Stanisław Sopel, chief legal officer at global digital marketplace G2A.com, discusses how to integrate AI into legal teams without compromising the human element
Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being integrated into legal teams to maximise efficiency. What role do in-house counsel play in the incorporation of these tools?
The rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) across legal and business functions is one of the most significant trends in 2026. While AI can deliver efficiency gains in areas such as research, document review and contract management, it also raises issues around data protection, confidentiality, accountability and transparency. In-house counsel will play a central role in defining appropriate governance frameworks, ensuring human oversight and managing regulatory expectations.
How can in-house counsel ensure the successful incorporation of AI without compromising the human element?
AI can be a useful tool for legal teams, but only if it is applied with clear limits. It works best for repetitive, structured tasks such as document review, legal research or contract analysis. It should support lawyers in their work, not replace judgement or responsibility.
A critical part of successful implementation is the security environment in which these tools operate. In-house counsel need to ensure that AI systems are used within properly controlled settings, with clear safeguards around data protection, confidentiality, and access rights. Sensitive information should never be processed through tools that are not fully vetted or aligned with the organisation’s security standards.
It is also important to be clear about accountability. AI can assist with analysis, but decisions must always remain with people. A qualified lawyer must review, interpret and take responsibility for any AI-generated output, particularly in areas involving legal risk or strategic decisions.
Efficiency should not come at the expense of human interaction. Face-to-face discussions with management, business teams, and external advisers remain essential for understanding context, building trust, and resolving complex or sensitive issues. The time saved through AI should be used to strengthen these interactions, not reduce them. Used thoughtfully, AI can make legal teams more effective. Used without proper safeguards or human involvement, it can quickly undermine both trust and judgment.
Special attention should also be given to junior and early-career lawyers. Many tasks that are most easily automated by AI are traditionally part of how young lawyers learn the profession. Legal teams need to be mindful of this and ensure that efficiency gains do not come at the expense of training, mentorship, and the development of judgement. Face-to-face work, shadowing senior colleagues and direct involvement in matters remain essential for building legal skills and professional confidence.
Are there any other key trends that in-house counsel should be monitoring in 2026?
There is heightened scrutiny of transactions and corporate structures, particularly regarding transparency, beneficial ownership, and regulatory approvals. Legal teams are increasingly required to anticipate regulatory concerns earlier in the transaction lifecycle.
An important key trend is the continued convergence of regulatory regimes. For organisations operating digital or cross-border business models (like G2A.COM), areas such as data protection, consumer law, competition and sector-specific regulation are increasingly interdependent. In-house counsel must therefore assess regulatory exposure holistically rather than through isolated legal workstreams.
How can the modern in-house counsel prepare to face these challenges?
The most important attribute of a modern in-house counsel is sound judgement exercised in a commercial context. In-house lawyers are rarely asked to provide purely technical legal opinions: they are expected to advise when information is incomplete, timelines are compressed and business considerations are closely intertwined with legal risk. The ability to assess proportionality and to distinguish between theoretical and material risk is therefore essential.
Modern in-house counsel must be comfortable operating across disciplines and jurisdictions. As regulatory, transactional and operational risks increasingly overlap, legal leaders need a working understanding of finance, governance, technology and regulatory policy, and must be able to coordinate effectively with both internal stakeholders and external advisers.
Senior management and boards do not require exhaustive legal analysis, they require an understanding of options, consequences and risk trade-offs. The in-house counsel’s role is to frame those issues to support informed decision-making.
An effective in-house counsel must be sufficiently embedded in the business to understand its objectives, goals or business strategy, while remaining independent enough to provide clear, sometimes unwelcome, advice. Trust is built and value is delivered when stakeholders recognise that it aligns with the organisation’s long-term interests rather than short-term convenience.
