal calls hinge on accuracy, confidentiality, and rapid routing areas where well-calibrated AI excels.

What Legal Firms Want Most From AI Voice Agents

The research reveals where legal sees the greatest potential for AI voice technology:

  • Healthcare: faster response times (75%)
  • Hospitality: reducing service costs (67%)
  • Real estate: enhanced call quality and lead qualification (50%)
  • Finance: 24/7 availability (45%), improved caller satisfaction (44%), scalability (43%)

Legal’s top future use case is appointment management (53%).

This aligns neatly with the administrative pain points most firms face,  juggling court dates, consultations and multi-lawyer calendars.

Each industry also had high expectations for AI Voice Agent features, from natural interruption handling to configurable escalation rules.
For legal, data security and compliance topped the list at 63%.

This security-first mindset is unsurprising in a sector where reputation and confidentiality are non-negotiable.

Among legal companies, 42% said that integration with existing IT systems like CRM or helpdesk tools was critical.

This points to a broader shift: law firms increasingly want AI not just as a call handler but as part of the client-intake and workflow ecosystem.

The Bigger Trend: AI to Protect Human Time

Across every industry surveyed, one theme is emerging: companies don’t want AI to replace humans ,they want it to give humans back the time to handle what matters.

For legal teams, this means freeing lawyers and support staff from constant call-handling so they can focus on high-value, sensitive work.

Why This Matters for Law Firms in 2025

The AI adoption race in legal is no longer about novelty; it’s about staying competitive.

Clients expect real-time responses, yet firms are constrained by staffing and increasing administrative load. Well-designed AI Voice Agents offer a way to protect responsiveness without compromising on professionalism or security.

With compliance pressures rising, talent shortages ongoing, and client acquisition becoming more competitive, the research suggests law firms are turning to AI as a strategic solution and not a shortcut.

Moneypenny’s Perspective

Moneypenny, a leader in customer communication solutions, recently launched its new AI Voice Agent following the success of an extensive beta program. The next-generation virtual assistant speaks naturally with callers, giving businesses greater flexibility in how they manage customer conversations.

About the author

Kris Altiere

Kris Altiere

Commercial

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Malaysia’s New Arbitration Funding Rules Follow Collapse of Therium-Backed Sulu Claim

Two Malaysian jurists have published a retrospective on the Sulu arbitration, drawing a direct line from the failure of the funded US$15 billion claim against Malaysia to the statutory framework the country has since built around third-party funding of arbitration.

As reported by The Edge Malaysia, the piece is written by Tan Sri Zainun Ali, a former Federal Court judge, and barrister J J Chan. They note that the claim brought by parties describing themselves as heirs of the Sultan of Sulu "was reportedly backed by third-party litigation funding, attributed in public reports to Therium Capital Management," on the usual basis that the funder would take a return if the claim succeeded.

It did not. The Paris Court of Appeal annulled the award in full on 9 December 2025, holding that no valid arbitration agreement capable of binding Malaysia existed. The claimants were ordered to pay Malaysia €200,000 in costs, and separately lost costs orders in proceedings before the Netherlands Supreme Court.

The legislative response is the part with the longest reach. Malaysia's Arbitration (Amendment) Act 2024 took effect on 1 January 2026 and, in the authors' description, "brings third-party funding of arbitration within a clear statutory framework," requiring disclosure of both the funding arrangement and the identity of the funder.

For funders, the sequence is instructive: a single high-profile enforcement campaign against a sovereign produced a disclosure regime that will now apply to every funded arbitration seated in the jurisdiction.

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New York Poll Finds Nearly 80% of Voters Would End Third-Party Litigation Funding

A statewide survey of likely New York voters has found that close to four in five would do away with third-party litigation funding altogether, placing the practice among the least popular items in a broad tort reform poll.

According to the Empire Center for Public Policy, which commissioned the survey from Cygnal and published the results on 2 September, 79.7% said they support ending the arrangement under which outside investors finance lawsuits in return for a share of any recovery.

Litigation funding did not stand alone. The poll found 94.5% supporting prosecution of staged-accident fraud, 83.4% favouring limits on pain-and-suffering awards, 79.7% backing changes to workplace-injury liability rules, 77% supporting reforms aimed at frivolous lawsuits, and 66.6% in favour of amending the Scaffold Law, New York's absolute-liability statute for elevation-related construction injuries.

The clustering matters as much as the individual figures. Funding is being tested here alongside fraud and damages caps rather than as a discrete question about access to capital, and the framing offered to respondents describes investors financing lawsuits for a portion of the proceeds without reference to claimants who could not otherwise bring a case.

New York enacted consumer legal funding protections earlier this year, and the state has no disclosure statute covering commercial funding. Polling of this kind is likely to be cited in Albany as the next session approaches, and funders should expect the 79.7% figure to travel well beyond the survey it came from.

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DIFC Court Orders Defendant to Reveal Who Is Funding His Legal Team in $456M TrueUSD Case

A Dubai court has given a defendant in a $456 million stablecoin dispute until 7 September to swear an affidavit identifying who has been paying his lawyers, in an unusually direct judicial demand for the source of a litigant's legal funding.

As reported by CryptoSlate, the Dubai International Financial Centre Courts made the order in *Techteryx Ltd v Aria Commodities DMCC and others*, the proceedings over $456 million transferred out of the reserves backing the TrueUSD token. Matthew William Brittain, one of the respondents, must disclose by 4pm Gulf Standard Time.

The order is specific about what is wanted. Brittain must give the amounts, dates and bank accounts behind fees paid to Quinn Emanuel, Horizons, Gall, Campbells and FTI Consulting, identify the original sources and ultimate beneficial owners of those funds, explain how the accounts were funded and produce supporting documents. It singles out $1,083,912.49 paid by Aria Bio Industries FZE on 31 October 2025.

Compliance is required "to the best of his ability," and the court indicated that further adjournments would need "the most extreme circumstances" backed by strong evidence. Sanctions are not automatic; Techteryx would have to apply. A committal hearing with a four-day estimate is listed for 26 October.

Most disclosure fights concern claimant-side funding. This one runs the other way, and shows a court treating the defence's funding chain as a matter it is entitled to see.