A new repoirt has found 68% of firms are researching, trialling and exploring how client due diligence (CDD) processes could look with AI, with 6% already having embedded AI across their workflows.
Agents of Change, a report by CDD technology provider Thirdfort, found 85% of senior compliance leaders who responded to a survey about the use of AI in law said said the demands on the compliance function in their firm have increased in the past 12 months.
The research suggested several barriers to greater AI adoption in firms, with GDPR (41%) the biggest barrier, alongside a lack of “explainability and auditability” (32%).
A further 30% of respondents said regulatory uncertainty was a factor in wider adoption, and 29% said their skill and knowledge of AI acted as a barrier of adoption.
The research indicated the most common use of AI in firms is drafting documentation (36%) and using AI to summarise regulations or documents (35%).
Of the 200 senior compliance professionals in the survey, 31% said their firm currently uses AI for ID or document verification and risks assessments, with a further 30% using AI to create training resources within their firms. Just 2% said their firm was not using AI in any capacity
Olly Thornton-Berry, co-founder and CEO of Thirdfort, said: “Despite growing pressure on conveyancer and law firm compliance teams, our research shows that AI adoption is still at an early phase.
“However, using AI effectively can reduce the burden of routine client due diligence tasks, allowing compliance professionals to focus their time and expertise on the more complex cases.”
