The State of Legal Efficiency: How to Transform Your Team with Structured, Data-Driven Processes

Legal teams today operate under immense pressure: growing request volume, increasing business demands, and shrinking resources. But while most teams believe these challenges stem from headcount or expertise, the data tells a different story.

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Streamline AI’s most recent report, The State of Legal Efficiency, surveyed more than 75 in-house lawyers to reveal the true driver of performance: operational design—not talent, budget, or team size. With 70.9% of teams scoring below 15 points on the Legal Efficiency Score and an average efficiency of just 45%, the findings uncover a clear pattern:
Legal teams struggle not because they aren’t capable, but because they lack the structure required to operate at scale.

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This report breaks down the most powerful predictors of efficiency—from centralized intake to automated workflows—and shows how teams can escape reactive work, reclaim bandwidth, and deliver measurable impact across the business.