Will AI replace Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants?

AI can do 100% of the work Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants do at least twice as fast. People already use it for 2 of their 14 tasks, while 12 more are ready but barely used so far.

AI is already doing this2 · 9% of time

People already use AI for these tasks in real work, based on Anthropic's analysis of how Claude is used.

  • Schedule and make appointments.Mostly automated8% of time
  • Make travel arrangements for attorneys.Mostly assisted1% of time

AI could do this next12 · 91% of time

AI can speed these up by at least half, but real use has not caught up yet. These are next in line.

  • Prepare, proofread, or process legal documents, such as summonses, subpoenas, complaints, appeals, motions, or pretrial agreements.28% of time
  • Organize and maintain law libraries, documents, and case files.12% of time
  • Receive and place telephone calls.10% of time
  • Mail, fax, or arrange for delivery of legal correspondence to clients, witnesses, and court officials.8% of time
  • Prepare and distribute invoices to bill clients or pay account expenses.8% of time
  • Make photocopies of correspondence, documents, and other printed matter.5% of time
  • Assist attorneys in collecting information such as employment, medical, and other records.5% of time
  • Draft and type office memos.5% of time
  • Complete various forms, such as accident reports, trial and courtroom requests, and applications for clients.5% of time
  • Attend legal meetings, such as client interviews, hearings, or depositions, and take notes.2% of time
  • Review legal publications and perform database searches to identify laws and court decisions relevant to pending cases.2% of time
  • Submit articles and information from searches to attorneys for review and approval for use.1% of time

Still needs a person0 · 0% of time

No real AI use, no proven AI speedup and no robot that can do it yet. This is the part of the job to build on.

  • Every task in this job is touched by AI or robots in some way.

Your week is not the average

Describe what you actually do and get a personal report: your own tasks, what AI can already do, what stays yours and a 90 day plan.

Get my personal report

What this means

AI can already do almost all of this work at least twice as fast. Real use is still behind at 8 out of 100, so the change here is only getting started. Expect the role to shift toward deciding what to do, checking AI's work and owning the result.

What to do next

  • Do the 2 tasks AI is already handling with AI yourself. Your peers already are, and it is quickly becoming the baseline.
  • Get ahead on the 12 tasks AI could do next. These move as tools improve, so learning them early pays off.
Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants90%Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants86%Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive95%Proofreaders and Copy Markers100%Statistical Assistants100%Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance99%

Get the weekly brief

One short email a week on how AI is changing work, including jobs like this one.

Check another job