Perkins Coie is using AI avatars to teach junior lawyers how to talk to partners

US firm Perkins Coie has introduced AI avatars designed to help junior lawyers practise workplace conversations with partners and senior colleagues, in an effort to boost their interpersonal skills - an area that is often less emphasised in formal education or traditional law firm training.

Lawyers role-play realistic workplace scenarios through interactive conversations with generative AI avatars in what London managing partner Ian Bagshaw describes as “a safe place to fail”, allowing juniors to learn from mistakes without the pressure of a real client or partner interaction.

The demo

Bagshaw posted a demo video of the new training platform on LinkedIn and wrote: “For too long, law has treated IQ as the gold standard” adding “but technical skills alone are no longer enough”.

The video shows a realistic woman avatar giving feedback: “Fair enough, Ian’s not the easiest to read, especially if you’re new to the team. For me, it wasn’t instant, I just made sure every time I did speak to him I had a clear point and something useful to say.”

The initiative comes as the firm prepares to merge with Ashurst, with the two firms agreeing in November to combine to form $2.7 billion Ashurst Perkins Coie.

Seattle-headquartered Perkins Coie is a relative newcomer to the London market, opening a London office in 2024, with private equity veteran Bagshaw coming out of semi-retirement to lead the launch.

AI-powered simulations

Perkins Coie developed the initiative in partnership with Levra, a training platform that builds AI-driven workplace simulations. The London-based company was founded by former Clifford Chance associate Emily Gill and aims to help users develop “human skills” including communication, time management and decision making.

In an ironic twist, it is technology, not humans, that is teaching the next generation of lawyers the interpersonal skills that make people human.

Training in the AI era

As technology begins to automate more routine legal work traditionally handled by junior lawyers, firms are placing greater emphasis on teaching skills that are harder for software to replicate.

AI tools may increasingly fill that gap, offering scalable training without requiring large amounts of partner time invested.

Last year, Kennedys launched a training programme developed with legal AI company Spellbook to train juniors using AI-assisted drafting exercises and simulated scenarios designed to replicate traditional junior-level work.

The trend also extends beyond training. Mishcon de Reya is piloting an AI chatbot to interview trainee applicants instead of relying on traditional written applications.