Survey highlights dissatisfaction with “expensive” legal system and growing openness to AI
updated on 06 May 2025
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A new survey has revealed that people are more open to using AI and increasingly dissatisfied with Big Law, which many see as “expensive”, “elitist” or “intimidating”. Findings showed that nearly one-third of people would allow a robot lawyer, defined as an AI system acting alone, to represent them in court.
The report, which was conducted by legal intelligence platform Robin AI and research agency Perspectus Global, surveyed 4,152 people across the UK and the US. While respondents were open to using AI for legal matters, the majority would do so only with a human lawyer overseeing the process. When asked who they’d trust most, 69% preferred a traditional lawyer, 27% said a lawyer using AI as a support tool and 4% trusted AI on its own. On average, respondents would want a 57% discount before they’d choose AI over a human lawyer.
However, findings also showed that only 10% of people said they fully trusted law firms. The data also highlighted public frustration over the accessibility of law. Only 10% said legal services are truly accessible to everyone, and just 23% believe good quality services are available to the average person. Respondents stated that key drivers for using AI would be lower cost (47%), 24/7 availability (35%) and faster resolution (35%).
CEO and founder of Robin AI, Richard Robinson, said: “People want faster, cheaper legal help, but not at the expense of human judgment. We’re doubling down on building AI to work alongside lawyers, not instead of them, as a result of this survey.”
Respondents’ openness to AI varied depending on the matter or practice area. People were more comfortable using AI for administrative issues, such as reviewing a rental agreement (49%), writing a will (47%) or challenging a parking ticket (46%). However, support dropped when it came to more emotionally or legally complex matters, such as divorce (17%), redundancy disputes (17%) or criminal defence (11%).
Data also showed that, while attitudes were mostly consistent, support for AI safety and compliance training was higher in the UK (82%) than in the US (76%). In the US, more people said they trusted the large corporate law firms “a great deal” (13%) compared to the UK (8%). Meanwhile, in the UK respondents were more likely (23%) to describe the legal system as “elitist” compared the US (18%).
