It's a bold prediction that is becoming more plausible as AI reshapes the landscape and displaces workers at the biggest technology companies, even as law firms scramble to hire for a new wave of positions, including roles centered around the very technology that could redefine their information technology teams.
For now, most law firms are in growth mode when it comes to technology. As law firms rely on new technologies such as generative AI to meet client needs, many are under pressure to expand their tech talent. Roles such as data scientists and software engineers are becoming increasingly common in large law firms.
But there's a catch: Law firms often struggle to find qualified employees who possess both legal knowledge and technical skills. And in the case of certain tech roles, such as cybersecurity, law firms sometimes lowball the salary offer. There's a perpetual talent shortage where law firms compete with each other and companies in different fields for tech talent.
Chris Hildreth, the founder and legal executive recruiter at ESP Legal, a Nashville-based staffing firm focused on the legal technology and litigation support industry, told Law360 Pulse that BigLaw firms are searching for individuals to conduct AI training, as well as more data scientists and engineers. Current needs for smaller law firms, meanwhile, include AI project managers or AI implementation consultants.
While Hildreth expects AI hiring to ramp up now for implementations, the future is a different story.
"Eventually, as processes are streamlined, there might be areas where they can reduce staff," Hildreth said.
Michael Glasser, executive vice president of managed IT services at Frontline Managed Services, told Law360 Pulse that underpinning law firm IT staffing challenges is that they aren't using AI, remote process automation and data analytics to "replace" unfilled IT positions directly. Instead, they're using those technologies to augment existing teams and enhance capabilities.
"However, over the next five years, we absolutely anticipate a reduced reliance on lower-level IT staff as AI, [remote process automation] and data analytics automate more routine tasks," Glasser said. "This transformation will ultimately elevate the IT role within law firms and lead to a much better end-user experience on the help desk."
That's where AI enters the conversation. AI systems have become more advanced in detecting outages, predicting cybersecurity threats and writing code fast.
Nikesh Arora, chairman and CEO of the cybersecurity software provider Palo Alto Networks, announced in an earnings call in 2024 that the company, valued at $130 billion, would reduce its headcount in handling internal ticket support by turning to AI.
In a similar vein to what Palo Alto Networks is doing, Hildreth said that future advancements in AI chatbots could help attorneys troubleshoot basic computer problems, sometimes without the need for a human technician.
"It's not going to eliminate that role completely, but it may reduce the number of staff that you have on your initial help desk team," Hildreth said.
Another area in law firm IT potentially ripe for automation is cybersecurity.
Law firms will always need security engineers to set up firewalls and implement technologies that limit unauthorized data intrusion, especially as cyberattacks against law firms have skyrocketed in recent years. In addition, professionals who handle the risk and compliance side of security are needed now to ensure that regulations are being followed.
But Hildreth said tasks with those particular risk and compliance roles could be automated in the future.
"You may not need as many individuals doing research on risk and compliance," Hildreth said. "I think AI will be able to automate and help."
Questions about the future of IT roles in law firms come as a wave of layoffs hits software developer roles at big tech companies.
The number of software developer job postings on Indeed in the United States has plummeted to its lowest level since 2020, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
In the legal field, this reduction in internal software development may only impact BigLaw firms that hire for these types of roles, Hildreth said.
According to Hildreth, overall IT hiring in law firms got off to a fast start in 2025 but has since leveled out and slowed down this quarter.
Rather than use AI to replace IT staff, there's a growing trend toward empowering existing staff to wield AI to reduce the need for additional headcount at this time, according to Jared Coseglia, founder and CEO of TRU Staffing Partners Inc., which focuses on the data privacy, e-discovery and cybersecurity fields.
"I would also argue that there isn't a shortage of IT talent available for law firms, but rather a lack of appetite from law firms to increase spending for additional headcount," Coseglia told Law360 Pulse. "Firms want to spend less money on nonbillable IT resources."
Coseglia adds that the legal AI contingency contract talent marketplace will be "explosive" in one to two years as law firms scale up based on billable client project-based needs.
"Institutional spend on full-time direct hire legal AI talent remains a less predictable ROI," Coseglia said.
--Additional reporting by Xiumei Dong. Editing by Robert Rudinger.
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