Extract from Petra Pasternak’s article, “Agentic AI for Legal Work: 4 Practical Use Cases.”
It’s hard to believe how quickly generative AI has moved from an experimental technology to widespread use in the legal profession over the last two years.
Agentic AI is shaping up to be the next stage. Unlike GenAI, which generates content or analysis in response to a prompt — followed by iteration through more prompts — agentic AI is designed to carry out multi-step tasks, coordinate complex workflows, and take action on a user’s behalf.
These technologies open the doors to genuinely new ways of getting work done, and interest is growing. According to a 2026 Thomson Reuters report, about 18% of in-house legal professionals say their use of agentic AI is already widespread, and another 18% say they’re planning to use it.
The outcomes that legal teams want are moving beyond what generative AI alone can do, says Everlaw Senior Solutions Architect Aaron Patton, who helps organizations frame practical AI uses in legal workflows.
