Wedlake Bell

Innovation & Technology

Innovation with purpose

245 years of adapting. The same discipline now applied to AI.

Wedlake Bell was founded in 1780. We’ve changed how we work many times since then. What hasn’t changed is the standard: every piece of technology we adopt has to earn its place on a live matter, be governed properly, and keep the relationship between lawyer and client as personal as it’s always been.

We are independent and progressive, with senior decision makers close to the work. That means we can move fast with plenty of resource.

What this looks like

Firmwide AI, no pilot-scheme AI

Every one of our 400 staff has access to Microsoft Copilot – not a select working group.  With more than 80% of our people using it several times a week, Copilot is already embedded in the way we work across the firm.

Data-led improvement through TiPs

Through the government funded Technology in Professional Services (TiPS) initiative, we co-designed a Power BI dashboard in collaboration with lawyers across the firm, using interviews, survey feedback and input from both advocates and sceptics.  It gives lawyers clearer access to matter and client information, surfacing key details in one place so they can respond to client queries more quickly.

Specialist tools where they earn it

We take a human-centred approach to technology adoption, recognising that new tools only add value when people understand them, trust them and can use them confidently. 

For example, our Real Estate team uses Orbital Witness to help clients gain a deeper and clearer understanding of complex title issues and development constraints.  Its advanced mapping and data visualisation capabilities enable us to analyse rights, restrictions and planning considerations with greater speed and accuracy.  This allows us to present legal risks in a more accessible and practical way, helping clients make informed decisions with confidence.

In our Corporate team, FromCounsel helps lawyers move faster from research to first draft, using trusted legal content and document automation to produce consistent, high-quality transaction documents more quickly for clients.

In Disputes, our lawyers use e-disclosure, electronic bundling and chronology tools to manage large volumes of material more efficiently, organise evidence clearly and help clients understand the key issues, risks and timelines in a matter.

We regularly review emerging legal technology and AI tools, but only adopt them where they can demonstrably improve client service, quality, efficiency or risk control.

Governance a client can actually check

Our ISO 27001 certification gives clients visible assurance that information security is managed through formal controls, independent scrutiny and continuous improvement. Every piece of technology and vendor is subject to documented due diligence and a formal risk assessment before it becomes part of our technology stack.

What this means for you

For organisations and corporate clients:

For businesses managing complex transactions, disputes or ongoing legal work, our focus is on improving clarity, coordination and control.

  • Faster document review – AI-assisted review helps manage large volumes of material, with lawyer sign-off on every output.
  • Clearer matter visibility – consistent reporting gives you a better view of progress, risks and next steps.
  • Earlier risk identification – technology helps surface gaps, issues and missing information sooner.
  • Secure handling of information – your information is managed through secure systems, formal controls and clear accountability.

For private clients:

For individuals, families and trustees, technology should make legal support easier to manage – not less personal. We do this using secure, carefully governed tools to support:

  • Security you can trust – discretion and confidentiality supported by secure systems, careful controls and the same personal judgement clients expect from our lawyers
  • A smoother, more responsive experience – client portals, secure messaging and e-signature workflows help make everyday interactions feel simpler, discreet and less burdensome
  • Efficiency with a personal touch – technology helps streamline routine tasks, giving our lawyers more time for judgement, advice and trusted relationships.

For many long-standing family office and high net worth clients, we maintain secure digital data rooms bringing together key trustee information and documents across their corporate, private client and property interests. This gives each family and their advisers a single, well-controlled place to access important information, improves continuity across generations and helps our lawyers respond more quickly and consistently when advice is needed.

Our focus is discretion, clarity and continuity. Technology supports the service, but the relationship remains personal and lawyer-led. 

How we work with you

At the start of a matter, we will agree how you want technology to support your work with us, including any preferences or boundaries around AI, secure document sharing, access permissions and the handling of sensitive personal information.

During the matter, technology may support document review, secure collaboration, analysis and research.  At key stages, it helps you make informed decisions with greater confidence. 

Our lawyers remain accountable for the judgement, advice, quality and responsibility behind the work.

Responsible use of AI

  • AI supports our lawyers. It does not replace their judgement.
  • Only approved AI tools may be used for firm work.
  • AI outputs are reviewed before they are relied on.
  • Where AI materially supports client-facing work, we will be clear about its role and our controls.
  • Our people receive regular quarterly training, so AI is used safely, responsibly and with proper professional judgement

Governance

Governance is built into how we innovate.  Our Innovation Committee, chaired by Innovation Partner Tom Allfree and supported by IT Director David Hymers, identifies practical opportunities from across the firm, shapes priorities with practice groups and turns feedback from live matters into better ways of working.  AI use is overseen through a dedicated AI Steering Committee, which sets the guardrails for safe and responsible adoption, keeps our AI Principles and AI Policy under review, and considers higher-risk questions around client confidentiality, privilege, supervision, quality and regulatory expectations.  This gives us a clear route for moving quickly where the opportunity is low risk, and carefully where the impact for clients, lawyers or the firm is more significant.

Testimonial

“Wedlake Bell is a law firm on a phenomenal journey and is investing heavily in getting the right capabilities and technologies in place for its clients and business. Having spent over 25 years in Legal Tech working for large law firms, suppliers and major corporates, I have no doubt that Wedlake Bell will become market leading in the digital space. They have a great tech stack, work collaboratively across the firm on ideas and have the energy and desire to drive them forward.”

Derek Southall, CEO Hyperscale Group Limited (Former Partner and Head of Innovation & Digital, with award-winning experience in legal technology innovation.)

Speak with us

Need legal advice with a smarter way of working?

If you are seeking legal advice and want to explore whether technology could help manage complexity, improve efficiency or support a better client experience, please contact Tom Allfree or David Hymers.