The International Bar Association (IBA) has set out the seven most pressing challenges facing the legal profession over the next five years.

They are:

1. Artificial intelligence (AI) which will outpace regulation, with a vast, multi-faceted and difficult-to-predict impact,
2. Environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues,
3. Client and mandate acceptance which now pose an increasing risk to law firms in reputation, regulatory scrutiny, and recruiting terms, especially for global, multi-jurisdictional firms. Pressure not to represent clients viewed as ‘unacceptable’ has diminished the independence of the legal profession, the IBA has said,
4. Talent attraction and retention is a growing business-model challenge because the younger generation of lawyers has different life priorities,
5. A negative public view of lawyers despite strong client service culture and pro bono work,
6. Delivering legal advice across multiple jurisdictions is increasingly challenging due to the substantial number of divergent regulations,
7. The rule of law must be more actively promoted and protected by the legal profession.

Critical legal issues

IBA President Almudena Arpón de Mendívil Aldama has prioritised the agenda-setting of the critical legal issues.

The agenda follows discussions in London and New York with former IBA presidents David W Rivkin and Michael Reynolds, together with representatives of leading law firms and in-house counsel.