Legal Exodus: How AI is Enabling More Indian Lawyers to Quit Big Firms

Lawyers across are increasingly moving away from conventional law firm structures to establish their own boutique practices. Why? Like in every other sector, artificial intelligence is rapidly integrating into legal workflows, enabling smaller firms to compete with larger incumbents on efficiency, accuracy, and client service.

In recent years, several high-profile lawyers have transitioned from established firms to independent practices. 

Vishak Abraham left Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas to start Venture A Law, while Akshay Jeet Bhat and Prasad Subramanyam, formerly of CAM and Z47, respectively, founded First Principles Law. Clarence Anthony exited Trilegal to launch Clarence & Partners, and Aditya Vikram Bhat departed AZB & Partners to establish AVB Chambers. Meanwhile, Vyapak Desai and Alipak Banerjee of Nishith Desai Associates set up their own chambers.

One of the most significant enablers of this trend is AI adoption in legal tech. While large firms have the resources to experiment with legal technology, boutique firms are embedding AI into their core operations from the outset, using it as a foundational tool rather than an add-on.

Clarence Anthony, Founder of Clarence & Partners, tells AIM that AI is suited for the legal sector because of its role in probabilistic analysis. “We are trying to leverage what we believe are the biggest value drivers, which are AI and its immense capabilities for content generation, research, validation, accuracy, together with the muscle and capability that come with experienced lawyers, and a human sense of how to deal with difficult situations.”

The technology is fuelling entrepreneurship by lowering barriers to entry and enabling greater efficiency. “It is a tool that galvanises entrepreneurial lawyers. Whether it has had the level of impact it could have had up until now—definitely not. If lawyers were better educated about the capabilities of the tool, you would have many more breaking away and setting up,” he adds.

AI Paralegal

Tools such as Legora and Harvey, which offer advanced drafting, research, and document analysis, are widely used on platforms like SCC Online and Manupatra. Trilegal uses Lucio, which focuses on contract drafting and due diligence. These are priced in the range of ₹20–₹40 lakh annually, suited for large firms.

Meanwhile, there are affordable tools like AI paralegal platform Jhana focusing on research, while Axara specialises in deploying targeted solutions, even for smaller clients. CaseMine, costing between ₹41,000 and ₹1.23 lakh per year, is also used for legal research, and SpotDraft is used for contract lifecycle management. 

Independent lawyers and small law firms often end up using enterprise-level AI tools such as the Gemini Pro version of Canvas for drafting, or research assistants like Notebook LM to assist with due diligence, transaction management or research collation.

Earlier this year, the Ministry of Law and Justice made Nyaya Setu—free for public use—available on WhatsApp. 

Anthony emphasises that AI is not merely a cost-saving mechanism but a powerful knowledge amplifier. It allows lawyers to process vast volumes of information, validate outputs and achieve high accuracy in contracts, pleadings, and negotiations.

Chinmay Bhosale, Co-founder of legal AI platform NYAI, explains, “AI didn’t suddenly make lawyers entrepreneurial, but it has removed many of the structural disadvantages that once made scale essential. When legal research, regulatory tracking, and compliance intelligence are structured and accessible, large teams are no longer a prerequisite for delivering depth.”

Boutique firms are also not relying exclusively on external technology vendors. Many are developing proprietary AI tools in collaboration with technology teams, with lawyers playing a central role in the design and development process.

Radha Kamdar, Senior Consultant - Law Firm Consulting at Vahura, notes that while larger firms can afford expensive AI solutions, boutique firms tend to prefer customised software tailored to their niche practices. “We suggest tech professionals to up-and-coming law firms. While most bigger firms integrate tech with institutionalised client data, newer firms are trying to centralise the same,” she adds.

AI adoption does come at a cost, particularly when deployed at scale. 

Senior lawyers AIM spoke to say creating own AI tools costs firms over ₹90 lakh, but it is viable and efficient in the long term. Firms that use AI have shifted their fee structure from an hourly basis to a fixed rate after informing the client about using AI, which lawyers say is welcomed by clients. When compared to the bigger firms, this model is profitable to the boutique firms due to lower operational costs that boost margins substantially.

Human in the Loop

However, boutique firms assess the value proposition differently. While cost efficiencies are important, the primary advantage lies in the quality and comprehensiveness of legal outputs. AI enables faster research across India’s vast case law databases, automated document review and compliance checks, predictive analytics for litigation outcomes, and enhanced accuracy in drafting contracts and pleadings.

From the client’s perspective, the benefits are evident in faster turnaround times and more efficient pricing. While AI challenges traditional time-based billing for routine tasks, it ultimately reinforces the value of legal expertise, as clients prioritise accuracy, transparency, and outcomes over the tools used behind the scenes.

Talking about the best case of AI use, Vishak Abraham from Venture A Law says, “It is important that the lawyers spend time contextualising first, whether it is for a research question, or for drafting and reviewing a contract. Once the AI generates the result, it would again be important that the lawyer approaches it with scepticism, and verifies as well.”

That said, challenges remain. Maintaining client confidentiality is critical, particularly when case materials are uploaded, making redaction an essential part of the process. AI continues to evolve, bringing with it limitations and margins of error, which necessitate consistent human oversight. 

Global Perspective

Global investment activity in legal technology underscores this momentum. Over the past year, legal tech platform Legora raised $150 million, August secured $5 million, Lawyered raised ₹8.5 crore ($1 million), and Harvey raised around $300 million. Data from Crunchbase shows that firms in the legal and legal tech sectors raised $2.4 billion year-to-date by September of last year, the highest annual total on record.

Firms such as Allen & Overy Shearman, Clifford Chance, Latham & Watkins, and Baker McKenzie use AI tools for legal research, contract analysis, due diligence, litigation support and compliance monitoring. They widely use platforms like Harvey, alongside proprietary in-house systems, to improve efficiency and accuracy in high-volume and complex matters. European and Australian firms are similarly integrating AI into transactional, regulatory and dispute work, viewing it as a strategic capability rather than merely a cost-saving tool.