88% of Legal Aid Professionals See AI as Key for Access to Justice
A New Report Highlights AI’s Impact on the Access to Justice Community
Access to justice is one of the most fundamental issues facing society today.
92% of civil legal problems encountered by low-income Americans get no or inadequate legal help, and the U.S. ranks 107th of 142 countries in affordability and accessibility of civil justice.
Legal aid societies, which serve people facing these and other critical legal issues, often bear the brunt of this crisis, burdened with large caseloads, staffing shortfalls, and time-consuming tasks.
However, as AI’s usefulness continues to grow within the legal profession, its applications to help address the justice gap and relieve the burden of legal aid societies is becoming more prevalent.
A new report from Everlaw, presented in partnership with the National Legal Aid & Defender Association, Paladin, and LawSites, highlights just how quickly this technology has been embraced.
The report, which gathered insights from 112 legal aid professionals, not only explores AI's potential to narrow the justice gap but also reveals a rapid adoption rate that is outpacing the wider legal industry.
Key Findings from The AI Advantage: How Technology Can Help Bridge the Justice Gap
1. Legal Aid Organizations Show AI Adoption at 2X the Rate of the Wider Legal Profession
Legal aid organizations are already leveraging AI in their work, recognizing it as a potential lifeline to help them serve more clients.
74% of legal aid organizations report they are already using AI in their work, which is double the generative AI adoption rate of the wider legal profession according to the results of Everlaw’s 2025 Ediscovery Innovation Report.
This aggressive early adoption demonstrates a clear consensus: AI is not a luxury tool reserved for Big Law, but a necessary technology being driven by organizations serving our most vulnerable populations.
2. AI Can Help Organizations Serve Clients They Aren’t Currently Able to Reach
Many access to justice organizations struggle with finding sufficient funding and resources, which means they’re often unable to serve all of their clients.
According to the survey results, 90% of respondents said using AI to its full potential would enable them to serve more clients, and some (17%) estimated that AI may help them serve 50% more clients.
By automating high-volume, time-consuming tasks like initial intake and document summarization, AI acts as a force multiplier, allowing staff attorneys to dedicate their time to high-value work, such as court appearances and direct client advocacy.
3. Strong Belief that AI Will Address Justice Gap
The primary mission of most legal aid organizations is addressing the justice gap. In a world where lawyers fees continue to rise exponentially, the legal system has never been more unaffordable for large segments of the population.
However, this is an area where AI offers hope. 88% of respondents believe AI can help address the access to justice gap to some extent. This widespread optimism underscores the potential for AI to create a more equitable legal system.
The near-universal optimism underscores AI’s potential to fundamentally democratize legal services. As Legal Aid of North Carolina’s Chief Innovation Officer, Scheree Gilchrist, put it, "We will never be able to ‘lawyer ourselves’ out of this access-to-justice crisis." The widespread belief that AI offers a viable path forward signals a turning point in the decades-long struggle for a more equitable legal system.
The Path Forward
The findings of this report make it clear: AI is no longer a futuristic concept, but a critical, present-day solution for the legal aid community.
And, while AI is not a panacea—survey respondents cited concerns over issues like data privacy, confidentiality, and hallucinations—the wider results demonstrate the potential the industry sees in this technology.
That’s why EverlawAI Assistant was created with privacy, control, and validation capabilities at the forefront. Everlaw is proud to offer this suite of generative AI features to nonprofit and pro bono practices free of charge.
By transforming high-volume, time-intensive tasks, AI acts as a force multiplier, allowing legal aid organizations to move beyond the limitations of their current resources and staff. The challenge now is not simply whether to adopt AI, but how to implement it responsibly, ethically, and at scale.
With proper guidance and responsible use, this technology offers a tangible path to fundamentally reshape the legal landscape, finally turning the ideal of equal access to justice into a widespread reality.
