How 5 Senior Firm Leaders Drive AI Adoption

For many law firms, the story of AI adoption begins with skepticism. Senior lawyers question the reliability of outputs. Teams worry about risk, accuracy, and client impact. And even when tools are made available, real usage can stall, failing to move beyond initial curiosity.

But in firms where AI adoption is truly taking hold, something different is happening. The shift is cultural, not just technological. And it’s being led from the top.

Across our Innovation Spotlight series, one pattern is clear: When senior leaders move from observers to active champions, AI adoption accelerates. They go beyond simply approving new tools, actively shaping how their organizations experiment, learn, and ultimately transform the way legal work gets done.

In this post, we highlight five innovation leaders who have helped drive that transformation inside their firms. Each offers a distinct, practical lesson on how to turn skepticism into momentum — and momentum into lasting change.

Build a Culture of Experimentation

For Alex Bazin, CTO and COO at Lewis Silkin LLP, driving AI adoption starts with a simple but often overlooked shift: moving away from the idea that “innovation” belongs to a single team. Instead, it should be embedded in how everyone works, every day.

At Lewis Silkin, this mindset shows up in how Harvey adoption is structured. Rather than prescribing specific use cases from the top, Bazin’s team empowers lawyers to experiment and discover value organically. Knowledge lawyers are placed at the center of this effort, acting as local leaders who identify high-impact use cases and share best practices across teams.

That distributed ownership is reinforced by visible leadership support and lightweight incentives — from firmwide spotlight events led by managing partners to friendly competition through usage leaderboards.

As Bazin puts it, “[GenAI] is a rapidly evolving technology and we need to bring a mindset to match.”

The takeaway: AI adoption accelerates when leaders create an environment for experimentation, then trust their teams to lead the way.

Read the full conversation with Alex →

Create the “Lightbulb Moment” at Scale

At Honigman, AI adoption is driven less by access to tools and more by how those tools are introduced.

Chief Practice Innovation Officer, Esther Bowers, and her team focus on creating hands-on, highly practical experiences that help lawyers quickly see how Harvey fits into their day-to-day work. Instead of relying on passive training, they prioritize micro-team sessions, one-on-one coaching, and firmwide roadshows. More creative formats — like gamified ideation and “Shark Tank”-style competitions — encourage experimentation and surface new use cases.

The goal is to make AI feel tangible. “AI can seem overwhelming, so our goal is to show how safe and simple it can be,” Bowers explains.

These efforts are reinforced by strong leadership involvement. Practice group chairs actively use the tools and share their experiences, signaling that AI is relevant across roles and seniority levels. The combination of practical exposure and visible leadership leads to a critical shift: “the ‘lightbulb moment’ when lawyers move from skepticism to excitement as they acquire new skills.”

The takeaway: Design for belief, not just training, and show lawyers exactly how AI improves their day-to-day work.

Read the full conversation with Esther →

Treat AI as a Strategic Transformation

AI adoption at Ashurst is approached as a fundamental rethink of how legal services are delivered. Hilary Goodier, Partner and Global Head of Ashurst Advance, leads this shift by focusing on both vision and execution. Her team combines AI with process design, legal operations, and new delivery models to create new ways of working. “We’re not just improving efficiency, we’re reimagining how legal services are delivered and how value is created,” she explains.

That transformation is grounded in people. Ashurst has invested heavily in AI literacy, training programs, and a global network of over 100 Harvey Champions who lead experimentation within their teams. Rather than limiting AI to narrow use cases, lawyers are encouraged to explore everything from due diligence and contract analysis to more creative applications like client communications and thought leadership.

Goodier is clear that this shift requires both ambition and discipline. The payoff is measurable — in efficiency gains, but also in new client value, differentiated services, and evolving business models.

The takeaway: Treat AI as a business transformation; pair bold vision with real investment in skills, workflows, and new ways of delivering value.

Read the full conversation with Hilary →

Make Adoption a Habit, not a Moment

Rich Robbins, Director of Applied Artificial Intelligence at Reed Smith, has spent decades working on technology adoption in law firms. In his view, most programs fail for the same reason: they rely too heavily on one-time bursts of activity.

At Reed Smith, he’s taken a different approach. Rather than focusing on high-profile launches, Robbins treats AI adoption as a long-term behavior change effort. “Slow and steady wins the race,” he says, noting that one-off initiatives can be “like a heavy rain in the desert — here today, gone tomorrow.”

Instead, AI is embedded into the firm’s daily rhythms: self-service resources, weekly office hours, internal communities, and ongoing training integrated into existing workflows. Senior leaders play a critical role as well, reinforcing the message and modeling adoption across the firm.

That consistency has driven steady growth: from a small pilot group to hundreds of active Harvey users, with increasing engagement from partners and associates. For Robbins, the key is participation. “GenAI is not a spectator sport. People must engage.”

The takeaway: Build adoption through consistency — sustained engagement, not one-time events, is what drives lasting behavior change.

Read the full conversation with Rich →

Anchor Adoption in Real Use Cases and Trust

For Karen Buzard, Partner and Head of US Markets Innovation Group at A&O Shearman, AI adoption becomes real when it’s tied directly to the work lawyers are already doing.

At A&O Shearman, that means focusing on concrete, high-value use cases — from contract analysis and due diligence to research and synthesis. By applying Harvey to familiar workflows, teams can immediately see where it adds value. “GenAI tools are most effective when introduced through specific, relevant use cases,” Buzard explains.

This practical approach is paired with a strong emphasis on trust. Buzard has been a leader in building governance frameworks that ensure AI is deployed responsibly, with clear guardrails around risk, accuracy, and client confidentiality. That foundation makes lawyers more confident in using the technology, and more willing to incorporate it into their daily work.

Adoption is further reinforced through a network of champions and “super users” who help identify opportunities, share best practices, and bring others along. Over time, even initial skeptics begin to shift as they see tangible results.

The takeaway: Make AI practical and trustworthy, and adoption will follow when lawyers see clear use cases and feel confident using the technology.

Read the full conversation with Karen →

These leaders demonstrate what’s possible when AI adoption is intentional, sustained, and led from the top. For a deeper look at what it takes to drive firm-wide transformation, download Beyond the Tools: What it Really Takes to Transform a Law Firm With AI.

If you want to learn how Harvey can can help drive meaningful AI adoption across your organization, contact our team: