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Make some time and efficiency gains this year! Bar Standards Board research shows ‘micro-tech’ admin solutions gaining traction amid Bar’s cautious approach to new technology
The Bar Standards Board’s (BSB’s) 2025 report, Technology and Innovation at the Bar, examined the rate of technology adoption among barristers, highlighting both opportunities and challenges. The research was carried out by Jemma Macfadyen and David Bish of Spinnaker Research & Consulting on behalf of the BSB. Although uptake remains cautious (see box, below) and training gaps across academic, vocational and professional stages were identified, barristers are increasingly recognising the benefits of technology for improving efficiency, streamlining processes and strengthening relationships with clients, law firms and courts.
Emphasising that human judgement, skill and experience remain central to their work, and highly risk-aware, barristers participating in the study described how they are using AI and micro-tech solutions, such as task-specific apps, for routine administrative tasks. The following case study examples are drawn from the BSB report.
Uses Read AI as an AI ‘copilot’, a plug-in to record conferences and send to both professional clients (solicitors and in-house lawyers) as well as to direct access and lay clients in order that all parties have a record of the call. While parties are warned that it is AI generated, it has proved to be useful and timesaving. As well as transcription and meeting summaries, the tool is also used for dictating opinions and advice.
‘I file those transcripts, and they can be very useful if I’ve got an ongoing matter where I actually come back after months or sometimes years later, and I can see what I’ve said.’
Tax barrister, small chambers
‘Having worked in a law firm, I’m aware that solicitors comment on how barrister engagement drops off after the hearing, having been keen and engaged in the lead up to the case. From the barristers’ point of view, they have moved on to the next case and the next solicitor.
‘I use OmniFocus to automatically diarise two weeks after the hearing that I send an email to the solicitor to touch base on the case. It’s using a generally available product for a legal task, that helps me manage my to-do list and maintain those solicitor relationships.’
Barrister, employment, large chambers
‘The biggest win for me was actually time recording. You know, we saw an increase in 20% of turnover as a result of that. Because, as a sector, particularly at the Bar, we tend to undervalue the time we put into cases.’
Chief Executive, barrister, commercial, large chambers
‘I’ve got Hazel, a Mac app that deals with document management. I set up a rule in Hazel, then it will look at a particular folder, and it says if there is a PDF, and you set up the variable, so if there’s a PDF file with the name of “X” in this folder, then move it somewhere else.
‘Another example is when I get a receipt. The money gets paid from the solicitor to Chambers’ bank account. Chambers then sends me notification the money is received and the receipt. What I used to do is manually save the receipt, sign it, email that to the solicitor, then go back to my Excel spreadsheet, mark it off, then move the money about either to a business account or a personal account. Now all I do is drag the PDF receipt from the email onto one of the folders that Hazel is looking at. Hazel knows if there’s a PDF in here with my VAT number on it and contains the word “receipt” to trigger an automated process whereby it gets electronically signed, attached to an email, that email is sent to the solicitor, and then the various Excel spreadsheets are opened so I can mark it off. And then the last stage is my banking app opens automatically so I can move the money about.’
Barrister, employment, large chambers
‘OmniFocus – the way it’s set up, it gives me the jobs I need to do on any given day. So there’s no choice. There’s no paralysis of decision. When I’ve finished my case prep, I’ll turn it on the focus and put it here in front of me. There are eight little jobs I need to do today. And then I’ll do those, kick them, they’ll disappear off into the archive of jobs done.
‘And tomorrow when I start up on the focus, it will have the particular jobs I need to do tomorrow. So that’s really helped efficiency, that’s really helped my productivity of getting things done.’
Barrister, employment, medium chambers
‘The other bit of software I occasionally use is mind mapping software, something like MindNote, because if you’ve got lots of moving parts and there’s no easy immediate story to tell, it allows you to deal with each of the elements of the case in their own right and then you can drag and drop and move them to work out how they all fit together into a coherent narrative or which points can be subsumed.’
Barrister, employment, medium chambers
A large chambers was experiencing frustrations with meeting rooms for conferences being double booked. With the implementation of Joan, a workplace platform that plugs into LEX, when an online conference is booked, the physical room is also booked. A small display on the room door lets barristers know if a room is available, occupied or booked for later. This avoids last-minute scrambles for a room and automatic room release ensures that only actively used meeting spaces stay occupied. Users can also book a meeting room directly on the app.
'Because what happens, when you’ve got ten meeting rooms, members will just go and see one’s unoccupied and they’ll just go in and use it, not realising it’s actually being used, or about to be used for people to join from the outside. Now it’s integrated with our LEX and Outlook.’
Operational Director, non-legal, large chambers
Looking to streamline your workflow with tools you already use?
If you want to make sure you’re using generic technology to its full advantage, don’t miss Elizabeth Bowden’s series for Counsel, ‘Tech tips for barristers’. Part 1 (MS Word) and Part 2 (MS Outlook) can be read at www.counselmagazine.co.uk/biography/elizabeth-bowden.
Updated AI guidance from the Bar Council
In November 2025 the Bar Council updated its guidance on the use of ChatGPT, and other generative artificial intelligence large language model systems, following recent case law at the High Court and the fast-paced development of the technology. Find out more.
Henry Fingerhut is Policy Manager at The Bar Standards Board.
The Bar Standards Board’s (BSB’s) 2025 report, Technology and Innovation at the Bar, examined the rate of technology adoption among barristers, highlighting both opportunities and challenges. The research was carried out by Jemma Macfadyen and David Bish of Spinnaker Research & Consulting on behalf of the BSB. Although uptake remains cautious (see box, below) and training gaps across academic, vocational and professional stages were identified, barristers are increasingly recognising the benefits of technology for improving efficiency, streamlining processes and strengthening relationships with clients, law firms and courts.
Emphasising that human judgement, skill and experience remain central to their work, and highly risk-aware, barristers participating in the study described how they are using AI and micro-tech solutions, such as task-specific apps, for routine administrative tasks. The following case study examples are drawn from the BSB report.
Uses Read AI as an AI ‘copilot’, a plug-in to record conferences and send to both professional clients (solicitors and in-house lawyers) as well as to direct access and lay clients in order that all parties have a record of the call. While parties are warned that it is AI generated, it has proved to be useful and timesaving. As well as transcription and meeting summaries, the tool is also used for dictating opinions and advice.
‘I file those transcripts, and they can be very useful if I’ve got an ongoing matter where I actually come back after months or sometimes years later, and I can see what I’ve said.’
Tax barrister, small chambers
‘Having worked in a law firm, I’m aware that solicitors comment on how barrister engagement drops off after the hearing, having been keen and engaged in the lead up to the case. From the barristers’ point of view, they have moved on to the next case and the next solicitor.
‘I use OmniFocus to automatically diarise two weeks after the hearing that I send an email to the solicitor to touch base on the case. It’s using a generally available product for a legal task, that helps me manage my to-do list and maintain those solicitor relationships.’
Barrister, employment, large chambers
‘The biggest win for me was actually time recording. You know, we saw an increase in 20% of turnover as a result of that. Because, as a sector, particularly at the Bar, we tend to undervalue the time we put into cases.’
Chief Executive, barrister, commercial, large chambers
‘I’ve got Hazel, a Mac app that deals with document management. I set up a rule in Hazel, then it will look at a particular folder, and it says if there is a PDF, and you set up the variable, so if there’s a PDF file with the name of “X” in this folder, then move it somewhere else.
‘Another example is when I get a receipt. The money gets paid from the solicitor to Chambers’ bank account. Chambers then sends me notification the money is received and the receipt. What I used to do is manually save the receipt, sign it, email that to the solicitor, then go back to my Excel spreadsheet, mark it off, then move the money about either to a business account or a personal account. Now all I do is drag the PDF receipt from the email onto one of the folders that Hazel is looking at. Hazel knows if there’s a PDF in here with my VAT number on it and contains the word “receipt” to trigger an automated process whereby it gets electronically signed, attached to an email, that email is sent to the solicitor, and then the various Excel spreadsheets are opened so I can mark it off. And then the last stage is my banking app opens automatically so I can move the money about.’
Barrister, employment, large chambers
‘OmniFocus – the way it’s set up, it gives me the jobs I need to do on any given day. So there’s no choice. There’s no paralysis of decision. When I’ve finished my case prep, I’ll turn it on the focus and put it here in front of me. There are eight little jobs I need to do today. And then I’ll do those, kick them, they’ll disappear off into the archive of jobs done.
‘And tomorrow when I start up on the focus, it will have the particular jobs I need to do tomorrow. So that’s really helped efficiency, that’s really helped my productivity of getting things done.’
Barrister, employment, medium chambers
‘The other bit of software I occasionally use is mind mapping software, something like MindNote, because if you’ve got lots of moving parts and there’s no easy immediate story to tell, it allows you to deal with each of the elements of the case in their own right and then you can drag and drop and move them to work out how they all fit together into a coherent narrative or which points can be subsumed.’
Barrister, employment, medium chambers
A large chambers was experiencing frustrations with meeting rooms for conferences being double booked. With the implementation of Joan, a workplace platform that plugs into LEX, when an online conference is booked, the physical room is also booked. A small display on the room door lets barristers know if a room is available, occupied or booked for later. This avoids last-minute scrambles for a room and automatic room release ensures that only actively used meeting spaces stay occupied. Users can also book a meeting room directly on the app.
'Because what happens, when you’ve got ten meeting rooms, members will just go and see one’s unoccupied and they’ll just go in and use it, not realising it’s actually being used, or about to be used for people to join from the outside. Now it’s integrated with our LEX and Outlook.’
Operational Director, non-legal, large chambers
Looking to streamline your workflow with tools you already use?
If you want to make sure you’re using generic technology to its full advantage, don’t miss Elizabeth Bowden’s series for Counsel, ‘Tech tips for barristers’. Part 1 (MS Word) and Part 2 (MS Outlook) can be read at www.counselmagazine.co.uk/biography/elizabeth-bowden.
Updated AI guidance from the Bar Council
In November 2025 the Bar Council updated its guidance on the use of ChatGPT, and other generative artificial intelligence large language model systems, following recent case law at the High Court and the fast-paced development of the technology. Find out more.
Make some time and efficiency gains this year! Bar Standards Board research shows ‘micro-tech’ admin solutions gaining traction amid Bar’s cautious approach to new technology
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