P2P

54 Some firms are doing this by offering short, scenario-based learning modules that pair ethics with technology. For example, instead of teaching "How to use generative AI safely," they teach "How to evaluate whether an AI-drafted clause meets the same confidentiality and privilege standards as human work." This kind of contextual learning connects governance to daily practice. SGS also recommends building "ethics-by-design" awareness, ensuring staff understand where bias, data provenance, and client consent issues can arise in AI-driven workflows. Making those conversations part of onboarding and annual training helps normalize the expectation that everyone has a role in governance. EMPOWERING NEW ROLES Even with solid policies and training, governance still needs human connectors. These are the people who translate between legal, technical, and operational worlds. That is where the insights from Thomson Reuters' "Generalist Legal Technologist" article come in. The piece profiles Adam Rouse, Senior Counsel and Director of Legal Operations at Walgreens, who helped found the Legal Data Intelligence (LDI) initiative. His team's shift from siloed analysts to "Legal Data Intelligence Analysts" illustrates how governance becomes real through people. Rouse explains that these analysts "not only know the technology, but the larger data systems tying the department together." They understand ediscovery, compliance, and privacy holistically, not as separate technical domains. That broader view lets them spot governance gaps and ensure consistent standards across workflows. "We are really focused on the people," Rouse said. "It's not just, 'Here's a workflow, implement it.' It's, 'Here's how you can demonstrate that you as an individual can add value to the organization.'" This emphasis on empowerment is critical. Governance often fails when technologists are treated as service providers rather than stakeholders. By giving cross-functional professionals ownership and clear recognition, firms create champions who keep governance alive in daily operations. As Rouse points out, these bridge roles also make governance portable. "It's a skill that is portable between roles and between functions," he said. "That is the underlying challenge of mostly everything in the legal field." CREATING COMMUNICATION CHANNELS THAT SUSTAIN TRUST If people are the backbone of governance, communication is its circulatory system. The IAPP article emphasizes that AI governance must be "a cross-functional responsibility," integrating legal, product, and ethics teams through formal committees or working groups. In a law firm context, that could mean establishing an AI Governance Council or an Ethics and Innovation Committee that brings together partners, operations leaders, technologists, and data privacy counsel. The goal is not bureaucracy, but transparency and shared learning. SGS advises that mature governance programs incorporate feedback loops and escalation paths. For example, firms might maintain a central register of AI use cases and review them quarterly. These meetings allow teams to surface emerging risks (like model drift or vendor updates) and adapt policies in real time.

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