There’s nothing more frustrating than waiting for legal work that feels like it should already be done.
You’ve explained the issue. You’ve seen a version before. It’s a standard request. But the draft takes days. The answer stalls. Then the same questions come back again.
It’s rarely your solicitor’s fault. Legal work is detailed and exacting. But they’re slowed down by rechecking details, switching between documents, and rewriting things they’ve already written. The admin. The formatting. The endless back-and-forth between tools.
Thanks to generative AI, some of that has changed.
Tools like Lexis+ AI support faster research and drafting. It’s made a difference and helped remove some of the day-to-day hold-ups. But most AI tools still rely on the solicitor to guide the process: issue a prompt, refine the output, and decide what to do next.
This is the next paradigm shift.
From reactive to proactive
The newest generation of legal AI doesn’t just wait to be told what to do. It sees what’s being worked on and suggests what should come next.
This shift is powered by agentic AI: technology that can work autonomously, taking initiative without human prompts at every step. It marks a meaningful step forward in how legal work gets done.
Now launched in the UK, LexisNexis Protégé is one of the first to do this convincingly. This follows the successful launches of Protégé in the USA and Australia.
You may not come across Protégé directly. But if your solicitor is using it, you’ll likely notice the difference.
If they upload a contract, Protégé may prompt them to extract key clauses, generate a draft, or prepare a summary. If they’re working through a bundle, it might suggest building a timeline or drafting a research note. Not because they asked. Because it saw what they might need next.
That change, from helpful to genuinely supportive, is what’s shifting the pace of legal service again.
System support built in
Protégé sits inside tools lawyers already use, including Lexis Create+ within Microsoft Word, and connects to your firm’s document management systems like iManage or SharePoint. That means:
- No pasting between platforms
- No starting over with every matter
- Answers grounded in both UK law and your firm’s own precedent bank
It’s a layer of intelligence built into the tools your solicitor already uses.
Explore how Protégé extends the power of Lexis+ AI across research, guidance, drafting and more. It’s everything you need in one ecosystem.
Why this matters to your business
Protégé isn’t just helping lawyers move faster. It’s helping them use what your firm already knows.
When your solicitor works on a matter, Protégé can draw from past documents, internal clauses and trusted LexisNexis content at the same time. That means the answers you get are shaped by real legal precedent. Not a blank template or a best guess.
If materials have already been uploaded, Protégé stores them securely. They can be searched, summarised, or used again to start a new draft. It can even suggest what to do next based on what’s already there, so your solicitor isn’t repeating steps or rethinking decisions they’ve already made.
And if a draft needs refining, Protégé doesn’t start over. It offers a prompt to continue, clarify or improve the work. That keeps the momentum instead of resetting it.
The result is a smoother, more consistent experience. Quicker documents. Fewer repeated requests. More time spent on the work that actually moves things forward.
Shaped in collaboration with leading UK firms
Protégé was developed through a customer-driven innovation programme by LexisNexis, and shaped in collaboration with firms including Irwin Mitchell and Eversheds Sutherland.
As Eleanor Windsor, Partner and Director of Knowledge at Irwin Mitchell, puts it: “The technology will save our teams time and allow them to focus more on strategic client matters.”
That shift, from administrative load to client focus, is exactly what many businesses value most.
A quiet upgrade with clear results
Protégé doesn’t replace your solicitor. It doesn’t try to. But it reduces the manual load that gets in the way of what matters.
Gerry Duffy, Managing Director of LexisNexis UK, said: “Our vision is for every legal professional to have a personalised AI assistant that makes their life better, and we are delighted to deploy that to the UK through our world-class, fully integrated AI technology platform.”
This is faster drafting, deeper insight and better outcomes in one connected experience.
Copyright 2025. Article made possible by Laura Halls, Lexis Nexis.