TL;DR: Microsoft Copilot for Legal adds more than 20 legal skills to Microsoft 365 Copilot, though UK firms will still need their existing research subscriptions. Before switching it on, check your SharePoint permissions and get an AI policy and staff training in place.
What is Microsoft Copilot for Legal?
Microsoft Copilot for Legal is a set of more than 20 legal skills included in paid Microsoft 365 Copilot licences. It launched on 15 October, some time after legal AI specialists had already established themselves in the market.
Matt Dunn, CTO at Labyrinth Technology, doesn’t see that as a problem for Microsoft.
“Microsoft is late to legal AI, but that may not matter,” he says. “The firms I work with already trust Microsoft with their data, and that trust counts for a lot more than being first.”
The skills work inside Word and in Cowork, Microsoft’s workspace for tasks that run across several files. The legal plugin in Word desktop is switched on by default, while Cowork users need to add it themselves.
What can Copilot for Legal do for law firms?
Microsoft groups the skills into a handful of areas. These are the ones most firms will notice first.
Contract review and negotiation
Copilot can analyse an agreement and compare it against your firm’s playbooks. It proposes edits as tracked changes in Word and flags any provisions that need attention.
Legal analysis and research
It can break down a complicated legal problem and point out where requirements differ or where gaps might exist.
Drafting legal documents
It creates standardised legal documents using your firm’s approved, branded templates.
Managing matters
It builds chronologies for your cases and flags key issues alongside any open questions.
Which legal tools does Copilot integrate with?
The partner list is long, and Microsoft says more plugins will follow.
Legal research
Bloomberg Law, Trellis, Descrybe Legal Engine, Legal Data Hunter, Courtroom5 and Lawstronaut.
Document and matter management
iManage Work, NetDocuments, Box, Litera, Thomson Reuters’ HighQ, LegalZoom and Solve Intelligence.
Contracts and e-signature
Docusign, Juro, Adobe Acrobat Sign, LawVu, SignatureAPI, Dropbox Sign and PandaDoc.
Legal AI and e-discovery
Harvey, Legora, Relativity and Everlaw.
Thomson Reuters and LexisNexis are notably absent from legal research.
“I suspect they’re missing because they’re pushing their own AI products,” Matt says.
Thomson Reuters has connected CoCounsel to Claude, and LexisNexis has built Claude into Protégé.
Is Copilot for Legal useful for UK law firms?
Most of the research tools listed are US-based. UK firms won’t get much English case law out of Bloomberg Law or Trellis, and the same goes for Courtroom5. You’ll still need your existing research subscription.
The drafting and contract skills work from your own templates and playbooks, so the US slant matters less there.
What should law firms check before switching it on?
SharePoint permissions
Copilot can see whatever the user can see. If access across your SharePoint sites hasn’t been set up properly, it may show people documents they shouldn’t have, so this is the first thing to check before rollout.
An AI policy and staff training
Your team needs clear guidance on what Copilot can be used for before you roll it out. Some training will help people get useful results and understand where the tool’s limits are.
Reviewing every output
Everything Copilot produces still needs checking before it goes anywhere near a client. The skills can save time on drafting and review, but responsibility for the final work stays with your lawyers.
How can Labyrinth Technology help?
Labyrinth Technology has supported law firms across the UK for over a decade, and Microsoft 365 is a core part of what we do. We can review your SharePoint permissions and help prepare your firm for Copilot before anyone uses it on client work.
If your firm is already using Copilot, we would be interested to hear how you’re getting on. If you’re still weighing it up, get in touch for a chat about where to start.
