We were delighted to host our webinar on contract automation, presented by me, Katie Moon and Rhiannu Cardiff.

We emphasised that contract automation is not a single, all-encompassing solution. Rather, it consists of a series of practical improvements across the contract lifecycle that can remove friction and save time. When considering automation, the best place to start is with repeatable, manual or time-consuming tasks. 56% of lawyers' time is spent drafting contracts. Against that backdrop, 58% of in-house lawyers report using AI to assist with contract drafting, while 62% of chief legal officers say they plan to implement contract drafting automation technology.

How should organisations prepare for contract automation?

• Map the contract journey.
• Choose the right type of contract.
• Identify the main drains on time.
• Ensure templates are automation-friendly.

The focus should be on high-volume, repeatable and low-risk contracts. In some cases, the real bottleneck may not be drafting at all, but the approval or negotiation stages.

Templates may also need to be updated so that they are easier to automate and more accessible for the business to use, for example by adopting clearer, plainer language.

The automation spectrum

There are five stages on the automation spectrum:

Stage 1: Document generation. 

This stage replaces manual drafting with structured intake forms that auto-populate contracts using business-provided data. Using dropdowns and automated clause logic can reduce errors and improve consistency. The speakers noted that relatively simple tools, such as Google Docs or Microsoft Forms, can sometimes be enough to get started.

Stage 2: Approvals. 

Automating approvals can be a relatively low-effort change with significant impact. A workflow with auditable approvals based on risk or value can help organisations maintain control without unnecessarily slowing the process down.

Stage 3: Negotiation. 

This is often the highest-effort stage, but it can still deliver meaningful benefits. Playbooks can guide negotiation positions, while automation can help flag risks and support first-pass reviews. The aim is to help legal teams review contracts more quickly, rather than replace lawyers.

Stage 4: Execution and storage. 

Automation can streamline signing, approval routing and storage. It can also help ensure contracts are saved in the right place, ideally in a dedicated repository rather than in individual email folders, and that metadata is captured for tracking purposes. Poor execution and storage processes can undermine earlier work, so this stage is worth investing in.

Stage 5: Contract management. 

This is another relatively low-effort, high-impact area. Automation can be used to create alerts for key dates and obligations, such as renewal dates, reporting deadlines and opportunities to renegotiate, helping organisations avoid missed deadlines and unwanted auto-renewals.

Key learnings

One of our key takeaways from the webinar is that organisations do not need to automate everything at once. Common pitfalls include over-engineering too early, trying to automate overly complex templates, fixing broken processes only after automation has been introduced, and overlooking change management. The speakers also stressed that organisations should not assume the business will automatically adopt a new tool: it is important to gather user feedback before building it.

Our recommendation is to start small, for example by focusing on one contract type or one part of the contract lifecycle. Templates should be made compatible with automation, and organisations should map how decisions are made, including what triggers involvement from particular stakeholders. Usability should be prioritised over perfection, and changes should be allowed time to settle rather than being constantly revisited.