---
title: 5 Predictions for Contract Trends and CLM in 2026
description: Explore 5 predictions for Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) and legal AI in 2026. Discover how AI will reshape legal roles and in-house operations.
image: https://blog.linksquares.com/hubfs/image%2027-1.png
---
[Skip to content](https://blog.linksquares.com/5-predictions-for-contract-trends-and-clm-in-2026#main-content)
[LinkSquares](https://blog.linksquares.com/)
Open Mobile Menu
[LinkSquares](https://linksquares.com/)
Close Mobile Menu
[Why LinkSquares](https://linksquares.com/why-linksquares/) [Products](https://linksquares.com/products/)
---
[The LinkSquares Cloud One platform for all your in-house legal needs](https://linksquares.com/products/linksquares-cloud/)
---
Contract Lifecycle Management Create, review, manage and sign contracts Legal Project Management Centralize your work and keep projects moving Cross-product capabilities Get scalability, efficiency and connectivity LinkSquares Onboarding Experience A step by step guide to get started today
---
[Solutions](https://linksquares.com/solutions/) [Customer Stories](https://linksquares.com/customers/) Resources
Content
[LinkSquares+ Content curated for in-house leaders](https://linksquares.com/plus/) [The Library](https://linksquares.com/library/)
In the studio
[Demo Library](https://linksquares.com/demo-library/)
Community & Events
[Customer Stories](https://linksquares.com/customers/) [Events & Webinars](https://linksquares.com/events/)
Learning
[Blog](https://blog.linksquares.com/) [In-House Insights](https://linksquares.com/inhouse-insights/) [Knowledge Base](https://help.linksquares.com/)
[Events](https://linksquares.com/events/) [About Us](https://linksquares.com/about-us/) [Careers](https://linksquares.com/careers/) [Press](https://blog.linksquares.com/tag/linksquares-news-press) [Pricing](https://linksquares.com/pricing/)
[Request a demo](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/)
Back
Close Mobile Menu
[Contract Lifecycle Management](https://linksquares.com/products/)
[Finalize Streamline your contract creation process](https://linksquares.com/products/finalize/) [Sign Get your contracts executed faster](https://linksquares.com/products/sign/) [Analyze Your post-signature analytics & repository](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze/) [CLM Suite One platform to rule them all](https://linksquares.com/products/)
[Request a demo](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/)
Back
Close Mobile Menu
[Legal Project Management](https://linksquares.com/products/)
[Prioritize Manage, track, and report on legal work in one place](https://linksquares.com/products/prioritize/)
[Request a demo](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/)
Back
Close Mobile Menu
[Cross-product capabilities](https://linksquares.com/products/)
[LinkAI Predictive and generative AI](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze/features/ai/) [Integrations Connect the tools you love](https://linksquares.com/integrations/) [Reporting Improve your teams efficiency with KPIs](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze/features/dashboard/) [API Integrate with any third-party app](https://linksquares.com/integrations/linksquares-api/)
[Request a demo](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/)
Back
Close Mobile Menu
[Cross-product capabilities](https://linksquares.com/products/)
[Onboarding We're here for you from day one](https://linksquares.com/onboarding-services/) [Services Short on time? We can help!](https://linksquares.com/services/) [Support Get answers to all of your technical questions](https://linksquares.com/contact-us/)
[Request a demo](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/)
[LinkSquares](https://linksquares.com/)
- [Why LinkSquares](https://linksquares.com/why-linksquares/)
- Products
Introducing: Agentic AI for Contract Management
Search, edit, and create contracts like never before.
[Learn more](https://linksquares.com/agentic-ai/)
Contract Lifecycle Management Create, review, manage and sign contracts Legal Project Management Centralize your work and keep projects moving Unified Capabilities Get scalability, efficiency and connectivity LinkSquares Onboarding Experience A step by step guide to get started quickly
[Finalize Streamline your contract creation process](https://linksquares.com/products/finalize/) [Sign Get your contracts executed faster](https://linksquares.com/products/sign/) [Analyze Your post-signature analytics & repository](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze/) [CLM Suite One platform to rule them all](https://linksquares.com/products/)
[Prioritize Manage, track, and report on legal work in one place](https://linksquares.com/products/prioritize/)
[LinkAI Predictive and generative AI](https://linksquares.com/ai/) [Agentic AI Smarter contracting with a multi-agent approach](https://linksquares.com/agentic-ai/) [Integrations Connect the tools you love](https://linksquares.com/integrations/) [Reporting Improve your teams efficiency with KPIs](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze/features/dashboard/) [API Integrate with any third-party app](https://linksquares.com/integrations/linksquares-api/)
[Onboarding We're here for you from day one](https://linksquares.com/onboarding-services/) [Services Short on time? We can help!](https://linksquares.com/services/) [Support Get answers to all of your technical questions](https://linksquares.com/contact-us/)
- Solutions
Use Cases
[Crisis Management](https://linksquares.com/solutions/crisis-management/) [Contract Review](https://linksquares.com/solutions/contract-review/) [Contract Storage](https://linksquares.com/solutions/contract-storage/) [Data Privacy & Compliance](https://linksquares.com/solutions/data-privacy-compliance/)
[Deal Acceleration](https://linksquares.com/solutions/deal-acceleration/) [Mergers & Acquisitions](https://linksquares.com/solutions/fundraising-and-ma/) [Vendor Management](https://linksquares.com/solutions/vendor-management/)
---
DEPARTMENTS
[Legal](https://linksquares.com/solutions/linksquares-for-legal/) [Procurement](https://linksquares.com/solutions/linksquares-for-procurement/) [Sales](https://linksquares.com/solutions/linksquares-for-sales/)
- Resources
Content
[LinkSquares+ Content curated for in-house leaders](https://linksquares.com/plus/) [The Library](https://linksquares.com/library/)
Community & Events
[Customer Stories](https://linksquares.com/customers/) [Events & Webinars](https://linksquares.com/events/)
In the studio
[Demo Library](https://linksquares.com/demo-library/)
Learning
[Blog](https://blog.linksquares.com/) [In-House Insights](https://linksquares.com/inhouse-insights/) [Knowledge Base](https://help.linksquares.com/)
[](https://linksquares.com/events/product-spotlight-webinar-risk-revolution/)
- Company
[About Us](https://linksquares.com/about-us/) [Careers](https://linksquares.com/careers/) [Events](https://linksquares.com/events/) [Partner Program](https://linksquares.com/partners/) [Press](https://blog.linksquares.com/tag/linksquares-news-press)
- [Pricing](https://linksquares.com/pricing/)
- [Login](https://app.linksquares.com/)
- [Request a demo](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/)
[LinkSquares Team](https://blog.linksquares.com/author/linksquares-team) Jan 29, 2026 16 min read
# 5 Predictions for Contract Trends and CLM in 2026
LinkSquares gathered our own legal department leaders and put them on the record for their expectations for legal technology in 2026. How much will artificial intelligence transform in-house legal work in the coming year -- and how much of the current AI contracts hype is premature or outright overblown?
The result was a set of five clear expert predictions for CLM and legal AI for 2026. You can read a summarized breakdown below, including quotes from our seasoned legal ops managers and expert in-house counsel, or [watch these legal pros argue their cases here](https://linksquares.com/events/squared-and-settled-linksquares-2026-industry-predictions).
In the meantime, here's how LinkSquares Legal anticipates the next 12 months of CLM:
## 1. CLM systems will become less visible but more indispensable
In 2026, the Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) solutions will evolve beyond a simple repository and workflow tool to become a core, "first-order" system of record within the enterprise. Similar to how CRM and ERP systems serve as the single source of truth for customer and financial data, respectively, **CLMs will become the central hub for all contractual data**. This shift will be driven by an increased focus on system integrations, linking the CLM with other business applications across legal, finance, sales, and procurement.
*"AI is making it easier to extract information from contracts, and … \[that\] really brings forth the CLM as the core underlying system to drive a lot of the operational activities in the way you engage with your customers and vendors and other relationships."* **- Simon Schanche, VP, Operations, LinkSquares**
The result will be a more holistic, data-driven approach to business operations, enabling real-time visibility into contractual risks, obligations, and opportunities. This will also mean more digital files, less paper copies, and a sunsetting of the last scanned PDFs. Above all, the relevant contractual information will appear in context in apps and workflows outside the CLM, where it provides the most value with the least friction -- all thanks to CLM integrations and AI.
## 2. AI will transform the legal professional's role from creator to editor (but will risk making some legal pros worse at both jobs)
AI's impact will move from shiny novelty to a necessity, especially as tools grow as scalable operations versus GPT wrappers. Legal professionals will no longer see AI as a threat, but as a crucial partner in their daily work. AI will handle the initial "first-pass" work (triaging contract requests, generating a first draft of a redline, etc.) automating the most time-consuming, tedious tasks. But these gains will come with risk.
*"I think we've seen that in several \[high-profile\], very public incidents. And I think those kinds of things are gonna become more and more and more and more challenging for every organization. Not just in the legal department's own work, but also across the board in the organization."* **- Jonathan Greenblatt, VP, Legal, LinkSquares**
While AI will free up lawyers to focus on higher-level strategic analysis, complex negotiations, and critical proofreading of AI-generated work, it will also require that lawyers consciously focus on ensuring that dependence on AI does not erode critical skills. **The core value of a lawyer and legal professionals will shift from drafting and finding information to discerning, refining, and validating AI outputs, which will affect hiring, training, and talent evaluation practices.** The legal teams that do not adopt this human-in-the-loop, AI-augmented approach could be seen as inefficient and outdated by their business partners, while the lawyers that cannot validate and enhance lowest-common-denominator AI output will simply be replaced by AI entirely -- or by professionals that can stay sharp even when AI is riding shotgun in their workflows.
## 3. Legal technology management will be a critical role filled by a specialty hire (or a partnership with RevOps)
*"I think that with the current market trends and focus on costs and really honing that in, there will be a lot of focus on how to get scrappy from managing your technology. ... I think everyone's really thinking through, 'how can I make sure I'm managing this with the resources that I have in many instances, and how is the technology going to enable me to do this more efficiently?'"* **- Ashlyn Donohue, Director of Legal, LinkSquares**
As legal technology becomes more complex and deeply integrated into business operations, the need for legal tech skills will be a demanding expectation. In theory, legal tech will only become easier to interact with as software advances and user interfaces simplify. But in the meantime, **legal team members will be expected to manage their entire tech suite to its full potential**.
*"Having been close to RevOps functions … \[it\] being very close to the go-to-market tech stack and thinking about the role that contracts play in that ecosystem, I think we're gonna start to see more roles expecting LegalOps experience or legal systems experience. That's already occurred through integrations, but I think it'll perpetuate further into legal teams not having a LegalOps specialist necessarily residing in their team, but utilizing another internal function within RevOps to perform those activities for them."* **- Jonathan Greenblatt, VP, Legal, LinkSquares**
**If companies can’t achieve AI efficiencies with existing staff, companies will increasingly hire legal operations, legal technologists, or "legal prompt engineering specialists" who bridge the gap between legal practice and technology.** These roles will be responsible for the implementation, management, and continuous improvement of the legal tech stack, including the CLM. If not within the legal team, this may fuel a growing intersection between legal operations and RevOps, as companies seek to align legal processes more closely with revenue-generating activities.
## 4. Expect increased scrutiny and contractual language surrounding AI use
The widespread adoption of AI will bring with it significant legal and ethical considerations. In 2026, there will be a sharp increase in the materialization of these concerns in contract language.
*"Looking at how foreign countries are handling \[AI\], how the US is handling it, and how \[it's being separately handled\] on a national and state-level basis." **- Ashley Jones, Commercial Counsel, LinkSquares***
**
*"But I think until we get some clearer guidance that is more universal, there's gonna be a lot of scrutiny and asks around AI and its applicability and how it's going to be regulated and managed."* **- Ashley Jones, Commercial Counsel, LinkSquares**
**Contracts will start to include specific provisions, akin to security and privacy questionnaires, that address the use of AI technology by both parties.** This new contractual diligence will cover everything from data security and intellectual property rights related to AI-generated content to statements of transparency regarding a party's use of AI in a transaction. This trend is a direct response to the tension between AI generation and individual rights, as well as a growing vigilance against security threats from bad actors.
## 5. In-house teams will take control of the legal value chain
Fueled by the efficiency gains from new CLM and AI tools, in-house legal departments will reclaim work that was traditionally outsourced to law firms.
*"In other words, the in-house legal department will start doing even more legal work, especially as you start thinking vis-a-vis an outside counsel. … Have \[external lawyers\] do the last 10 percent. Your in-house legal team can save costs by doing the other 90 percent \[with the help of AI\]."* **- Jonathan Greenblatt, VP, Legal, LinkSquares**
With AI automating generalist tasks, in-house teams can handle a greater volume of routine matters more quickly and at a lower cost. This will lead to a rebalancing of the in-house/outside counsel relationship. Law firms will increasingly be engaged for highly specialized, fixed-fee work, while corporate legal departments become the central hub for day-to-day legal operations and strategic business guidance. **This shift reflects a move towards more efficient, data-driven in-house legal functions that can confidently manage a larger portion of the legal value chain.**
## Get your legal tech future started now
In 2026, anything can happen. These predictions are just a few of the developments we’re anticipating. The legal landscape in 2026 will be transformed by AI, turning Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) into an essential, centralized data hub integrated across the business. This shift will move the legal professional's role from creator to editor, requiring a focus on validating AI outputs, and driving the need for specialized legal tech management roles, often in partnership with RevOps. Furthermore, a rise in contractual language will govern AI use, addressing legal and ethical concerns and increasing scrutiny. Ultimately, these efficiency gains will empower in-house legal teams to take greater control of the legal value chain, handling routine work with AI and using outside counsel only for the most specialized matters. This future is defined by a data-driven, AI-augmented, and in-house-controlled approach to legal operations. And we’re here to help with it all.
Need deeper discovery on the arguments we're making? [Get the full transcript and watch the recording of our expert depositions here](https://linksquares.com/events/squared-and-settled-linksquares-2026-industry-predictions).
Ready to get a head start on your AI-enhanced legaltech future? [**Schedule your personalized LinkSquares demo today.**](https://linksquares.com/demo-request/)
## Subscribe to the LinkSquares Blog
Stay up to date on best practices for GCs and legal teams, current events, legal tech, and more.
## Related Articles
### [Ashley Jones Mar 20, 2026 14 min read From Filing Cabinets to Superpowers: A Post-COVID Retrospective for Legal Teams I remember the day vividly. It was early March 2020. Everyone was instructed to work remotely for the day, a relatively routine ... Start Reading](https://blog.linksquares.com/post-covid-retrospective-legal-teams)
### [LinkSquares Team Jun 10, 2026 17 min read 10 Steps for Transactional Lawyers to Write Better AI Prompts Most AI legal outputs aren’t wrong, they’re just not helpful. The AI isn't broken, but the prompts you're using to coax ... Start Reading](https://blog.linksquares.com/write-better-ai-prompts-transactional-lawyers)
### [LinkSquares Team Jan 14, 2026 13 min read Legal Teams Guide to Using LLMs Effectively Large language models (LLMs) have quickly become essential tools for legal teams, transforming how contracts are analyzed, key ... Start Reading](https://blog.linksquares.com/a-practical-guide-for-legal-teams-using-llms-without-losing-the-plot)
- [Products](https://linksquares.com/products)
- [LinkSquares Cloud](https://linksquares.com/products/linksquares-cloud/)
- [Prioritize](https://linksquares.com/products/prioritize/)
- [Finalize](https://linksquares.com/products/finalize)
- [Sign](https://linksquares.com/products/sign)
- [Analyze](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze)
- [Full Suite](https://linksquares.com/products)
- [Integrations](https://linksquares.com/integrations)
- [Reporting](https://linksquares.com/products/analyze/features/dashboard/)
- [API](https://linksquares.com/integrations/linksquares-api/)
- [LinkAI](https://linksquares.com/ai/)
- [Agentic AI](https://linksquares.com/agentic-ai/)
- [Services](https://linksquares.com/services/)
- [Solutions](https://linksquares.com/solutions)
- [Crisis Management](https://linksquares.com/solutions/crisis-management/)
- [Contract Review](https://linksquares.com/solutions/contract-review/)
- [Contract Storage](https://linksquares.com/solutions/contract-storage/)
- [Data Privacy & Compliance](https://linksquares.com/solutions/data-privacy-compliance/)
- [Deal Acceleration](https://linksquares.com/solutions/deal-acceleration/)
- [Mergers & Acquisitions](https://linksquares.com/solutions/fundraising-and-ma/)
- [Vendor Management](https://linksquares.com/solutions/vendor-management/)
- Departments
- [Legal](https://linksquares.com/solutions/linksquares-for-legal/)
- [Procurement](https://linksquares.com/solutions/linksquares-for-procurement/)
- [Sales](https://linksquares.com/solutions/linksquares-for-sales/)
- [Resources](https://linksquares.com/library)
- [LinkSquares+](https://linksquares.com/plus)
- [Blog](https://blog.linksquares.com/)
- [Cockpit Counsel](https://linksquares.com/cockpit-counsel-series)
- [Customer Stories](https://linksquares.com/customers)
- [Demo Library](https://linksquares.com/demo-library)
- [Events & Webinars](https://linksquares.com/events)
- [In-House Insights](https://linksquares.com/inhouse-insights/)
- [Knowledge Base](https://help.linksquares.com/)
- [The Library](https://linksquares.com/resources)
- Company
- [About Us](https://linksquares.com/about-us)
- [Careers](https://linksquares.com/careers)
- [Contact Us](https://linksquares.com/contact-us/)
- [Onboarding](https://linksquares.com/onboarding-services/)
- [Partner Program](https://linksquares.com/partners)
- [Pricing](https://linksquares.com/pricing/)
- [Press](https://blog.linksquares.com/tag/linksquares-news-events)
- [Recognition](https://linksquares.com/recognition/)
- [Support](mailto:support@linksquares.com)
- [Why LinkSquares](https://linksquares.com/why-linksquares/)
#### LINKSQUARES, INC.
60 State St.
Suite 1200
Boston, MA 02109
[617-681-8552](tel:617-681-8552)
[salesinfo@linksquares.com](mailto:salesinfo@linksquares.com)
© 2026 LinkSquares, Inc.
- [SaaS Terms of Service](https://linksquares.com/saas-terms-of-service/)
- [Privacy](https://linksquares.com/privacy-policy/)
- [Security](https://linksquares.com/security/)
- [Status](https://linksquares.statuspage.io/)
- [Your Privacy Choices](https://go.linksquares.com/linksquares-do-not-sell-or-share-personal-data)
- 
- 
```json
{
"@context" : "http://schema.org",
"@type" : "Organization",
"address" : {
"@type" : "PostalAddress",
"addressCountry" : "United States",
"addressLocality" : "Boston",
"addressRegion" : "MA",
"postalCode" : "02109",
"streetAddress" : "60 State Street"
},
"knowsLanguage" : "en",
"logo" : {
"@type" : "ImageObject",
"url" : "https://6934676.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/6934676/Navigation/logo_643dd1b1.svg"
},
"name" : "LinkSquares",
"url" : "https://blog.linksquares.com/5-predictions-for-contract-trends-and-clm-in-2026"
}
```
```json
{
"@context" : "http://schema.org",
"@type" : "BlogPosting",
"abstract" : "Explore 5 predictions for Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) and legal AI in 2026. Discover how AI will reshape legal roles and in-house operations.",
"author" : {
"@type" : "Person",
"name" : "LinkSquares Team"
},
"dateModified" : "2026-01-29T15:41:09Z",
"datePublished" : "2026-01-29T15:30:00Z",
"headline" : "5 Predictions for Contract Trends and CLM in 2026",
"image" : "https://6934676.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/6934676/image%2027-1.png",
"inLanguage" : "en",
"keywords" : "[AI, Contract Management, Sales Acceleration, Legal Tech & Trends, Legal Task Management]",
"mainEntityOfPage" : {
"@type" : "WebPage"
},
"name" : "5 Predictions for Contract Trends and CLM in 2026",
"publisher" : {
"@type" : "Organization",
"logo" : {
"@type" : "ImageObject",
"url" : "https://6934676.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/6934676/Navigation/logo_643dd1b1.svg"
},
"name" : "LinkSquares"
},
"text" : "LinkSquares gathered our own legal department leaders and put them on the record for their expectations for legal technology in 2026. How much will artificial intelligence transform in-house legal work in the coming year -- and how much of the current AI contracts hype is premature or outright overblown? The result was a set of five clear expert predictions for CLM and legal AI for 2026. You can read a summarized breakdown below, including quotes from our seasoned legal ops managers and expert in-house counsel, or watch these legal pros argue their cases here. In the meantime, here's how LinkSquares Legal anticipates the next 12 months of CLM: 1. CLM systems will become less visible but more indispensable In 2026, the Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) solutions will evolve beyond a simple repository and workflow tool to become a core, \"first-order\" system of record within the enterprise. Similar to how CRM and ERP systems serve as the single source of truth for customer and financial data, respectively, CLMs will become the central hub for all contractual data. This shift will be driven by an increased focus on system integrations, linking the CLM with other business applications across legal, finance, sales, and procurement. \"AI is making it easier to extract information from contracts, and … [that] really brings forth the CLM as the core underlying system to drive a lot of the operational activities in the way you engage with your customers and vendors and other relationships.\" - Simon Schanche, VP, Operations, LinkSquares The result will be a more holistic, data-driven approach to business operations, enabling real-time visibility into contractual risks, obligations, and opportunities. This will also mean more digital files, less paper copies, and a sunsetting of the last scanned PDFs. Above all, the relevant contractual information will appear in context in apps and workflows outside the CLM, where it provides the most value with the least friction -- all thanks to CLM integrations and AI. 2. AI will transform the legal professional's role from creator to editor (but will risk making some legal pros worse at both jobs) AI's impact will move from shiny novelty to a necessity, especially as tools grow as scalable operations versus GPT wrappers. Legal professionals will no longer see AI as a threat, but as a crucial partner in their daily work. AI will handle the initial \"first-pass\" work (triaging contract requests, generating a first draft of a redline, etc.) automating the most time-consuming, tedious tasks. But these gains will come with risk. \"I think we've seen that in several [high-profile], very public incidents. And I think those kinds of things are gonna become more and more and more and more challenging for every organization. Not just in the legal department's own work, but also across the board in the organization.\" - Jonathan Greenblatt, VP, Legal, LinkSquares While AI will free up lawyers to focus on higher-level strategic analysis, complex negotiations, and critical proofreading of AI-generated work, it will also require that lawyers consciously focus on ensuring that dependence on AI does not erode critical skills. The core value of a lawyer and legal professionals will shift from drafting and finding information to discerning, refining, and validating AI outputs, which will affect hiring, training, and talent evaluation practices. The legal teams that do not adopt this human-in-the-loop, AI-augmented approach could be seen as inefficient and outdated by their business partners, while the lawyers that cannot validate and enhance lowest-common-denominator AI output will simply be replaced by AI entirely -- or by professionals that can stay sharp even when AI is riding shotgun in their workflows. 3. Legal technology management will be a critical role filled by a specialty hire (or a partnership with RevOps) \"I think that with the current market trends and focus on costs and really honing that in, there will be a lot of focus on how to get scrappy from managing your technology. ... I think everyone's really thinking through, 'how can I make sure I'm managing this with the resources that I have in many instances, and how is the technology going to enable me to do this more efficiently?'\" - Ashlyn Donohue, Director of Legal, LinkSquares As legal technology becomes more complex and deeply integrated into business operations, the need for legal tech skills will be a demanding expectation. In theory, legal tech will only become easier to interact with as software advances and user interfaces simplify. But in the meantime, legal team members will be expected to manage their entire tech suite to its full potential. \"Having been close to RevOps functions … [it] being very close to the go-to-market tech stack and thinking about the role that contracts play in that ecosystem, I think we're gonna start to see more roles expecting LegalOps experience or legal systems experience. That's already occurred through integrations, but I think it'll perpetuate further into legal teams not having a LegalOps specialist necessarily residing in their team, but utilizing another internal function within RevOps to perform those activities for them.\" - Jonathan Greenblatt, VP, Legal, LinkSquares If companies can’t achieve AI efficiencies with existing staff, companies will increasingly hire legal operations, legal technologists, or \"legal prompt engineering specialists\" who bridge the gap between legal practice and technology. These roles will be responsible for the implementation, management, and continuous improvement of the legal tech stack, including the CLM. If not within the legal team, this may fuel a growing intersection between legal operations and RevOps, as companies seek to align legal processes more closely with revenue-generating activities. 4. Expect increased scrutiny and contractual language surrounding AI use The widespread adoption of AI will bring with it significant legal and ethical considerations. In 2026, there will be a sharp increase in the materialization of these concerns in contract language. \"Looking at how foreign countries are handling [AI], how the US is handling it, and how [it's being separately handled] on a national and state-level basis.\" - Ashley Jones, Commercial Counsel, LinkSquares \"But I think until we get some clearer guidance that is more universal, there's gonna be a lot of scrutiny and asks around AI and its applicability and how it's going to be regulated and managed.\" - Ashley Jones, Commercial Counsel, LinkSquares Contracts will start to include specific provisions, akin to security and privacy questionnaires, that address the use of AI technology by both parties. This new contractual diligence will cover everything from data security and intellectual property rights related to AI-generated content to statements of transparency regarding a party's use of AI in a transaction. This trend is a direct response to the tension between AI generation and individual rights, as well as a growing vigilance against security threats from bad actors. 5. In-house teams will take control of the legal value chain Fueled by the efficiency gains from new CLM and AI tools, in-house legal departments will reclaim work that was traditionally outsourced to law firms. \"In other words, the in-house legal department will start doing even more legal work, especially as you start thinking vis-a-vis an outside counsel. … Have [external lawyers] do the last 10 percent. Your in-house legal team can save costs by doing the other 90 percent [with the help of AI].\" - Jonathan Greenblatt, VP, Legal, LinkSquares With AI automating generalist tasks, in-house teams can handle a greater volume of routine matters more quickly and at a lower cost. This will lead to a rebalancing of the in-house/outside counsel relationship. Law firms will increasingly be engaged for highly specialized, fixed-fee work, while corporate legal departments become the central hub for day-to-day legal operations and strategic business guidance. This shift reflects a move towards more efficient, data-driven in-house legal functions that can confidently manage a larger portion of the legal value chain. Get your legal tech future started now In 2026, anything can happen. These predictions are just a few of the developments we’re anticipating. The legal landscape in 2026 will be transformed by AI, turning Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) into an essential, centralized data hub integrated across the business. This shift will move the legal professional's role from creator to editor, requiring a focus on validating AI outputs, and driving the need for specialized legal tech management roles, often in partnership with RevOps. Furthermore, a rise in contractual language will govern AI use, addressing legal and ethical concerns and increasing scrutiny. Ultimately, these efficiency gains will empower in-house legal teams to take greater control of the legal value chain, handling routine work with AI and using outside counsel only for the most specialized matters. This future is defined by a data-driven, AI-augmented, and in-house-controlled approach to legal operations. And we’re here to help with it all. Need deeper discovery on the arguments we're making? Get the full transcript and watch the recording of our expert depositions here. Ready to get a head start on your AI-enhanced legaltech future? Schedule your personalized LinkSquares demo today.",
"url" : "https://blog.linksquares.com/5-predictions-for-contract-trends-and-clm-in-2026",
"wordCount" : "2171"
}
```