The Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) and Major, Lindsey & Africa have released the sixth edition of the ACC’s annual benchmarking report for the management of law departments, which seeks to help leaders assess their operations against their peers’.
According to a news release from the ACC, the 2025 annual report aims to help law department leaders:
- assess the financial and operational performance of their corporate legal departments
- gain insights into key areas like legal team structure, internal legal staffing, outside counsel spend, workload distribution, fee arrangements, strategic expansion, and legal technology adoption and investment
- have a comprehensive perspective of industry benchmarks
- consider opportunities for driving value and performance
“This report provides chief legal officers, general counsel, and legal operations professionals with the critical information they need to make informed decisions on staffing, workload allocation, legal spend, and technology in an increasingly unpredictable world,” said Veta T. Richardson, ACC president and CEO, in the news release.
“As legal departments take on broader strategic responsibilities, this report equips leaders with a critical roadmap for where and how legal can deliver and drive real value to the broader business,” added Greg Richter – partner and vice president of MLA’s retained search, in-house counsel recruiting team – in the news release.
This year’s survey findings revealed trends in legal technology adoption, including significant growth in artificial intelligence (AI)-powered tools.
In its news release, the ACC acknowledged that legal tech has remained a relatively minor portion of total legal budgets. However, the ACC noted that smaller organizations set aside a bigger part of their legal spending to legal tech solutions and strategically moved toward innovation and efficiency.
Regarding fee arrangements and billing models, the survey findings showed that hourly rates continued to dominate. However, the ACC noted that organizations increasingly used fixed or flat fees in IP and capped fees in litigation and M&A, demonstrating a trend toward more predictable pricing in these practice areas.
Report insights
According to the news release, among the ACC’s survey respondents:
- 52 percent of companies implemented AI tools this year, up from 34 percent last year
- Among mid-sized companies or those with US$1–5 billion in revenue, this past year, median total legal staff increased to 20 from 16, and internal legal spending jumped to US$3.1 million from US$2.8 million
- Companies used a median of 10 law firms as outside counsel this year, down from 14 last year
- The use of alternative legal service providers has risen, especially among companies with more than US$1 billion in revenue
- Among law departments this year, 25 percent used fixed or flat fees for some portion of their intellectual property work, 14 percent used capped fees for M&A matters, and 12 percent used capped fees in litigation
- Regarding chief legal officer oversight, compliance responsibilities increased by seven percent, risk management oversight rose by eight percent, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) leadership went up by five percent
“With rising economic uncertainty, shifting geopolitical dynamics, and the growing impact of tariffs and regulatory change, corporate lawyers are under more pressure than ever to deliver value while controlling costs,” Richardson said in the ACC’s news release.
“The demand for sophisticated legal and business expertise continues to grow, even as teams and budgets evolve,” Richter added. “Investment in legal isn’t just about resourcing; it’s about positioning legal teams to lead through change.”
The ACC, a global legal group, seeks to support the common professional and business interests of in-house lawyers working for corporations, associations, and other organizations. On the other hand, Major, Lindsey & Africa is a legal search firm.